WESTAMPTON – The Burlington County Institute of Technology is taking steps to expand its career and technical education programs for auto technology, heavy equipment & logistics and diesel technology with the help of a new 39,000-square-foot expansion and renovation project at the vocational school district’s Westampton campus.
Burlington County leaders received an early look at some of the improvements during a construction tour last week at the Westampton school. Burlington County Commissioner Tom Pullion joined State Senator Troy Singleton, Assemblywoman Carol Murphy, and Westampton Deputy Mayor Odise Carr, who is also the BCIT/Burlington County Special Services Board of Education President, on the tour with BCIT/Burlington County Special Services School District Superintendent Dr. Ashanti Holley and other members of the district’s school board and administration.
The improvements at the Westampton campus include expanded classroom space, a mock warehouse space for logistics training and a large diesel engine garage. It marks the first significant renovations to Westampton school since 2004.
Work began last year and is on schedule to be finished in time for the school’s fall opening.
“The Burlington County Institute of Technology is one of the top performing schools in New Jersey with an incredible record of preparing both students and adults for careers in high-demand fields like engineering, computer programming, automobile repair, logistics and more,” said Commissioner Pullion. “The expansion project at this Westampton campus will double the space for several of these programs and allow students to receive even more hands-on training to ensure they are immediately ready for real-world jobs after graduating.”
The $14 million construction project at BCIT-Westampton is being funded predominantly with state grant funding from the Securing Our Children’s Future Bond Act. The law appropriated approximately $350 million for county vocational school expansion from a $500 million bond referendum approved by New Jersey voters in 2018.
Senator Singleton and Assemblywoman Carol Murphy were both co-sponsors of the Securing Our Children’s Future Bond Act.
“Providing more opportunities for students to become career-ready at our county vocational schools is a worthy investment, and it’s exciting to see how the state funding is being used to advance projects like this one from concept to concrete,” said Senator Singleton.
“BCIT is providing a path for both adults and high school students to obtain quality education and training for successful careers,” added Assemblywoman Murphy said. “I was proud to sponsor legislation that is allowing our vocational schools to expand and give more students access to high-quality education and training.”