🧾 LADY BUDGETDOWN OPENS THE MONTROSE LEDGER
Darling, the ledger has made its way to Montrose Community Schools, and as always, we begin in exactly the same place: the numbers.
No rumors. No politics. No predetermined conclusion. Just ten years of publicly reported financial data, compared consistently from one district to the next.
From 2014–15 to 2024–25, Montrose's average pupil count actually increased slightly, from 1,422 to 1,446.58, up 1.7%.
During that same period:
💰 Total funding per pupil: $9,151 → $14,126 (+54.4%)
📚 Instruction per pupil: $5,378 → $8,903 (+65.5%)
📝 Instructional support per pupil: $651 → $1,440 (+121.2%)
🏛� Business & administration per pupil: $1,254 → $1,374 (+9.6%)
🔧 Operations & maintenance per pupil: $909 → $1,408 (+54.9%)
🍎 Average teacher salary: $57,578 → $62,251 (+8.1%)
For context, inflation over the same period was approximately 35.83%.
That makes Montrose particularly interesting.
Unlike several districts we've examined, Montrose did not lose students over the decade. Enrollment remained remarkably stable and actually increased slightly. Meanwhile, funding and several major spending categories increased substantially, with instructional support per pupil more than doubling.
But there is another number worth noticing: average teacher salary increased just 8.1%, considerably less than inflation over the same period.
None of these numbers, standing alone, tell us whether Montrose is spending well or poorly. They tell us where the money has moved, and give us the questions worth asking next.
And that, dear readers, is why Lady Budgetdown follows the same ledger wherever she goes.
Same methodology. Same standards. Same receipts.
Next, we keep digging. 🪶
With receipts and respect.
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