NELSON – MLA Michelle Mungall, Nelson-Creston says students in Nelson will benefit from safer, more efficient schools thanks to over $2.4 million in provincial funding for school upgrade projects in the Kootenay Lake School District.

“Students in Nelson deserve high-quality learning environments, which is why I’m proud to be part of a government investing to improve the quality of our schools and the safe transportation of our children,” said Mungall. “Today’s announcement will allow our kids and staff to focus on what is most important at school – learning.”

The Kootenay Lake School District is receiving $2,438,836 in funding for school maintenance projects which include dust collector upgrades at L.V. Rogers Secondary, and window upgrades at Hume Elementary. The district will also receive funding for flooring upgrades at various schools as well as funding for seven new school buses.

These funding programs are part of a $206 million provincial investment under the Annual Facilities Grant, School Enhancement Program, Carbon Neutral Capital Program and Bus Replacement Program, to ensure students have well-maintained learning environments and bus services that are safe, comfortable and efficient. This year’s funding is a $500,000 increase from the previous year, and a $20.6 million increase from 2016/17.

Since September 2017, the New Democrat government has also approved over $3.1 million in funding for school upgrades across the district.

The New Democrat government has delivered historic levels of funding to B.C. schools, including the biggest operative and capital budgets in B.C. history, an extra $1-billion in classroom funding over 2016/17, $2.7-billion over three years to build, seismically upgrade and expand K-12 schools, and a new annual $5-million playground fund.

Learn More: https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2019EDUC0019-000324