A special budget meeting that included cuts to several programs, including music, has been postponed by the Greater Victoria School District.
In an emailed statement, School District 61 (SD61) said they would be holding off on a decision on the 2021/22 budget.
A special budget meeting that was to be held at 7:30 p.m. Monday evening was also postponed until further notice.
Instead, a regular board meeting formerly scheduled to start at 9:30 p.m. took its place at 7:30 p.m.
The move came after a weekend that saw a large physically distanced protest held on Saturday.
Protesters lined Douglas Street from the BC Legislature up towards the Greater Victoria School District Office.
Drivers honked their horns in support as protesters waved signs with slogans like “Don’t cut Music” and “Save SD61 Music.”
The University of Victoria Student Music Educators issued a letter speaking out against the cuts as well.
“Difficult decisions will need to be made to address the district’s financial situation, but they should be made with full information and after an appropriate period of deliberation,” they wrote.
“Instead of haphazardly rushing towards draconian cuts that will cause direct and ongoing harm to generations of students, we call on SD61 to apply to run a deficit, or take funds from reserves to balance the budget for this year.”
SD61 said they would be asking the Ministry of Education to help provide an independent advisor to review their budget process and make recommendations.
“We heard the feedback from our learning community loud and clear, so we’re requesting outside support to help the Board balance and approve its budget,” SD61 stated on Monday.
