School district, teachers call on province for more funding as multiple Surrey schools run out of paper

Students at multiple Surrey, B.C., schools have been unable to complete their homework lately — not because it's too hard or there's too much, or even because the dog ate it, but because of schoolwide paper shortages.

Lizanne Foster, president of the Surrey Teachers' Association, said in some cases, students are forced to share worksheets or use scrap paper to copy worksheets out. 

The shortage stems from a variety of reasons, she said, because schools aren't able to buy enough new textbooks and there hasn't been enough money to upgrade hardware like iPads and laptops for all students to work digitally.

"It's a combination of things, all related to chronic underfunding," she told Gloria Macarenko, the host of CBC's On The Coast. 

Foster said teachers are also running out of other paper products, like tissues and paper towels. 

The Surrey School District said the paper shortages were resolved last week, once principals contacted the district. It said school budgets for supplies this school year were designed to match enrolment — which in some cases, increased. 

"There has been no conscientious effort on the part of the board or senior staff to make any cuts specifically to paper, whether that be worksheet paper, photocopy paper, paper towels, Kleenex," said Gary Tymoschuk, chair of the Surrey Board of Education.

Tymoschuk said the district, like other organizations and agencies funded by the province, is facing a "budget crunch," and there is no money available to increase funding for school supplies like paper. 

"I'm sure that doesn't land very well, but I'm also certain our teachers and teachers throughout the province know what the root of the problem is: there just isn't adequate funding.

"There is not enough funding in the province of B.C. to make sure we can adequately provide the supplies and the educational space we need for our students."

In an emailed statement to CBC News, the Ministry of Education said as of April this year, districts are receiving just over $13,600 per student for the school year on average, up slightly from the year before.

The ministry did not respond to questions as to whether that funding is tied to inflation. It said districts are funded based on the number of children who need education and services, not on costs. 

It said Surrey's school district received more than $1 billion in base funding, and another $2 million from another fund, more than any other district in the province. 

But Foster worries budget constraints from the province, and in turn the district, will lead to teachers having to buy more supplies out of pocket — something they already do a lot, she said. 

"Teachers have been bringing supplies into the classrooms, out of their own pockets, for a very long time," she said. 

That's true both in Surrey and at public schools across the country. Some teachers have taken to creating online wish lists to get random people to help them buy what they need. 

Foster said a lot of teachers are just making do with whatever they've got.

"They're doing all kinds of things to cope."