Not a money store
Bad practices by Duquesne City school leaders
Most people go to the bank when her monetary requests to a payroll they need a loan, but a handful of clerk, “essentially approving her Duquesne City School District employees own loans,” Mr. DePasquale’s audit dipped into the public treasury said. The clerk also took loans, which instead. While taking personal were processed by a relative, the loans out of public money is a bad business manager. There were no practice on its face, these individuals’ written loan contracts. However, informal use of a financially struggling repayment plans were developed school district as a cash machine is by a business consultant, who reprehensible. The Legislature in doing so had to take time away should pass a law making it illegal to from helping Duquesne navigate its take personal loans from government choppy financial waters. accounts. The district described the loans as
State Auditor General salary advances secured by Eugene DePasquale discovered the recipients’ future pay, the 22 loans — all interestand it insisted there wasfree — while auditing nothing nefarious afoot. All district records for the period of the money was paid back. July 2012 through June Still, there are a lot of mistakes 2016. The bad judgment emanated to correct here. Ms. from the top. Thensuperintendent McDonnell and the other Barbara employees should have McDonnell took 11 loans totaling known better than to take $23,140 and allowed the others, loans from their troubled employer. collectively totaling $18,100, for a They arrogated to themselves a principal and two other employees. source of funds, an informal loan
Duquesne has been classified as financially process and interest-free terms unavailable distressed since 2000, and it to Duquesne’s hardworking closed its high school program in taxpayers or even other district 2007, sending those students to other employees. districts. In 2012, Duquesne went into Employees who knew about the state receivership and closed its middlepractice should have reported it toschool program, sending still the school board or other authorities. more students into the schools of The receiver and chief recovery officer neighboring communities.officer should have been paying closer Duquesne’s loan recipients, especially attention to Duquesne’s books; that’s the superintendent, should why they are there. have seen the need to devote every Mr. DePasquale has asked the available dollar to student needs. state Ethics Commission to investigate
Instead, they used general fund the loans, noting that state law money to meet their own needs. prohibits the use of public office for Those seeking the loans provided little personal gain. But this is as much written explanation for wanting about promoting good government them. The people riding herd on the statewide as it is about the ethics of a troubled school district — the school few individuals. The Legislature board, receiver and chief recovery officer should send a zero-tolerance message — never approved them. by making loans of this type a
Ms. McDonnell simply submitted criminal offense.