Lake Havasu USD Performance Audit Highlights

Az Auditor General

Informations

• Publié par: Mubos
• Nombre de lectures: 27
• Langue: English

Extrait

Lake Havasu Unified
School District
REPORT
HIGHLIGHTS Administration
PERFORMANCE AUDIT
Subject
The Lake Havasu Unified
School District is located
in Lake Havasu City in
Mohave County. In FY
2007, the District served
6,317 students in pre-
kindergarten through Thunderbolt Middle School.
12th grade at its 9 Source: Photo courtesy of the Lake Havasu Unified School District.
schools.
computerized accounting system whileLake Havasu USD’s administrative costsOur Conclusion the comparable districts handle thesewere slightly higher in FY 2007 than the
duties in-house. Similarly, the DistrictLake Havasu USD’s comparable districts’ average.
administrative costs were spends 11 times more per student for
slightly higher than outside printing and binding than the
comparable districts’, Administrative Cost Per Pupil comparable districts.
and its transportation Fiscal Year 2007
costs per rider were
Credit cards and cell phones—
$800substantially higher.
$749
$703
$673 $652
$700However, plant operation $640 The District did not adequately review
$596 $573
$600and maintenance costs credit card purchases and require
$500were 11 percent lower receipts. The District also did not have a
$400and the District’s formal policy or require signed user
$300percentage of dollars
$200 agreements for the use of cell phones.spent in the classroom
$100was above the state
$0
average. The District’s Sensitive information—District
Sierra Cave Lake Flowing Nogales Presco Average
Vista USD Creek USD Havasu Wells USD USD USDProposition 301 plan was computer servers were not adequately
USD
incomplete and it spent a safeguarded, and policies did not
portion of the monies
adequately protect sensitive electronicinappropriately. Lake
student information.Reasons for higher costs—TheHavasu USD has
adjusted its English higher administrative costs are primarily
Language Learner’s due to the District’s contracts for outside
program but needs to services. For example, the District
continue modifications to
contracts with a vendor to manage itscomply with the state
model.
Recommendations
The District should:
 Review administrative purchased services to reduce costs.
 Require and review credit card receipts.2008
 Implement a cell phone policy and have employees sign user agreements.
 Lock computer server rooms, establish a disaster recovery plan, and conductDecember • 2008
training to protect sensitive information.Student Transportation
In FY 2007, Lake Havasu USD spent more averaged 62 percent, below the 75
than twice as much per rider on percent standard, and 45 percent of the
transportation than the comparable District’s regular routes operated below
districts and subsidized its transportation 50 percent capacity.
program by $217,000. The District
transports a much smaller percentage of Fuel cards—The District also had
its students than the comparable districts, inadequate control over fuel cards. In FY
but it transports them 2½ times farther. 2007, the District issued fuel cards to 73
employees who purchased $189,000 in
Transportation Cost Per Rider fuel. The District did not adequately
monitor purchases to ensure they wereFiscal Year 2007
appropriate. For example, a bus that was
$1,600
$1,398 refueled with 73.9 gallons of fuel had
$1,400
$1,200 been driven only 170 miles, which results
$946
$1,000 in an unreasonably low 2.3 miles per
$776
$800
$644 $639 $632 gallon.
$600
$400
$154
$200 Driver records—The District did not
$0 review or maintain bus drivers’ driving
Lake Cave Sierra Presco Flowing Nogales Average
Havasu Creek USD Vista USD USD Wells USD USD records. To comply with DPS’ safety
USD
standards, the District should obtain,
Part of this high mileage is due to inefficient review, and maintain driving records for all
bus routes. Overall capacity rates drivers both prior to and throughout their
employment.
Recommendations
The District should:
 Use data it collects to create efficient bus routes.
 Establish proper controls over its fuel card usage.
 Obtain, review, and maintain driving records for all bus drivers.
Plant Operation and Maintenance
Lake Havasu USD’s plant operation and
maintenance costs were 11 percent lower Electricity Cost Per Square Foot
than the comparable districts’. The lower Fiscal Year 2007
