Audit questions college president’s paid leave

SANTA FE — In 2015, the then-president of Northern New Mexico College was away at conferences for 40 weekdays, took 45 personal vacation days and used numerous more days’ worth of hours as “do not disturb time,” according to an audit released Monday by the state Auditor’s Office.

Nancy “Rusty” Barceló, who stepped down in 2015 after five years as NNMC’s president, had 744 hours of “potential” nonapproved leave time that year, at a cost to the college of $87,000, not including taxes and benefits, the audit says. The college “may have been paying for services not rendered,” according to the audit, performed for the Auditor’s Office by the Jaramillo Accounting Group of Albuquerque.

State Auditor Tim Keller had previously announced a key finding of the audit — that Henrietta Trujillo, until late February Northern’s financial services director, stole more than $200,000 in cash and checks. The full audit released Monday shows that she took $71,000 in cash and there were $135,000 in stolen checks, but that the checks “apparently” weren’t cashed.

The amounts may be higher, and “there are several other areas of fraud risk yet to be investigated,” the audit says. Trujillo resigned last month.

The audit says two iPads that were in her custody but that were being used in the school’s STEM Program were stolen, but doesn’t attribute the thefts to anyone in particular.

The audit findings were turned over to prosecutors, but no charges have been filed.

“Addressing the problems identified in the audit is critical to keeping the College’s limited resources with students where they belong,” Keller said in a news release. “The audit provides a road map for the College’s new leadership to get a handle on financial practices and implement policies to protect public funds. We appreciate the College’s cooperation during the audit process.”

“It’s very clear to every single person who works for the college that we have to roll up our sleeves” and make sure the accounting and financial oversight issues found in the audit are corrected, said Richard Bailey, a former Air Force pilot and military educator who took over as NNMC president last year.

He said that as a public institution, the college — with cam-

puses in Española and El Rito — “has a big responsibility” and that particularly “because of the community we serve, every dollar matters.”

For her 45 vacation days and 40 days at conferences, Barceló used only 17 days of annual leave, the audit says.

As “do not disturb” time, she took eight full days, 23 halfdays and 27 “late afternoons” that “could not be specifically identified as time in the office or preparing for meetings at the College,” the audit says.

The audit also says Barceló was paid $1,348 to speak at one conference and $300 for another and received an honorarium of unknown amount at each of three other conferences.

Barceló could not be reached for comment Monday night.

The state Governmental Conduct Act bars public employees from being paid more than $100 for speeches, the audit says.

Among other problems found in the audit were no-bid contracts for $148,000 for services related to the STEM Program and $84,700 for housing and a $10,000 contract for legal services that ballooned to more than $72,000 with change orders.

The audit also notes what Keller called a violation of the state Constitution because the college’s Board of Regents has had only four of its constitutionally mandated five members since 2015. The audit urges the board and Gov. Susana Martinez to work to fill the vacant position.