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Board reviews clean audit, approves $143,000 local match to secure SRO grant
Summary
External auditors issued an unmodified opinion on Rockingham County Schools' FY2024 financial statements; the board unanimously approved appropriating $143,000 from local fund balance as the 25% match for a Center for Safer Schools SRO grant.
External auditors Anderson Smith & White presented Rockingham County Schools’ audited financial statements for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2024, reporting an unmodified (clean) opinion and cautioning the board about drawing on fund balance for recurring needs.
Paul Carson, an audit partner with Anderson Smith & White, said the audit found the district’s financial statements “accurate and free of any material misstatements.” The report showed a general‑fund balance of approximately $3.06 million and noted a year‑over‑year decrease in the fund balance. Carson and district finance staff urged the board to preserve reserves for cash‑flow and timing issues tied to federal and state reimbursements.
Carson highlighted two program areas: the school food service fund reported a net loss for FY2024 of $326,242 (driven by decreased food sales and higher costs), and the district’s childcare program reported a profit of $19,888 for the year. The auditors reported one finding related to general ledger reconciliations after the district’s accounting software conversion; the finding is not a repeat issue and the auditor will follow up in the FY2025 audit.
On a separate agenda item, the board approved appropriating $143,000 from local fund balance to meet the 25% required local match for a Center for Safer Schools SRO (school resource officer) grant. District staff explained the grant totals $581,750 and the 25% match applies to the salary portion of the award; the requested match is for both FY2024‑25 and FY2025‑26 and will be shown in a future budget amendment. The motion to appropriate the funds passed unanimously.
The finance director and staff said accepting the SRO grant will help offset costs for elementary and middle‑school SRO positions but reiterated the board’s earlier instruction to avoid using grants to permanently replace locally funded positions without prior review. The board and finance staff also discussed other routine finance committee items, including a proposal to post two transportation mechanic positions to support vehicle maintenance and safety.
