INSIDE

Delta has its eyes on Point students

By Meg Olson

Delta school district appears to be looking to Point Roberts to make up for dropping enrollment.

According to an October 3 interview with CBC News, Delta school district has 400 fewer students this year, which means over $2 million in lost provincial funding. District chair Heather King likened the drop to losing an elementary school and is quoted as calling the trend “alarming.”

A solution being discussed by the district, said the CBC report, is saving local students the long bus ride to Blaine, and charging $6,900 per child to have them attend Delta public schools.

The per student cost at Blaine school district today is $7,320, according to Blaine school district superintendent Ron Spanjer, but that is paid by state funding, not parents. ”The difference in Delta is that the Washington state funding will not follow those students,” he said.

Jon Anderson, superintendent of Delta schools, said he had spoken with former Blaine superintendent, Mary Lynne Derrington, to see if it was possible for Blaine School District to buy services from Delta so Point Roberts students could go to closer schools. “The feeling then was they didn’t have the authority to do that outside the country,” he said. “We are certainly open to discussing any options but that would need to come from Point Roberts families.”

Anderson said they have taken steps to encourage Point Roberts students to come to Delta schools, such as charging them $6,900 rather than the $12,000 international student tuition fee. “Are we actively recruiting? I don’t like those words,” he said. “But we are closer and we are happy to assist and welcome Point Roberts families.”

Point Roberts primary school parents attending an October 4 meeting at the school said one of the challenges for the local school was competition from both public and private schools in Canada. South Delta school district, Southpointe Academy and Boundary Bay Montessori House have all used local cable and newspaper advertising in an attempt to attract new students. “Southpointe ads say “now serving 25 families in Point Roberts so that’s 30 to 50 kids we aren’t reaching,” said Linda Hughes.

“The Delta school district sees themselves as a player here,” Spanjer told local parents. “When it becomes a competitive process it gets interesting.”

Spanjer said there had always been competition for Point Roberts students. “The Delta option has always been available to families.  We have a number of students annually that choose to attend school in neighboring districts and we also enroll a number of students from neighboring districts,” he said. “It is our objective to continue to provide a quality program for students living in Point Roberts and in doing so keep them in the Blaine school district.”