Students won't notice a $5.3-million budget deficit at the Windsor-Essex Catholic District School Board.
The 2016/2017 budget is set for two weeks of consultation before it's back before trustees for final approval.
Board chair Barb Holland says savings will be looked for, but students won't feel the pinch.
"Are there opportunities to downsize, are there opportunities to streamline our procedures — but the one thing we will not budge on is student programming," says Holland. "That is sacrosanct to us."
Holland says the deficit won't stop the board from investing in programming and says students will be receiving an excellent education.
"Our students next year will have more opportunities than they have ever had," says Holland. "We will not stop with that, so we will simply manage. This is one more problem that has come along and we will simply manage it."
The deficit is being covered from the board's $18-million reserve.
Much of the deficit — about $3.7-million — is being pinned on the board's responsibility to cover post-retirement benefits to retirees 65 years old and older after an Ontario Superior Court ruling in April.
Final approval of the budget is expected at the board's January 27 meeting.