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State Board of Education will have audit firm create 'corrective action roadmap' for WS/FCS

WS/FCS Education Building sign
WFDD File photo
Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools is grappling with a $37 million deficit.

The State Board of Education approved a list of requirements Thursday for the future audit firm that will review Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools’ internal controls.

The state is ordering the district to undergo a review of its budgeting procedures in light of its $37 million deficit.

At the State Board of Education's monthly meeting on Oct. 2, members approved an outline requiring the firm to provide a “corrective action roadmap.”

That should include short-term fixes, longer-term structural improvements and a timeline.

Other requirements include providing a comprehensive report of findings, an executive summary tailored to the public and policymakers and a formal presentation to North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, the Local Government Commission and the WS/FCS Board of Education.

With the scope of work approved, DPI will gather proposals from audit firms looking to do the job.

The state board will select and approve a firm, but the district will be responsible for the cost.

Amy Diaz began covering education in North Carolina’s Piedmont region and High Country for WFDD in partnership with Report For America in 2022. Before entering the world of public radio, she worked as a local government reporter in Flint, Mich. where she was named the 2021 Rookie Writer of the Year by the Michigan Press Association. Diaz is originally from Florida, where she interned at the Sarasota Herald-Tribune and freelanced for the Tampa Bay Times. She holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of South Florida, but truly got her start in the field in elementary school writing scripts for the morning news. You can follow her on Twitter at @amydiaze.