The forensic report on Bridgeport’s public school system found a lack of board oversight, inefficiencies, unusual budget transfers, misclassification of expenditures and opportunities for improvement in several processes and internal control procedures.
The report found no evidence of fraud or malfeasance. It was released on Thursday after being commissioned in April, amid a $39 million budget shortfall in the district.
The state announced it would intervene in the school system in January.
BPS has gone through six superintendents in eight years, and has had three different people acting as chief financial officers within a six-month period in 2024. Teachers have complained about poor working and learning conditions and low confidence in leadership as recently as last fall.
In a press release, district officials said they were in the early stages of reviewing the report.
"We are reviewing the detailed findings and recommendations and look forward to continuing to work with the Commissioner's technical assistance team to implement these recommendations and help improve the Bridgeport Board of Education's fiscal oversight, enhanced transparency, and internal accountability,” Mayor Joe Ganim (D) said. “I will be discussing these findings in depth with the City and Bridgeport Public Schools management teams to ensure swift implementation.”
CliftonLarsonAllen LLP, which conducted the review, named lack of training and inefficiencies as the district’s top fraud risks.
According to the report, expenditures were purposely misclassified to align with the budget, and the Board of Education was either not notified or did not act upon the information.
CliftonLarsonAllen LLP recommends that the Board of Education retain oversight over the budget process, the district solicits input from its departments when writing budgets, and provides improved district-wide training on policies and procedures, among other things.
