LoisLane wrote:
And, to confirm my suspicion about this board, I remember just before the election, there was a matter of some "missing or stolen" computer switches or routers and equipment. I don't remember hearing or reading that the "missing" equipment was ever recovered. If it wasn't, that reinforces my stance that this board just turns the other cheek and dismisses their problems. Just like the Hendricks settlement and the fear the board has in their dealings with the teachers union.
I don't feel the taxpayer should shoulder the loss, and I certainly DO NOT condone handing debit cards to any board members. Advance them transportation money, and make them turn in receipts. That system has worked well for years, and with a close eye on finances, there should be no concern for abuse. Period.
First off, it wasn't THIS board that was involved in the missing computer switches. That happened in January, 2007 while the OLD board with Ken Taylor, Shatika Head, Leslie Durr and Vera Brooks were at the helm and Rosemary Hendricks was still the CEO. One of the other Board members, Terri Morrison, questioned about the missing switches and eventually Hendricks showed them to her. They were in her office. Perhaps that never made the paper, but that is because the reporter from the Times reports on what action is taken on the the agenda items and the sxwitches were not an agenda item. One more thing - ALL of the Board Members that were tied in with Rosemary Hendricks were NOT reelected and it is because of all the shenanigans that they tried to pull. Now that would be a board that abused things.
As far as the purchasing cards are concerned, how do you think that giving someone CASH instead of a card is safer. The card would have ALL of the purchases listed and the Board Members still have to turn in receipts. I guess you didn't read that in the article, but I did because I read the whole article. It's not like they can just spend the money on anything and not turn in receipts. The cards are much safer than carrying cash and they are tracked electronically to see what the money is spent for. The receipts still need to be turned in, but in the event that a receipt would be lost, it is still posted on the card. If someone has cash and loses a receipt, how is that tracked? It's not. The board member has to estimate what the charge was, where as with the purchasing card, the exact amount is listed electronically, even if the receipt would be lost. To me the cards have less chance of abuse because a board member couldn't use it for their own personal use. You forget that all of this would also be audited by the districts auditor every year, so there is no way a board member can abuse it. Of course, you have your mind made up, so it's silly to try to explain things because you only read what you want to read.