One North Vancouver parent of an international public school student is happy school finally reopened following the teachers' strike, but she's much less enthusiastic about the reluctance to refund tuition money over the lost time.
When the teachers' strike left classrooms empty for the last two weeks of the previous school year and the first three weeks of this one, Jihyeon Yi said she expected there would be a financial refund of some of the $13,000 annual tuition fee she paid to the district. Her son is now in Grade 12 at Sutherland secondary.
When she reached out to the North Vancouver school district, she was surprised to find out that there would be no refund as the contract she signed stipulated no refunds would be given over time lost in the event of a teachers' strike.
"If international students cannot receive a refund because of this stipulation, international students are only unilateral victims," she said. "I think this regulation should be changed."
Yi said she is not alone, as many parents she's spoken to who share her situation are also left feeling disappointed and angry.
"We expected after the teacher strike ended, they will consider an international student refund," she said. "We expected that because (the teachers' strike) is not our fault."
Yi noted that many parents are still awaiting a clear answer from the North Vancouver school board regarding a refund.
Despite the contract stipulation that is common across B.C. districts, a handful of school boards have given voluntary reimbursements to international students' parents.
For instance, before the school year finally started, Surrey's superintendent wrote to parents to inform them they would be reimbursed $500 for the "lost time and inconvenience."
"This is a one time, and voluntary refund that we feel is the appropriate compensation for the amount of time that school was not in session," Jordan Tinney wrote in the letter. "We know that in many cases families sought out additional tutoring or support, and this refund is one way to recognize our commitment to you and the students."
But John Lewis, North Vancouver School District's superintendent of schools, confirmed that there would be no monetary compensation at this time.
"While we have received inquiries regarding the potential for compensation for school time impacted by the strike, we are still awaiting a formal confirmation from the Ministry of Education regarding instructional hours for the year," Lewis said in a statement. "Like our neighbouring school districts, we will ensure that our students receive the required educational program for the school year."
The North Vancouver district has about 600 international students enrolled who pay $13,000 annual tuition. The strike has cost the district a handful of students from enrollment.
And they're not alone. The West Vancouver School District has lost a few international students due to the lengthy teachers' strike too, according to its assistant superintendent David Eberwein.
West Vancouver has about 600 international students enrolled across its elementary and secondary schools. Its base tuition fee for a whole year is $14,200.
Much like the contract in other districts, West Vancouver's outlines that refunds will not be provided in the event of a teachers' strike.
"But for us, it was really important we provided value to our international students who were already here in the province," Eberwein said. "Our goal was to make sure that they were impacted minimally by the labour disruption."
While the strike boiled over into the first few weeks of the school year, the Metro Vancouver districts offered activities and field trips to students.
When asked if parents of international students had complained to the district about not receiving a monetary refund, he said parents were more so asking what services the district was able to provide.
"I think with all aspects with the work stop there were concerns around what was happening," he said. "We tried to respond to not only concerns about this but other opportunities for students, (not just) international students."
School districts across the board will most likely feel the pinch from the teachers' strike at upcoming budgets as time lost translates into lost funding, as well.
For example, at September end, the province ordered all B.C. school boards to hand any potential savings over that had built up because of the strike.
