Annual Audit is Good News for Birmingham Schools

Tuesday was a busy evening for the , with the board approving the district's financial audit for the fiscal year ending June 30 at its regular meeting at the district's administrative offices. Also approved was a resolution opposing Michigan's Parent Empowerment Act.

Audit reveals growing fund balance

The message from public accounting firm Yeo & Yeo was positive as representatives presented on ' financial statement for fiscal year 2011.

Overall, the firm had no comments or recommendations for the district, noting the appropriate checks and balances are in place and there are strong internal controls within the administration.

The district brought in a total of $108,376,816 in revenue and spent $103,091,268 in FYE 2011. In total, the district brought in slightly less than was budgeted, but spent less than expected.

Overall, the district ended the fiscal year with a fund balance of $16,512,591 – $883,779 more than budgeted.

Of the revenue brought into the district, 48 percent came from local sources, followed closely (47 percent) by revenue from the state.

In terms of spending, 79.3 percent of the district's expenditures was toward instruction. Other expenditures include:

Looking forward, Yeo & Yeo representatives said privatization efforts by the district have helped reduce certain expenditures, such as the percentage dedicated to salaries (61.8 percent in 2007, before privatization of custodial staff and bus drivers, compared to 52.6 percent in 2011).

However, retirement funding is expected to climb in coming years. In 2010, the district spent $10,507 funding retirements. In 2011, the district spent $11,770 and in 2012, it is expected to spend $14,689.

Parent Empowerment Act cripples schools, board says

The board voted to oppose Michigan Senate Bills 618-624, a group of bills known as the Parent Empowerment Act. Together, the bills remove caps on the number of charter schools and cyber schools and require mandatory participation in the schools of choice program, among others.

According to the resolution approved by the board, these bills "have the potential to further erode the enrollment and funding provided by local communities."

This further takes away the ability of schools to provide comprehensive curriculum tailored to the community, the resolution reads, and cripples local schools' abilities to fund their infrastructure.

"These (bills) are not necessarily in the best interest of all students in Michigan," board member Geri Rinschler said.

Board honors late employee, joins OakGreen Challenge

• The school board also voted to enroll the district in Oakland County's OakGreen Challenge, which encourages municipalities, school districts, businesses and residents to reduce their energy consumption by 10 percent by the end of 2012.
• Executive director of technology Joseph Hoffman reported that 98 percent of the interactive whiteboards and video projectors have been installed in classrooms across the district. In addition, 98 percent of the district has been converted to wireless Internet access. Hoffman said the district's guest access has also been expanded, with an average of 600 guest log-ins per day, most of whom are students with their personal devices.
• The board voted to recognize the service of the late Joyce Besley Christensen, a former librarian at and the since 1964. Christensen, since retired, passed away on Oct. 18.

Stay tuned to Patch for more on the Birmingham Board of Education's opposition to the Parent Empowerment Act.