costs are due to having 29 percent fewer
$2.00
$1.85
$1.73
$1.80plant and maintenance employees and
$1.52
$1.60the City paying the District’s water bill. $1.31
$1.40
$1.24
$1.26
$1.20However, the District’s electricity costs per
$1.00
$0.79 square foot were 41 percent higher than
$0.80
$0.60the comparable districts’. These higher
$0.40costs suggest that although the District’s
$0.20
$0.00overall plant costs are lower than
Lake Cave Flowing Nogales Sierra Presco Averagecomparable districts’, it may be able to
Havasu Creek USD Wells USD USD Vista USD USD
USDfind savings in this area.
Recommendation
The District should continue with its plans to reduce utility costs.
page2Proposition 301 Monies
Proposition 301 provides additional The District paid some performance pay
monies for teachers’ base pay increases, to employees for duties already required
performance pay, and certain menu under their contracts and did not specify
options, such as reducing classroom in its performance pay plan how much
size, providing dropout prevention performance pay that eligible employees
programs, and additional pay increases. could earn.
In FY 2007, eligible employees could earn Proposition 301 salary increases
up to $5,311 from a combination of base,
performance, and menu option pay.
Base pay $1,128
Performance pay $2,339
Menu option pay $1,844
Total $5,311
Recommendations
The District should:
 Ensure its plan specifies the amount of performance pay that employees can earn.
 Ensure that performance activities are optional and not already required under
contract.
Classroom Dollars
Lake Havasu USD spent less in totalLake Havasu USD’s FY 2007 classroom
because it received less funding, largelydollar percentage was higher than the
due to traveling fewer studentstate and comparable district averages,
transportation miles, having lesseven though it had fewer dollars to
experienced teachers, and receiving lessspend.
Title I and Title V monies.
Classroom Dollar Percentages and However, the District may be able to
Total Per-Pupil Spending increase its classroom dollar percentage
by improving efficiency in noninstructionalFiscal Year 2007
areas, such as food service,
Lake Havasu USD 60.2% $6,598 administration, and transportation.
Comparable Districts 57.6 $6,909
Additionally, although Lake Havasu USD
State 57.9 $7,382 spent a smaller percentage of its dollars
on plant operations and maintenance, it
could further lower costs by reducing its
electricity costs.
Recommendations
The District should:
 Classify transactions according to the Uniform Chart of Accounts.
 Review noninstructional spending to determine if monies can be redirected to the
classroom.
page3English Language Learner (ELL) Programs
English language learners are students In FY 2007, the District also offered after-
whose native language is not English and school tutoring and a summer school
who are not currently able to perform program for its ELL students.
ordinary classroom work in English. In FY
2007, about 5 percent (334) of Lake ELL costs and funding—For FY
Havasu USD students were ELL. Their 14 2007, the District received about $238,800
home languages included Spanish, in ELL-related funding and reported
Arabic, Cantonese, and Czechoslovakian. spending about $135,000, or $404 per
ELL student.
In FY 2007, depending on the students’
grade level and English proficiency, the Accounting requirements not
District offered from 55 minutes to 2½ followed—Lake Havasu USD did not
hours of English language instruction to its use the required fund and program codes
ELL students. New laws that became for its compensatory instruction or Title III
effective in FY 2009 require districts to monies in FY 2007.
provide ELL students with 4 hours of
English language development per day.
TTOO OOBBTTAAIINN The District has begun expanding its
MORE INFORMATION program to come into compliance with the
new requirements.A copy of the full report
can be obtained by calling
Recommendations(602) 553-00333
The District should:
 Continue to expand its ELL program to comply with state requirements adopted in
September 2007.
or by visiting
 Separately account for the incremental portion of ELL costs using the appropriate
our Web site at: account codes.
www.azauditor.gov
Contact person for
this report:
Vicki Hunter
REPORTLake Havasu Unified
HIGHLIGHTSSchool District
PERFORMANCE AUDIT
December 2008
page 4