An examination of audit reports and board of education responses in Suffolk County, New York

The purpose of this researcher was to determine if school districts in Suffolk County, New York are managed in a fiscally effective and efficient manner. This researcher identified and categorized the results of the audits completed in school districts in Suffolk County, Long Island by the New York State Office of the State Comptroller between 2003 and 2007, the school district responses to the audit reports and the action taken by the boards of education as a result of the audit reports.The data collection and analysis were threefold. The data included the detailed findings of the audits presented to districts by the Office of the Comptroller indicating domains of weakness or domains in need of improvement, the district Corrective Action Plans presented to the Office of the Comptroller, and third, the board of education responses to the audit reports obtained through a review of individual school district board of education meeting minutes.The review of the published audit reports of the 17 school districts in Suffolk County revealed a need for improved oversight on the part of board of education members. Many of the districts either lacked appropriate updated policies or had ineffectual policies. The policies in these districts had not kept pace with the changes in procedures, the current technology, or the updates State Education Department guidelines for reimbursements. Wrongdoing was not identified in most schools but rather a need for improved documentation and support for expenditures. Some questionable behavior was noted by board of education members, district officials, and even external auditors.This investigator indicated that not all certified public accounting firms employed by school districts as external auditors have fulfilled their responsibilities to the districts. Thorough, professional audits and appropriate advice from the audit firms to the districts as to any incongruence between the actions of the district and existing policy, would have allowed the districts to continuously improve their fiscal management.This researcher shows that most districts have voluntarily chosen to implement the recommendations and thereby improve fiscal management of their school districts.