Calgary: A grassroots coalition is mobilizing to initiate a vote on whether the Canadian province of Alberta should stop providing public funds to private schools. The group, called Alberta Funds Public Schools, needs to collect 177,732 signatures by February 11 of next year for the issue to be considered for a referendum.
The push for a vote follows a recent survey indicating that the majority of Albertans (approximately 60 percent) favor ending the practice of allocating taxpayer money to private educational institutions. The central argument put forth by the petitioners is that public education is currently underfunded, and therefore, taxpayer resources should not be diverted to private education.
The results of this survey have raised concerns for the Alberta Minister of Education. Should the referendum succeed, the provincial government may be compelled to halt public funding for private schools.
This action could potentially lead to the closure of numerous private schools across the province. However, proponents of the funding argue that private schools offer crucial support for students with special needs that may not be adequately available within the public system.
Conversely, opponents of the funding criticize that private institutions, which maintain their own admission policies, are unnecessarily utilizing public resources at a time when public schools are struggling due to a lack of funds.
