The Greater Essex County District School Board has given their stamp of approval for the 2026-27 budget.
The budget was presented on June 16 which included a projected surplus of $185,000.
The budget of $581.5-million for the upcoming school year was approved by the board on Tuesday.
This includes an operating budget of $536.3-million and a capital budget of $45.1-million. The operating budget still reflects the surplus of $185,000.
The board is projecting an enrolment of about 33,526 students for the 2026-27 school year, which is nearly 1,200 less students compared to the current year. Due to that decrease, the board is eligible for $5.1-million in bridge funding.
Following a $6.3-million deficit in the 2024-25 school year, the board was required to create a Multi-Year-Financial Recovery Plan to avoid possible supervision by the Ministry of Education. The board also had a deficit of $988,000 in the 2025-26 school year.
The GECDSB states that the 2026-27 budget meets the requirements of the Education Act and the board’s Multi-Year Financial Recovery Plan (MYFRP).