Minister cuts short meeting with school board

There was little common ground at a Tuesday morning meeting between B.C.'s education minister and the Vancouver School Board.

The two sides met at the district headquarters to discuss a recent scathing report by a special government advisor that blamed the school district's budget shortfalls on financial mismanagement by the trustees.

Education Minister Margaret MacDiarmid described the face-to-face meeting with the board as difficult and challenging, and left early for another event in Richmond.

"They're seeming to me to be defending the status quo. That would be something the comptroller general in her report has not recommended," she said.

School board chair Patti Bacchus said the meeting wasn't helpful and said she wants an independent review into how the province funds school boards, possibly by the province's auditor general.

In the past the school board has blamed costs that are rising faster than funding for the shortfall, and Bacchus said without more money from the minister there will be cuts to services in the school district.

"It's not going to be pretty. It's going to be the cuts that people were out rallying against in April. They're back, and in addition, some possible closures of schools as well," she said.

But MacDiarmid turned down the request from the trustees for emergency funding to cover the shortfall the $18 million budget shortfall that board says it is facing this year.

"There has been an increase in funding. There's not further funding for the 2010-11 year for any school districts, actually," she said.

Both sides say they will meet again, but the school board is expected to vote on its budget on June 23.