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Criminal investigation called for in wake of St. Joseph School District audit
February 19, 2015
By Sam Zeff
The fallout after the release of a scathing state audit of the St. Joseph School District in Missouri has been swift and severe.
A state senator has called for the Missouri attorney general to open a criminal investigation, and the local newspaper has demanded that the district’s human resources director be fired.
State Sen. Rob Schaaf (R) from St. Joseph says the actions uncovered by Missouri State Auditor Thomas Schweich "are illegal and greatly disturbing."
The audit pointed out $25 million in secret stipends paid mostly to administrators over the past eight years. Schweich said there may have been up to $40 million in payments going back to 2000.
"I would like to call on the attorney general to closely examine the documents the auditor has compiled and bring charges against those responsible for the mishandling of the funds within the St. Joseph public schools," Schaaf said in a statement.
Changes proposed for school board elections, recalls
Schaaf also filed legislation that would drastically change St. Joseph Board of Education elections.
It would shorten school board terms from six years to three years. Schaaf says the longer terms foster a cozy relationship between the board and administrators and that leads to the lack of oversight uncovered by the state audit.
The bill would also allow St. Joseph voters to recall school board members.
"I think that it's pretty obvious that our school board is dysfunctional," says Schaaf.
Also, the St. Joseph News-Press called on the district to remove Human Resources Director Doug Flowers.
Flowers' administration of the district’s HR office was harshly criticized in the audit, including the fact that he had direct involvement in his wife's employment with the district.
The News-Press pointed out that Flowers was a major beneficiary of the district’s stipends. Last year, he received $39,700 in addition to his base salary of $96,500 for a total package of $136,210.
An editorial in the paper opined: "For that money, we should expect more than a divisive figure who has failed in many of the basic requirements of his position. The district needs competence and professionalism, now more than ever, in the critical role of fairly administering salary, benefits and policies in behalf of taxpayers and nearly 2,200 employees."
Sam Zeff covers education for KCUR in Kansas City, Missouri. He's won a National News Emmy for investigative reporting, four National Headliner Awards and four Edward R. Murrow awards. Zeff has managed newsrooms in Minneapolis, St. Louis and Kansas City. He was educated at the University of Kansas.
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