EPISD internal audit outlines risk‑based plan, expands campus truancy reviews after Coronado findings

Myra Martinez, chief internal auditor for the El Paso Independent School District, told the district audit committee that internal audit will use a risk‑based methodology required by the Institute of Internal Auditors and board policy CFC Local to develop next year’s audit plan.

The annual process, Martinez said, ranks the district’s auditable units by likelihood and impact using eight risk factors and a defined scoring scale so auditors can prioritize limited resources. "We are required to develop a risk based plan to determine the priorities of the Internal Audit Department," Martinez said.

The risk assessment, Martinez explained, begins with identifying the district’s strategic priorities, builds an “audit universe” of auditable units, and applies a three‑point scale for each risk factor. For financial impact, Martinez said, low risk is defined as under 1% of the district’s annual budget, medium 1–5%, and high more than 5%. Aggregated risk scores classify units as low, medium or high (Martinez gave thresholds of roughly 4–6.9 for low, 7–9.9 medium and 10+ high).

Why it matters: the audit plan determines where internal audit will allocate staff time and training, what advisory versus formal audit work will be done, and which corrective action plans will be monitored. Martinez said the draft audit plan will be reviewed with the audit committee in April and submitted to the board for approval in August for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2025.

Changes proposed to the current plan: Martinez told trustees the department began this fiscal year…