Muscogee County School Board member proposes reducing superintendent's spending authority

A Muscogee County School Board member proposed during Monday's work session to decrease the dollar amount the superintendent can spend without board approval and increase the accountability and transparency of those expenditures.

District 8 representative John Thomas presented a three-part proposal:

Change the spending limit from $15,000 to $5,000 per transaction, with the added requirement that no recipient can receive an amount greater than $5,000 in any 24-month period without the board's approval.

Each expenditure the superintendent makes without board approval shall be "prominently featured" on the Muscogee County School District's website, including the date, purpose, amount and recipient.

All expenditures made by the superintendent without board approval during the previous three years, including the aforementioned details, also shall be posted on the district's website.

Thomas said his proposal isn't "some kind of a shot" at superintendent David Lewis. "It's not a personal thing," he said. " If someone wanted to, the way the policy stands now, the power of the board to govern through approval of contracts, approval of spending and so on could be very easily circumvented by someone if they wanted to. That's a weakness in the internal controls."

For example, Thomas said, the current policy allows the superintendent to authorize paying a vendor "$14,000 10 times in one day."

Amy Callahan, the district's purchasing director, told the board, "We make sure we do not spend more than $15,000 with one vendor for that fiscal year" without board approval. "It may not be clearly spelled out in the policy, and we may need to tweak that wording a little bit, but that's how we keep track of it."

Lewis' administration prepared for the board a chart comparing MCSD with 14 other school districts of approximately the same size. MCSD already has the lowest purchasing threshold, with the others ranging from $25,000 to $1 million.

Last fiscal year, Lewis said, MCSD had 429 transactions between $5,000 and $15,000. So if Thomas' proposal were in effect, Lewis said, the purchasing process would grind to a halt.

District 8 representative Frank Myers said, "This board took a one-page budget with 13 lines and rubber-stamped it. We don't have a clue as a board where the money is going, and that is our job. That is why we were elected, and to try to circumvent that -- I mean, I'm going to tell you something -- it is outrageous that we're even having this conversation: 'It's too much paper work.' 'It's too much of a bother to be accountable.'"

Myers added, "Y'all forget, we are the bosses." Assistant superintendent Rebecca Braaten objected, pointed to Lewis and said, "He's my boss."

"Well, that's right," Myers said, "but he answers to us as the board."

District 4 representative Naomi Buckner and District 7 representative Athavia "A.J." Senior said they favor raising the threshold instead of lowering it, and county-wide representative Kia Chambers said the threshold is the right amount in proportion to the size of the district compared to others.

Board vice chairwoman Pat Hugley Green, the District 1 representative, argued that the district already shows its transparency by posting its monthly statements, annual budgets and annual audits on the district's website. Myers countered that those documents are summaries, not individual transactions. Green responded that any citizen could make an open records request. Myers asked why someone should have to do that if they could be put online.

Board chairman Rob Varner of District 5 said Thomas' proposal will be voted on during next Monday's 6 p.m. meeting.

"It's going to be interesting," Myers said.

"Always is," Varner replied.

Personnel moves

Dorothy Height Elementary School principal Tammy Anderson has resigned, according to the district's personnel report. Lewis told the Ledger-Enquirer the resignation is effective Aug. 31 and Anderson is leaving for a job in curriculum with the Georgia Department of Juvenile Justice.

Clubview Elementary also would have a principal vacancy if the board approves Lewis' recommendation to promote Lorrie Watt to executive director for curriculum. She would replace Keith Seiftert, who was promoted to chief academic officer last month to replace Ronie Collins, who left to become principal of Pacelli Catholic High School, her alma mater.

Kim Jones resigned from her job as Title I director. Lewis said he is interviewing for her replacement and changing the position to "executive director of federal programs."

First day of school

Lewis gave the board a report on Monday's first day of the school year. Communications director Valerie Fuller also provided information in an email. Here are highlights:

The district has 31,265 students, "up a little bit from last year," he said.

96 percent of the approximately 17,000 students riding buses were transported on time, despite congestion around Northside and Shaw high schools.

The district still has 28 teaching vacancies to fill.

Dorothy Height Elementary was placed on lockdown around dismissal time while Columbus police apprehended a suspect. Lewis told the Ledger-Enquirer he doesn't know the reason for the chase but the arrest was made "somewhere in the back part of the campus."

Mark Rice, 706-576-6272. Follow him on Twitter@MarkRiceLE.

This story was originally published August 10, 2015 at 10:19 PM with the headline "Muscogee County School Board member proposes reducing superintendent's spending authority ."