Ex-cheer coach ordered to pay up
A special state audit found a former varsity cheerleader coach at Calumet New Tech School failed to deposit money from cheerleading fees and a fundraiser during the 2019-20 fiscal year.
The audit, released Tuesday, calls for Tamika Garner to reimburse $1,734 to the school’s cheerleading extra-curricular account. The State Board of Accounts also requested Garner pay $1,508 for its investigation, for a total of $3,314.
This report was forwarded to the Indiana Attorney General and the Lake County prosecutor’s office.
The Lake Ridge School Board fired Garner from her job as a Title 1 paraprofessional and as cheerleading coach on Oct. 17, 2019. The termination came after a school investigation discovered more than $1,500 had not been deposited into its cheerleading account. It forwarded its findings to the Board of Accounts Oct. 22, 2019.
“I would hope that the findings for Tamika Garner serve as an eye opener for others that are thinking of being dishonest toward our schools and particularly against our children,” said Lake Ridge Superintendent Sharon Johnson Shirley. “We will not let you operate for your personal gains.”
The audit found receipts issued by Garner totaled $5,388 while deposits were $3,945.
The payment history for Garner’s daughter, who was a cheerleader, showed a cash payment for her fee balance of $240 but no receipt, nor was a deposit found for the money.
A donation of $50 was made on behalf of a cheerleader via an electronic transfer to an online account. That donation was not recorded, nor was a corresponding deposit made to the school.
The audit found required fund raiser forms for July 19 and July 27, 2019, car washes were not completed and collections weren’t receipted or deposited until Aug. 23, 2019. They were deposited in the form of two money orders bought by Garner.
She also turned in cheerleader fees late and failed to issue receipts on approved forms. Receipts weren’t issued for collections received for T-shirts.
In June 2019, the school district received a $2,641 invoice for spirit towels and two T-shirts and one tablet as purchase bonuses. School officials couldn’t locate the tablet, which was the school’s property.
The audit also found 15 of 42 receipts issued by Garner weren’t retained for audit and noted the school’s fundraising monitoring system was deficient.