An external auditor told the South Plainfield Board of Education on Jan. 7 that the district's annual comprehensive financial report received an "unmodified opinion," meaning the financial statements are fairly presented under generally accepted accounting principles, and the auditor made no recommendations for the district this year.

The finding matters because an unmodified opinion indicates the auditor found no material misstatements in the district's financial statements and because the board highlighted that the audit process and business office staff maintained clean financial reporting.

The auditor, identified in the meeting as Joseph Cluny, outlined the audit scope and said the firm reviewed payroll records, board secretary and treasurer records, federal and state grants, purchasing, food service and the student activities fund. Cluny said, "The district received an un modified opinion which means that the financial statements are fairly presented in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles." He pointed the board to informative schedules in the ACFR, including Exhibit C-1 (starting on page 85), Exhibit J-4 (page 139) and Exhibit J-17 (page 152), which show multi-year comparisons of revenues, expenditures and enrollment and a relative cost per pupil.

Cluny also noted that the ACFR's letter of transmittal (page 1) contains the superintendent's overview and highlighted a graduation outcome the district reported: the high school class of 2024 had a post‑graduation outcome in which 55% of graduates pursued four‑year colleges, union apprenticeships or the workforce, as described in the ACFR.

Board members publicly thanked Alex and the business office staff, and several members said the clean report was a credit to district finance staff and administration. No board motion to accept or adopt changes to the ACFR was recorded in the meeting minutes beyond the auditor's presentation and board acknowledgment.

The auditor closed by thanking district personnel for their cooperation during the audit engagement and invited questions; none were recorded beyond routine thanks.