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Now that I& #39;ve had a chance to dig into the @EpicCharter audit, here are few findings I found interesting. A thread.
There are lots of examples of incorrect coding of expenses. Kind of inside baseball, I know, but important. State law caps administrative expenses at 5% so that more tax dollars reach the classroom. But Epic has reclassified management expenses as far back as 2016, auditors found
Another example: job descriptions. One employee was a "manager" on one report but a "family/community support coordinator," which is not administrative, on another report. Only 3 of 6 assistant superintendents were administrative one year.
Schools that exceed 5% of administrative costs pay a penalty, and this, auditors say, is where Epic owes the state nearly $8.4m. They paid a $530,000 penalty last year, which was reported by @readfrontier https://www.readfrontier.org/stories/epic-charter-school-penalized-530k-for-excessive-administrative-costs/">https://www.readfrontier.org/stories/e...
There were also several examples of estimating instead of reporting actual expenses. Even after HB1395 in 2019, requiring itemized expenditures made by a charter management company, @EpicCharter submitted invoices like this one.
The profit motive of the management company Epic Youth Services coming into conflict with the school& #39;s responsibility to protect taxpayer dollars was a major theme of the audit. Take this example.
Finally, auditors say they faced roadblocks to the information and there& #39;s still millions of dollars they haven& #39;t gained access to. @EpicCharter denies it. But this part mirrors my own experience reporting on the school for several years now (except I can& #39;t issue subpoenas.)
The full (part 1) audit is available here: https://www.sai.ok.gov/docs/press/Epic%20Charter%20Schools%20Investigative%20Audit%20-%20Part%20One.pdf">https://www.sai.ok.gov/docs/pres...
