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Board reviews 2024 legislative audit findings on shared governance; staff outlines response timeline
Summary
District staff summarized the 2024 follow-up legislative audit finding that shared governance has affected operations, including transportation and scheduling. The superintendent’s office committed to placing related topics on at least two public board agendas and to implementing internal controls and a study of school schedules.
Salt Lake City School District leaders told the board on Dec. 3 they are responding to a 2024 legislative audit that found the district’s shared-governance arrangements have impeded operational decisions, particularly around school scheduling and transportation.
Christina Kendall, deputy superintendent (presentation lead), reviewed Chapter 1 of the follow-up audit, which concluded that shared governance has “had some negative impacts” on the district’s ability to make decisions in students’ best interests. The auditors recommended clarifying who has authority over school schedules, limiting decision-making that could reduce instructional hours, and ensuring school improvement councils do not have unilateral control over schedules.
Kendall said the district’s formal response — prepared with Board President Nate Salazar and Superintendent Dr. Elizabeth Grant — commits to placing the relevant topics on at least two public board agendas for discussion in January or February 2025. Those meetings will allow the board to either provide direction to negotiators for the district’s written agreement with employee associations or take direct action on the agreement, Kendall said.
Kendall described additional district commitments: establishing multiple layers of internal review and approval for school schedules before 2025–26 approvals, conducting a comprehensive study of school schedules and transportation impacts to complete before the end of the 2024–25 school year, and clarifying principal authority to implement school programs and professional development. The transportation department has already begun preliminary work on scheduling conflicts, she said.
Kendall also summarized Chapter 2 of the audit, which recognized implemented recommendations from the 2021 audit, including preventive maintenance planning, improved submission procedures for student success plans, and annual boundary and enrollment reviews. She identified several items still in progress — for example, a more robust internal-audit function and an in-depth review of administrative staff levels in child nutrition.
Board members asked for clarification on why the district would place the topic on multiple agendas rather than a single, extended study session. Kendall said legislative auditors prefer recurring conversations rather than a “one and done” session; the response was structured to show ongoing board discussion across several meetings.
Board Member Ashley Anderson asked whether the board could use a longer study session instead of two short agenda slots; Kendall said the auditors had expressed a preference for multiple public discussions. Board members suggested the upcoming discussions should include clear metrics for measuring progress and requested regular updates on implementation. Kendall said the district expects to achieve full implementation of many recommendations by the end of the 2025–26 school year.
No final board action was taken on Dec. 3; the board requested the district place the audit topics on future agendas and follow the response timeline described by staff.
