The Lloydminster Public School Division (LPSD) will be staying with the Saskatchewan school system.
Prior to the unveiling of the province’s budget, the LPSD had raised the possibility of a shift in governance to Alberta, due to the proposed changes for the Saskatchewan school system removing locally elected boards.
When the idea was raised in January, LPSD Director of Education Todd Robinson had indicated a switch would be pursued if there was no way to keep an elected schoolboard in the Border City, and that it was available as a choice due to the bi-provincial nature of Lloydminster.
“If the greater good was put at stake, we have to look at those other options and decide at that point in time whether that makes sense for Lloydminster,” said Robinson, in January.
However, the possibility of a change has now been put aside. The Saskatchewan budget unveiled on Wednesday did not eliminate locally elected school boards, while taking out $22 million from the province’s pre-kindergarten to Grade 12 school system, which will receive $1.86 billion in 2017-18.
The news went over well with Robinson, who published his thoughts on the “Directors Blog” section of the LPSD website.
“I am very pleased to inform you that Lloydminster Public School Division will continue to move forward unaffected by any boundary changes and will continue to be governed by a locally-elected Board of Education,” wrote Robinson.
“It is an understatement to say that today is a great day for Lloydminster Public and the City of Lloydminster. On behalf of the Board of Education, I want to thank each and every one of you that took time to engage in the process by attending meetings, writing letters or calling your government officials to express your concern. Without your efforts, today’s decision may simply have went in another direction.”
Despite the choice to keep local elected boards, the government has indicated changes are in the works for the province’s Education Act. Boundary changes for school division in the province may also still occur, but the government will consult with those impacted beforehand.