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The chair of School District 16's District Education Council (DEC) says the group will make sure to keep budgets balanced, but doesn't want programs or resources cut this year.

"So it's quite a juggling act," said Patricia Lee, who has held that post for the past few years. "And we're always trying to let the department of education know that there are areas where more funding is needed."

Among areas that could use a funding boost are general student services, such as transportation, janitorial issues, and ongoing school maintenance.

"The money that is supplied by the Department of Education, there's just never enough in the student services budget," she said.

Lee noted maintenance needs were difficult to predict, as priorities shift from facility to facility as issues arise.

Fluctuating fuel prices have made it even harder to keep in the black, with schools increasingly hit by fuel costs affecting bus transportation and heating.

However, last year's harsh winter, rather than draining the transportation and heating budgets, actually helped matters.

"Last year, we thought we were going to be running a deficit, and with the number of snow days, we were able to break even," she said.

"But [this year] we're hoping for a mild winter, and children being in school where they can be educated... so if we have a mild winter, we're going to be running a deficit."

As for capital projects, the top priorities for the district will be expanding Eleanor W. Graham school in Richibucto and building the new school in Tabusintac to replace Tabusintac Rural School, which was closed due to health and safety reasons in 2002.

"So now we're waiting for the money to say ‘yes, they can go ahead and build them'," she said of the two projects. "Ground hasn't been broken, but they do know what the schools will look like."

The DEC will have an idea of what the budget will look like in December.

Another priority for the district is continuing to implement the 95 recommendations of the Wayne MacKay report on inclusive education, particularly in integrating special needs and other students.

"The Department of Education has been working on those, and in order for us to put some of them in place, of course, money is needed," she said, adding: "It has to be new money, it can't be money that has already been allocated for schools."

Lee also said the DEC would be looking at intensive French pre- and post-testing results as the revised changes to the province's FSL systems are put in place. That would include how the French learning modules children from Kindergarten to Grade 2 will be undergoing before entering Grade 3 immersion are working.

She said the DEC would hear reports on that progress from Superintendent Laurie Keoughan, but noted parents had been working well with teachers so far.

"It seems to have been received well," she said of the changes, which were revised over the summer after public pressure prompted Education Minister Kelly Lamrock to comprise on some of them. "We don't hear any complaints from parents, we're not getting calls."

The DEC meets once a month from September to June, with the next meeting being held Oct. 14. Meetings are open to the public, except for December and June, which are closed for planning purposes. Meeting dates can be viewed on the District 16 website.