Nicholas Braccio (Credit: SASD)
Public concerns raised over timing ahead of new board’s December swearing-in
The Souderton Area School District Board of School Directors will hold a special meeting Wednesday at noon to accept two board resignations and appoint a replacement to one of the newly vacant seats.
The meeting, announced by the district on Monday, will take place at the district’s administrative offices on Lower Road. According to the district, no other business will be conducted.
The agenda posted to BoardDocs states that the purpose of the meeting is to “accept Board Members resignations and to fill the vacancy for the unexpired term created by the resignation of Mr. Braccio, as prescribed by Public School Code, Article III, Section 315.” Public comment will be taken.
Two resignations to be considered
The board is scheduled to vote on accepting the immediate resignations of two sitting members:
William Brong (Credit: Souderton Area School District)Brong did not seek re-election. Once Braccio’s resignation is accepted, the board will vote to appoint “an eligible community member” to serve the remainder of his term, which expires in December 2027.
The appointee would begin serving immediately.
Braccio, re-elected in 2023, is chairperson of the Technology Committee, a member of the Education-Personnel Committee, and a member of the Operations Committee. Brong is chairperson of the Operations Committee and serves on the Joint Operating Committee for the North Montco Technical Career Center.
New board sworn in next week
The district’s previously scheduled annual reorganization meeting — when newly elected members take office — will be held Monday at 6:30 p.m.
In the Nov. 4 general election, candidates running as the “Souderton Area for Responsible Leadership” slate won all four open seats: Corinne DeGeiso, Alexandra Wisser, Rosemary Buetikofer and Andrew Souchet. Their win usurped Board President Stephen Nelson, Vice President Andrew Landis, and Director Janet Flisak.
Community members object to timing
The timing of Wednesday’s noon meeting — the day before Thanksgiving — has drawn criticism from some residents and groups, who argue the outgoing board should delay the appointment until newly elected directors are sworn in.
Souderton Area for Responsible Leadership, a political committee whose endorsed candidates won last month, questioned the timing in a Facebook post, saying the decision “feels reminiscent of prior appointments made without a fully open process.”
A separate Change.org petition, launched by district resident Maureen Kratz -- who, according to The Reporter, was barred from attending the September 2024 board meeting due to the photo ID requirement and later founded “Right to Know Souderton" -- and signed by more than 280 people as of Tuesday, calls the timing “undemocratic” and asks the board to postpone the appointment until after Monday. The petition argues that the board has 30 days under the School Code to fill a vacancy and should allow the incoming members to participate in the process.
District policy and state guidance
The Pennsylvania School Boards Association’s candidate guide states that boards are responsible for publicly advertising a vacancy and conducting a selection process, including interviews, before making an appointment.
While state law allows a board to appoint without public interviews, many districts opt for a more transparent process.
What happens Wednesday
If the board accepts both resignations and appoints a replacement for Braccio’s seat, only Brong’s seat will remain unfilled heading into the reorganization meeting.
Wednesday’s special meeting begins at 12 p.m. in the Tinner Board Room at the district’s administrative offices, 760 Lower Road, Souderton.
Longstanding tensions
According to The Reporter, tensions between board members and residents began last summer after board member Bill Formica made a social media post accusing then Vice President Kamala Harris of engaging in sex acts to advance her career. Community members later uncovered additional posts by Formica in which he disparaged teachers and non-English speakers and characterized slavery as beneficial for Black Americans.
Despite immense community outrage and vocal demands for Formica’s resignation, the board took no action against Formica and remained largely silent on the controversy.
According to The Reporter, tensions further escalated in November 2024 when the ACLU filed a freedom of speech lawsuit against the district over a newly-imposed photo ID requirement for board meetings, a prohibition of anti-Formica rallies on school property and cease and desist orders against two parents and a student who were accused of harassing board member Kim Wheeler. The board later rescinded the photo ID requirement, while the cease and desist orders were lifted after surveillance video contradicted the district’s account. The lawsuit is ongoing.
Most recently, community members have attempted to link Wheeler to the Facebook Page “Souderton Strong.” Created in July 2025, the page, with a “Souderton Republicans” handle, has repeatedly defended board actions, while sharing derisive posts and memes about board critics as well as a district teacher. Among other things, community members have pointed to a post sharing a screenshot taken by Wheeler as evidence of her affiliation with the page, according to The Reporter.
