CALEXICO — The Calexico Unified School District approved its 2011-2012 Independent Audit Financial Report and Audit Certification during its regular school board meeting Tuesday night.
Wilkinson Hadley King & Co. LLP performed the audit and reported that general fund revenues and other sources were $79,161,796, which exceeded general fund expenditures of $79,024,440. The school board voted 4-1 to approve it, with board member Joong Kim dissenting.
Total net assets were $40,716,974 at June 30, and enrollment saw a slight decrease of less than 1 percent.
Calexico Unified Assistant Superintendent of Business Services Mei Randle-Donaldson celebrated the district receiving an “unqualified opinion,” meaning that the audit showed a clean opinion with no significant reservations, as well as the removal of a going concern for the district.
“There was concern that we may not be able to function as a business entity, and that’s been removed from our audit report,” she said.
Also, the audit findings were reduced from a total of 37 the previous year to 10 for this year, and Randle-Donaldson said none of those were material enough to cause the district to lose funding.
“As a part of reducing the audit findings, the district has developed and implemented a lot of standard procedures in the accounting department and district-wide so those accolades really belong to the staff,” she said. “Remember that Rome was not built in a day so we are still working and still have 10 audit findings so we’re continuing to implement plans and procedures so we can have zero audit findings in the future.”
Those 10 findings have to do with internal control and federal compliances, she said, and include items such as adding more control to student body funds or making sure class attendance rosters are properly completed.
“We’re very fortunate in this instance we not going to lose any ADA, but in practice, … we need to make sure these rosters are being submitted in a timely manner,” she said.
The entire audit report is available on ivpressonline.com as well as the Calexico Unified website.
Staff Writer Chelcey Adami can be reached at 760-337-3452 or cadami@ivpressonline.com.
Meeting glance
Additional Jefferson repair funds needed
The Calexico Unified school board also approved $6,395.93 in additional work to the Jefferson Elementary School modernization and earthquake repairs following “unforeseen work and stolen materials.”
Copper water lines worth $3,327 were stolen, according to the agenda back up information, and unforeseen additional interior wall changes would require an additional $3,068.93.
The money could possibly come from funds earmarked for emergency repairs but otherwise would come from the general fund.
The board voted 4-1 on the item with board member Joong Kim dissenting.
However, board members did state that they would like to be provided with a copy of the police report from the thefts.
District lawyer agreement approved
The board also approved submittal of the agreement between the district and its new attorney Atkinson, Andelson, Loya, Ruud & Romo.
Clifford Weiler will be the district’s senior counsel and hourly rates of $215 for senior partners, $210 for partners/senior counsel, $200 for associates, $140 for senior paralegals and law clerks and $135 for paralegals was approved.
The board voted 4-1 on the approval with board member Joong Kim dissenting, and board member Ciro Calderon stating that while he understands the need for legal representation, he wants to make sure people don’t take advantage of the district financially.
Multiple audience and board members expressed dismay over a bill for $347,737.48 from previous district attorney GCR, LLP referencing work dating back to January 2012 and said they wanted to ensure that more funds were spent on teachers or students than on attorneys or consultants in the future.
“It’s my personal philosophy that the money should not go toward attorneys, they should go toward the educational system,” Weiler said. “Part of my goal as your attorney is to keep you within the legal boundaries so you don’t have litigation issues or legal issues unless they’re absolutely unavoidable.”
Intern psychologist trip funding denied
Calexico Unified voted 4-1, with board member Letty Zuno-Vizcarra dissenting, to not approve funding $1,299.75 to send Andra Less, an intern psychologist, to the National Association of School Psychology Conference in Seattle.
Board members said they were concerned about using funds to send an intern, but the conference is dated for Feb. 11-16, meaning Less is already on the trip. Zuno-Vizcarra wanted to table the item for further discussion and explanation.
Board member Ruth Duarte said she didn’t understand why the issue was on the agenda Tuesday instead of the three previous meetings in January, and Associated Calexico Teachers President Chad Cooper felt it was unfair to penalize Less for something likely already approved to her by someone else.
