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SUMMARY
The Office of the Auditor General has conducted a performance
audit of the Washington Elementary School District (District) pursuant to A.R.S.
§41-1279.03(A)(9). This performance audit examines seven aspects of the
District's operations: administration, student transportation, plant operation
and maintenance, expenditures of sales taxes received under Proposition 301, the
accuracy of district records used to calculate the percentage of dollars spent
in the classroom, expenditures of desegregation monies, and the District's
English Language Learner (ELL) programs.
Administration (see pages 5 through 8)
Washington Elementary School District's per-pupil
administrative costs of $629 were slightly higher than the comparable districts'
average per-pupil costs of $579. However, the District's costs were lower than
the state average of $703 per pupil. The District spent 8.3 percent of its
available operating dollars on administration, which was lower than the state
average of 9.5 percent, but higher than the comparison districts' average of 7.9
percent. These slightly higher costs occurred primarily in purchased services
and are related to information technology (IT) service and support for the
District's computer network, student information system, and educational
computer software, and for consulting services for activities such as marketing
and analyzing employee benefit costs. In addition, the District does not have
adequate policies and practices to protect its computer network and data. For
example, some users had more access to the District's computerized accounting
system than was necessary to perform their job duties.
Student transportation (see pages 9 through 15)
In fiscal year 2007, Washington ESD spent approximately $3.8
million more on student transportation than it received in related revenues. The
District's $5.63 cost per mile was 56 percent higher than the comparable
districts' $3.60 average, and its $1,147 per-rider costs were 59 percent higher
than the comparable districts' $720 average. Costs were high for several
reasons. Specifically, the District had high salary and benefit costs because it
employed 36 percent more bus drivers than the comparable districts, and it paid
out over $100,000 in incentives to its transportation employees. In addition,
the District's bus routes were inefficient, with 23 percent of its regular
routes operating below 50 percent capacity. Also contributing to its high
transportation costs were the $374,000 paid to vendors to transport some of the
District's special needs and homeless students. Further, the District did not
accurately report route mileage for state funding purposes, and as a result, was
likely overfunded by approximately $75,000 in fiscal year 2008. Finally, the
District did not ensure state requirements for school bus drivers and bus
preventative maintenance were met.
Plant operation and maintenance
(see pages 17 through 20)
Washington ESD's fiscal year 2007 per-student plant costs of
$684 were 10 percent lower than the comparable districts' average of $759 and 21
percent lower than the $863 per-student average cost for all elementary school
districts state-wide. Plant costs were low primarily because the District
maintained less square footage. Specifically, the District maintained 120 square
feet per pupil, while the comparable districts maintained an average of 131
square feet per pupil. Using facilities and site councils and demographic
studies, the District managed its space to help ensure that it used the square
footage as efficiently as possible. Additionally, in fiscal year 2006, the
District implemented a preventative maintenance program that can potentially
reduce future repair and maintenance costs. Finally, Washington ESD implemented
changes to its community-use fee schedule to ensure that, in the future, it
recovers its costs associated with community use of its facilities.
Proposition 301 monies (see pages 21 through 23)
In November 2000, voters passed Proposition 301, which
increased the state-wide sales tax to provide additional resources for education
programs. For fiscal year 2007, Washington ESD spent its Proposition 301 monies
as specified in its plan and for statutorily authorized purposes. On average,
eligible employees received base pay increases of $1,214, performance pay of
$2,121, and additional compensation increases of $2,422 through menu option
monies for a total average increase of $5,757. However, the District’s
Proposition 301 plan did not specify an amount of performance pay that employees
could earn if they met all performance criteria. The plan should list an amount
or range of performance pay so that employees know the amount of performance
they can potentially earn.
Classroom dollars (see pages 25 through 27)
Statute requires the Auditor General to determine the
percentage of every dollar Arizona school districts spend in the classroom.
Therefore, auditors reviewed the District's recording of classroom and other
expenditures to determine their accuracy. The District's fiscal year 2007
classroom dollar percentage of 60.1 percent is slightly below the comparable
districts' 60.8 percent average and the 61.2 percent national average, and 2.2
percentage points above the 57.9 percent state average for the same fiscal year.
In addition, despite having a slightly lower classroom dollar
percentage, Washington ESD spent $286 more per pupil in total, including $131
more per pupil in the classroom than the comparable districts averaged. The
District was able to do this because it received more total funding per pupil
than the comparable districts, on average. Washington ESD’s additional funding
came primarily from desegregation monies, federal grants, and monies from a
voter-approved budget override. Also, the District spent comparatively more per
pupil on food service because it had a high percentage (62 percent) of students
who were eligible for free or reduced price lunches, and it served more meals
than the comparable districts.
Desegregation monies (see pages 29 through 33)
Washington Elementary School District was 1 of 19 Arizona
school districts budgeting monies to address desegregation issues in fiscal year
2007. The District's desegregation agreement with the U.S. Department of
Education, Office of Civil Rights, requires Washington ESD to ensure that it
provides equal educational opportunities for English Language Learner (ELL)
students. Federal officials found ELL compliance problems with the District as
early as 1986, but the District did not start funding desegregation until 1998,
when the District reports that the growing numbers of ELL students and the
increasing costs associated with educating them created the need to tax for
desegregation funding. In fiscal year 2007, the District spent about $6.1
million in desegregation monies, or an average of $1,031 per ELL student.
Although 95 percent of the District's desegregation monies were spent on
classroom instruction costs, primarily teacher salaries and benefits, the
District's average class size remains slightly larger than the comparable
districts' average. The District does not currently have a formal plan
describing the needs and goals of the desegregation program or how it will spend
desegregation monies.
English Language Learner programs, costs,
and funding (see pages 35 through 41)
Statute requires the Auditor General to review school
district compliance with ELL requirements. In fiscal year 2007, Washington ESD
identified approximately 25 percent of its students as English language learners
and provided instruction for them in several different types of programs. The
District took a mainstreaming approach to providing ELL instruction, meaning
that it placed students in regular classes and provided them with additional
support. Further, 379 ELL students attended the District's summer compensatory
instruction program focusing on English language development. However, the
District will need to change its ELL approach substantially to comply with new
instructional models being implemented under a 2007 Arizona statute. For
example, by fiscal year 2009, the District will have to add additional hours to
its reading classes so that ELL students receive the required four hours of
English language acquisition.
Washington ESD had approximately $9.2 million in ELL-related
monies to spend in fiscal year 2007, but actually spent $7.1 million. The
District separately tracked the costs it considered to be ELL-related; however,
some costs assigned to the ELL program were not incremental. Incremental costs
are costs incurred in addition to those associated with teaching English-fluent
students.
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