Disappearance of funds prompts senior class activism
While the Student Based Decision Council Meetings are usually filled with only its members, students and non-SBDM teachers alike attended the Nov. 17th meeting due to an upset regarding money that was lost. The senior class has its own individual fund that students use to store money for prom, Senior Benefit supplies, and other senior class necessities. The account is similar to accounts for any activity at the school, and it is only used for events and supplies regarding the senior class –unless given permission by the director of the account. However, on Nov. 9th, Becky Riley, HC senior class sponsor, noticed that a total of $2,804.85 was missing from the account that had not been approved. The money was used for senior awards and graduation program printing, but the senior class has not had to pay for either of those things in the past.
“I did give permission over an email and over the phone for two things,” Riley said at the Nov. 17th meeting. “But I did not get my reconciliation reports [a statement of the accounts monthly activity] for over three months. I did not see the reports for the end of the year until last Monday, November the 9th, and on that report I discovered three more disbursement from the senior class account that I did not approve or know about, and my senior class officers did not know about.”
The only two people that are authorized to allow the transfer of money from one account to another are the activity’s (or class’s) sponsor, and Principal Greg Quenon.
“There were three purchase orders on the account that I did not sign,” Riley said. “There were two transfers that were written where I was asked to sign the transfer form on November 9th; the transfers were made on May 21st and one day in June.”
This is not the first time this event has happened. Two years ago, money was moved from the Yearbook account without permission from its sponsor, HC teacher, Tommy Craft, to purchase cheerleading uniforms.
“Money was moved from Yearbook without permission, and to my knowledge, they have not been reimbursed to this day,” Jody Cabble said.
HC’s bookkeeper (accountant of all school funds), Nakia Talbert stated that Yearbook was reimbursed with new cameras. As of now, Yearbook has still not been reimbursed for the $7466.66 that was transferred without Craft’s permission.
“But was it ever established that [Yearbook] was being paid back?” Cabble said at the meeting. “We need to make sure [Craft] knows that it is how the money was replaced.”
There are legal procedures that have been established in regard to the movement of funds in a school from one account to the next. However, in recent events, those rules have not been followed properly.
“Amounts may be transferred between activity accounts only by proper completion of a Transfer Form (Form F-SA-10),” Terri Harrison, Principal Secretary, read from the Kentucky Department of Education’s “Redbook,” located on page 18. “If, for example, a portion of athletic receipts is given to the band for its participation, an entry is made to reduce one account balance and increase the other. Such a transfer does not affect the school activity fund as a whole nor the bank account balance. The sponsor of the remitting (paying) activity account and the principal shall sign the Transfer Form. The explanation on the Individual Activity Account Ledger (Form F-SA-12) shall state which account is affected and why.”
Students in the senior class were outraged that the money they spent time earning was lost to something that they were not required to fund. Since the senior account lost $2804.85, the students were going to have to pay $40 for prom bids, instead of $25, Riley’s original price. Leaders of the senior class were at the meeting to discuss the money loss and effects.
“I’m CJ Tackett, senior class president, and I was just wondering when we were going to get our money back,” Tackett said at the Nov. 17th meeting.
The senior class started a twitter account titled, Seniors 2016, protesting the fact that money was used for things other than the senior class and without Riley’s permission. On Dec. 5th, $2804.85 was transferred back into the senior class account.
“Well, now we can have $25 prom bids this year!” Riley said.