Fraud investigation reports to be read at SUSD board meeting

A year-long, state-funded investigation into allegations of financial fraud within the Stockton Unified School District is complete and its reported findings will be shared with the public this week.

The investigation, which began in February of last year and is known as an “Extraordinary Audit,” was conducted by California’s Financial Crisis & Management Assistance Team (FCMAT) investigators.

According to the agenda for the SUSD Board of Education’s Tuesday meeting, San Joaquin County Office of Education top officials — Superintendent of Schools Troy Brown and Deputy Superintendent Scott Anderson — will be giving a “Findings and Recommendations” presentation to the board shortly after closed session. Though the agenda item doesn’t specifically mention the FCMAT report, Stockton Unified has confirmed to Stocktonia that the SJCOE presentation is indeed regarding state investigators’ findings.

The purpose of the investigation, more formally known as an AB 139 extraordinary audit, “is to determine if sufficient evidence exists that fraud, misappropriation of funds, or other illegal fiscal practices may have occurred, and to document the findings for referral to the local district attorney’s office and further investigation by law enforcement if needed,” according to a recent FCMAT report.

According to California education code, an extraordinary audit is requested by the school district’s county superintendent. If the audit reveals “financial mismanagement, misuse of funds or insolvency,” Stockton Unified could be put into state receivership that would be administered by SJCOE, which “could include the termination of the (district) Superintendent and suspension of the Board of Trustees as a decision-making body.”

This FCMAT report comes on the heels of more than two years of controversy for the county’s largest school district, including two scathing grand jury reports, accusations of financial mismanagement and outrage from the public of the district’s handling of certain issues.

Stocktonia will livestream the county’s presentation Tuesday afternoon beginning at 5 p.m. on its Facebook and Twitter pages. In the meantime, checkout our recent coverage of the district’s woes.