Alberta school officials meet to discuss budget cuts

Alberta school board chairs and senior administrators met in Edmonton on Saturday to address concerns about looming cuts to education.

Education Minister Dave Hancock said in August the province would cut $80 million in funding to education as it grapples with a $6.9 billion deficit.

Hancock also warned school boards throughout the province to brace for additional cuts next year.

Heather Welwood, president of the Alberta School Boards Association, said Saturday's emergency meeting was productive, but many school board officials are concerned about the impact of the cuts.

"I heard frustration, in some instances even anger," she said.

"School board trustees hold education dear to their heart and when we're talking upwards of hundreds of millions of dollars that potentially could be cut from education, they don't know how they're going to manage that."

Welwood said school boards have tough decisions to make when it comes tofiguring outwhat to trim from their budgets.

"These are very important decisions. When you look at education and how it's set up, you don't want to make swift decisions that are going to have effects on the long term because you have a short-term deficit problem."

Welwood said school board officials would be talking to local communities and parents to decide where the cuts should be made.