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An audit presentation highlighted issues with timeliness and accuracy and the board reviewed enrollment numbers during last night’s ISD 197 School Board meeting.
Audit Report
The 2023-2024 audit presentation highlighted issues with timeliness and accuracy. Jim Eichten presented the independent audit report, which was an unmodified or clean report, though included several findings requiring a corrective action plan.
- Problems: There were a handful of issues, including missing deadlines, internal controls, and expenses and revenue deviating from the budget more than normal. The internal control issues were about a failure to confirm compliance and not actual compliance failure.
- Why: Turnover in the finance director position was part of the problem, as well as inaccurate budget projections that led to revenue and expenses being off by 5% and 8% respectively.
- Turnover: Longtime Finance Director Brian Schultz left the position in late 2023, and his replacement, Jason Stegman, resigned early this year after only a year on the job. It’s been a challenge finding qualified candidates, but Schultz is returning to the district, his hiring approved in the night’s consent agenda.
- Response: The board asked several questions about confidence in budget numbers going forward (yes), potential penalties (no, corrective action only), impact to credit rating (not practically), and improving staff continuity (yes). “This is the process working the way it was designed to,” said Board Member Jon Vaupel.
- What’s next: The audit will be officially accepted at the next meeting. The administration will also implement a series of improvements, though since many of these changes are coming more than halfway through the current year, issues will likely persist in the next audit as well. Superintendent Peter Olson-Skog was confident issues would be corrected going forward, especially with the return of Schultz, though he did want to implement more procedures and policies to avoid reliance on one person.
Enrollment Update
The administration gave a regular enrollment update:
- Projections: Total enrollment across the district was slightly below projections, due to inflated kindergarten numbers based on census data.
- Numbers: Last year’s enrollment hit 5,452, the highest in the past 10 years. Specific populations were all up and at all-time highs, with students of color at 54.5%, special education at 22.5%, and English learners at 15.2%. Students qualifying for free and reduced meals were slightly down at 46.7% (the metric is a misnomer since all meals are free, but it’s still used for other reasons). Open enrollment is also up, with more students coming to the district than leaving, for a net gain of 462 students.
- Class size: Average class size for elementary schools was 23.7 (it’s been around 21-23 in the past few years—it’s slightly lower than high-water mark in 2020). Middle school average class size was 29.6, up from 26-28 in last few years, partly related to the schedule change. High school class size was 31.4, similar to the last several years.
Other Items on the Agenda
- Goals: The board unanimously approved the superintendent’s goals, which focus on implementing the strategic plan, effective budgeting and cost containment, and improving staff culture by meeting with 150-200 staff members each year.
- Policy: The board held the first reading of the School Weapons Policy, which is reviewed and updated on a regular basis. With no changes, the policy will go on future consent agendas for approval.
Engage
- More: Agendas and minutes for ISD 197 School Board meetings are available online.
- Watch: School Board Members Marcus Hill and Jon Vaupel give a recap of the meeting.
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