MSCS procurement audit follows termination of facilities director
Records: Probe found conflicts of interest
A top facilities director at Memphisshelby County Schools was terminated from his position in July after an investigation revealed conflicts of interest in his work at the district, records show.
Charles White, the district’s former director of facilities maintenance, also has his own construction company. As MSCS director, White awarded purchase orders to a company that his own company did business with, the district found.
First reported by the Institute for Public Service Reporting at the University of Memphis, the investigation and termination predates an external audit of procurement and changes at the department that MSCS announced Thursday. The Commercial Appeal requested records related to the investigation in July and received them this month.
MSCS’ Interim Superintendent Toni Williams said procurement is being moved to finance, her recent department, to avoid conflicts of interest and improve the enforcement of policies and procedures. Procurement was previously under business operations. The chief of business operations, Genard Phillips, is leaving in December.
The external procurement audit is among sweeping changes Williams announced Thursday, about two months after taking the helm. When Williams was selected to the job in late August, she said a business review would be a top priority, alongside academics, but did not specify what changes may be forthcoming.
White, the facilities director, was placed on paid leave July 6, the day before the school board launched a review of then-superintendent Joris Ray. The board ultimately voted in late August to terminate Ray with a $480,000 severance package and suspend an external investigation of him before it was complete.
The district launched an internal investigation as White was placed on leave, but the circumstances were not immediately clear to the office of professional standards, the records show.
On July 19, the professional standards office received a summary from MSCS internal audit with findings of their investigation. White was terminated on July 27. The Commercial Appeal’s attempts to reach White for comment on Friday were not successful.
Kimberly Stovall, a senior advisor with the office of professional standards, wrote a letter of findings to White describing the investigation found he violated the district’s policy governing conflicts of interest.
White owns and operates C & B Construction, LLC, the district found and state business records show. C & B worked with Mid-south Renovations, which is also an MSCS vendor, the investigation found. C&B earned between $68,000 and $78,000 from Mid-south Renovations, the MSCS investigation found, and White, as the MSCS director, approved the company for work with the district. White “awarded purchase orders to the vendor (MSR) despite (White’s) relationship with the company’s owner,” Stovall wrote in the MSCS letter of findings.
Contacted Friday by The Commercial Appeal, Michael Mcglown with Midsouth Renovations declined comment about the investigation, beyond saying Mid-south Renovations followed the district’s procedures. The district’s investigation appears to reflect this: “It was reported the vendor was under the impression that (White) received prior approval from (his) supervisor authorizing the approval of the outside business between (White’s) company and MSR.”
White worked for MSCS for more than two decades, starting out as a building engineer and carpenter, eventually becoming a projects supervisor and manager before becoming facilities director. He received positive evaluation scores throughout his time at the district, records show.
White now works as the Regional Building Engineer for KIPP Memphis, the local charter school operator part of a national charter network. In that role, White oversees daily operations and maintenance, KIPP Memphis told The Commercial Appeal.
KIPP Memphis said White does not handle purchase orders for the charter operator. Since White began working at KIPP, the operator has not awarded Midsouth Renovations any bids, KIPP and Mcglown separately told The Commercial Appeal Friday.
Reach Laura Testino at laura.testino@commercialappeal.com or 901-5123763.