REGINA -- The Government of Saskatchewan announced $51 million for emergent supplies and additional staffing related to COVID-19.
Minister of Education Gordon Wyant will speak on the return to school at 10:30 a.m. This event will be streamed live on CTVNewsRegina.ca and CTVNewsSaskatoon.ca.
The funds come from more than $150 million set aside in the province’s COVID-19 contingency fund, made up of provincial, federal and school board savings.
Of the total amount announced on Tuesday, $41 million will come from the province’s funds, with $10 million representing the leftover school division savings.
The province says the money will be allocated as follows:
- $19.1 million for sanitization and 191 staff.
- $6.0 million for equipment.
- $13.2 million for supporting immunocompromised students and 150 teachers and staff.
- $9.5 million for more distance learning capacity and 102 teachers and staff.
- $4 million for technology.
“The Ministry of Education has allocated $10 million for PPE expenses, of which $2.3 million has been spent to date to procure six million masks for school divisions,” the province said in a news release. “The ministry will continue working with school divisions to determine (PPE needs) for the remainder of the school year.”
Schools will see an addition of 443 custodial staff, support staff and teachers. This is an addition to the 200 staff to be hired due to a funding increase from the last budget
