Coventry school leaders press for joint plan after town council statement on accumulated deficit

Superintendent Don Cowart told the Coventry School Committee that auditors had identified a deficit in the retired-employee account that would need to be moved into the district’s general fund, prompting a letter and a subsequent town council statement that the district’s leaders said mischaracterized months of internal work.

The school committee discussed the town council item during its regular meeting; Cowart said he and finance director Chris Diverno were asked to attend the council meeting to explain the discovery and answer questions. Cowart said the council later voted on and posted a separate statement about the school department’s projected accumulated deficit. "I don't wanna start getting into the finger pointing exercises or the cheap shots back and forth across the aisle," Cowart said, adding that his priority was to move forward with a plan that minimized impacts on taxpayers, students and staff.

Committee members said they want to work with town leaders to develop a joint deficit-reduction plan. Several members said the tone of the council's public statement set back efforts to communicate progress on accounting fixes and internal controls that the district has already put in…