Reading School Board members have spent more than $93,000 on conference travel over the past two academic years, with at least five members exceeding the district's own two-trip limit for out-of-state meetings along the way. The board approved six members to attend 15 conferences since the start of the 2024-25 school year, including 11 held outside Pennsylvania, sending members as far as Atlanta, Las Vegas, and San Juan, Puerto Rico.
The spending, first detailed by Spotlight PA, marks a dramatic jump from prior years. The board spent between $2,000 and $3,000 annually in each of the 2022-23 and 2023-24 school years, according to records reviewed by the outlet, before costs rose to more than $63,000 in 2024-25 and more than $29,000 in 2025-26. Reading School District, which serves more than 16,000 students and is governed by nine elected or appointed board members, has acknowledged the overall travel budget stayed within the district's broader spending plan each year, even as individual members blew past the trip cap.
A Policy With No Teeth
District policy bars reimbursing a school director for more than two out-of-state meetings in a single school year, a local rule that mirrors a state law allowing up to two educational conventions annually in addition to regular meetings. Spotlight PA's review found that going over those limits is not illegal and carries no clear consequences, and at least five board members exceeded the cap and were reimbursed anyway during the 2024-25 and 2025-26 school years. The board approves its own conference attendance ahead of any travel, a structure that leaves oversight largely in members' own hands.
The district told Spotlight PA it does not keep a running list of which conferences members attend, making it difficult to track compliance after the fact. Travel costs are paid from the district's general fund, financed through a mix of district purchase cards and members' personal cards, and reimbursements for lodging, meals, and incidentals are capped at allowed per diem rates and require receipts. Three board members had already been approved for three out-of-state conferences in the current school year as of the time of reporting, though approval alone does not guarantee a trip is ultimately taken.
The Napa Hotel Bill and a Budget Fight
The single largest expense on the books was $11,551 spent in 2025 on five hotel rooms for the California Association of Black School Educators conference in Napa. The episode has fueled an internal reckoning: board attorney John Miravich informed all members of the travel policy in April after board member Jonathan Tinoco asked whether the group could amend the rules, according to internal emails cited in the reporting.
Board President Noahleen Betts has now proposed raising the board's travel budget from around $12,000 to as much as $100,000, which would let members attend up to three conferences a year — one in Pennsylvania and two out of state. Betts has said all nine members attending three conferences annually would exceed even the current budget, and she told Spotlight PA the board had only recently learned the full scope of its own budget, travel allowance, and trip limit. She said the board would research the policy and work to improve its practices. Betts has paid for two of her own trips herself, the outlet reported. The board was expected to vote on the travel budget increase.
Board Members Split on Value and Oversight
Reaction on the board itself has been mixed. Member Melissa Eggert, who attended two conferences, said board members need better education about district policies and their duties. Member Robin Costenbader-Jacobson, who has not traveled since her 2024 election, has opposed the trips outright. Member Shaykayarira Delrio-Gonzalez countered that conferences provide learning opportunities and a chance to represent the district, pointing to one event in San Antonio where Reading Superintendent Khalid Mumin served as a keynote speaker.
Outside voices have weighed in as well. Marguerite Roza said board members must be able to justify taxpayer-funded travel and suggested the board publish all its travel costs and receipts online given how divided members are on the issue. In a response letter to Spotlight PA, the district said board members would consider giving public presentations about what they learn at conferences going forward — a step short of the documentation Roza and Mucha have called for.
The district has separately raised property taxes and used reserves to balance its budget, though the reporting does not tie those decisions numerically to the conference spending. Reading's situation echoes smaller-scale travel approvals happening elsewhere in Pennsylvania; CitizenPortal.ai reported that the Bethel Park School District board approved a single member's trip to a Poconos conference for $1,597.79, with one member abstaining over a conflict of interest — a fraction of what Reading's board has spent on travel in recent years.
