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Western Montgomery Career & Technology Center proposes 6.55% budget increase; Pottsgrove reps seek further review
Summary
At a Jan. 6 joint operating committee meeting, Western Montgomery Career & Technology Center presented a proposed 6.55% budget increase driven by state and federal revenue growth and personnel additions; Pottsgrove School District representatives asked for a follow-up meeting to review details.
The Western Montgomery Career & Technology Center’s Joint Operating Committee reviewed a proposed 2025–26 budget that would raise the center’s budget by about 6.55, or $564,213, to a proposed total of $9,175,601, the Pottsgrove School District’s representative reported to the board.
The district report said $342,125 of the proposed increase (roughly 3.9 percent) is expected to be covered by higher state and federal subsidies. The remainder — about $222,088 (roughly 2.6 percent) — would be shared among the three participating districts using the center’s average-daily-membership formula. Under that allocation, Pottsgrove School District’s share would rise by $31,773 (about 1.9 percent) to a projected payment of $1,664,376. Spring-Ford would see a projected decrease of about $57,002 (−2.1 percent) and Upper Perkiomen would see a projected increase of $247,318 (9.8 percent) under the proposal.
The largest line-item increases noted in the proposal were $100,000 for an additional assistant principal and $100,000 set aside as a market-value adjustment to bring administrative salaries more in line with benchmarking groups. The Western Center superintendent of record, Robert Rizzo, and the center principal, Craig Robinson, provided administrative updates to the JOC; Robinson also reported 93 applicants to date for the 2025–26 applicant window.
Pottsgrove JOC members — Chuck Nipper, Patty Grama and a third representative — asked for a separate budget review meeting with the center superintendent to clarify details. The Pottsgrove representatives told the board they remain concerned about presentation format and requested a further meeting of all nine JOC members to better understand budget line items.
The Western Center also reported operational items: the center will host SkillsUSA district competition in February (with culinary contests held Jan. 22), began an American Welding Society student organization, and approved the purchase of a used van from auction proceeds for $60,911. Pottsgrove board members also announced an $85,000 grant award that will fund a robotic welder for the center.
The JOC’s next meeting is scheduled for Feb. 3, 2025. Pottsgrove representatives said they will report back to the school board after the requested budget follow-up meeting.
