Dharm Makwana

The Vancouver School Board could close up to 10 schools in effort to balance its books, chairwoman Patti Bacchus said Thursday.

Bacchus couldn't say which schools would go as the board's management team must now assess present and potential enrollment numbers, potential revenue generated at each site and programs offered at the schools.

"It's not a simple decision and we have to consider where enrollment comes from. At this point I can't speculate forward," she said, adding staff would present a list of potential closures June 23.

All high schools citywide would likely remain open, she said.

Additional measures to bridge VSB's $17.23 million shortfall include the closure of three junior-kindergarten programs in East Vancouver, and cuts to 162 full-time staff, such as school counselors and multicultural liaisons.

But how dire the lack of education funding is in the city remains unclear.

In a letter attached to the draft budget submitted to Education Minister Margaret MacDiarmid, Bacchus said she would contact B.C.'s auditor general to intervene, hoping to resolve the outstanding question if the district is facing a $17.23 million budget shortfall as suggested by VSB, or an $11.8 million gap as indicated in a Comptroller General's report.

The draft budget rules out 26 of the special advisor's recommendations because they have "no impact" and another eight because additional expenses would be incurred to bring in extra consultants with appropriate expertise.

Bacchus said the proposed cuts would be felt throughout the organization.

"We're going back to a very bare bones system and trying to take away more. It will have an impact on every school and every classroom."