On Monday, the province announced its financial support for education in Manitoba for the school year ahead, touting that it is increasing school funding overall by $79.8 million to nearly $2 billion.
While the funding overall represents a 3.5 per cent increase, it is somewhat limited for the school divisions in this region. Garden Valley School Division is receiving a 2.2 per cent or $800,000 increase to about $36.4 million, Western School Division is getting about two per cent or $400,000 more to $19.2M, Border Land School Division will see a 1.8 per cent increase of $400,000 to $21.1M, Red River Valley School Division increases $300,000 or 2.1 per cent to $16.3M, and both Prairie Rose and Prairie Spirit are receiving about $300,000 or 1.9 per cent more to $17.8 and $17.1 million, respectively.
Education and Early Childhood Minister Tracy Schmidt suggested the previous government didn’t adequately fund education and also restricted local authorities from raising property taxes.
“We’re taking a different approach … we know that schools and kids deserve to be invested in,” she said, adding that they are suggesting to local divisions that it “allows them to go to their ratepayer in an equally stable and predictable way.
“We believe that providing stable and predictable funding is very important for school divisions … that’s what school divisions have been asking for, and that’s what we have been delivering … and we expect them to increase their budgets in a stable and predictable way that meets the needs of Manitobans when it comes to affordability.
“It means smaller class sizes and more individual attention for students … and it’s important to know that these things are only possible when schools have the proper funding that they need.”
School divisions have often suggested they are receiving increases that are not enough to keep up with the level of growth and rising costs of education.
“We know that enrolment certainly is one factor that drives how much money a school division gets each year, but there’s other factors that we consider,” noted Schmidt.
The province attests that the overall 3.5 per cent funding increase for public schools in the 2026-27 school year will help manage enrolment changes and ensure students have the supports they need to succeed. The formula guarantee will continue for 2026-27, ensuring every school division receives an increase to the previous year’s funding amount.
The Manitoba government’s 2026-27 school funding now totals $1.995 billion and includes:
• $51 million increase to help public schools with operating costs, which includes the investment in salary harmonization and technical vocational education;
• $30 million for a universal school nutrition program and Nello’s Law, which protects the program for years to come, plus an additional $3 million from the sale of U.S. alcohol products for the Children’s Nutrition Council;
• $15.2 million increase in capital support, which includes principal and interest costs related to building schools;
• $16.6 million increase to independent schools under the funding agreement.
“When we came into government, schools across Manitoba were struggling after seven years of cuts,” said Finance Minister Adrien Sala.
He touted a number of statistics including that the province had hired over 1,600 new staff since 2024 including over 800 new teachers and built 11 new schools, largely in Winnipeg and Brandon.
“Our government is committed to making sure every Manitoba family can count on strong, stable public schools, year after year. We are meeting the needs of students and communities by building new schools and feeding kids with our universal school food program,” said Schmidt.
She noted the Manitoba government is allocating $11.4 million in public school funding to support divisions most affected by teacher salary harmonization. Salary harmonization will be implemented in the 2026-27 school year to standardize teacher pay scales across school divisions to help minimize disparities.
“We’ve heard from many school boards that salary harmonization costs were creating significant pressures for this upcoming year,” she acknowledged.
“By working together, we are creating a more equitable system that benefits teachers and supports stability for school divisions at a time when the demands on public schools are more complex than ever before,” said Alan Campbell, president of the Manitoba School Boards Association.
“School boards recognize that the funding contribution for harmonization announced today is a step in the right direction and we look forward to continuing our work with government to ensure funding fully meets the needs of students, staff and communities across Manitoba.”
