Byram Hills board accepts FY24–25 audit and outlines corrective steps for student activity funds

The Byram Hills Central School District Board of Education on Oct. 14 accepted the district's FY24–25 external audit and heard a detailed corrective‑action plan to tighten controls over extra‑classroom activity funds.

The board's independent auditor presented the FY24–25 results and described the two auditor reports in the financial statements as "cleaner on modified," saying the statements "present fairly in all material respects." The presentation noted the district's net capital assets (net of depreciation) totaled about $64,200,000; current‑year capital expenditures were roughly $5,900,000; and long‑term indebtedness was reduced by about $2,400,000.

At the request of the board, business office staff summarized steps taken after an internal audit of club and activity funds. The staff member said they had developed a formal procedures manual and a shared Google Drive to store bank reconciliations, profit‑and‑loss statements, deposits and supporting documents so trustees and building administrators can review them monthly. The board heard that bank reconciliations will be checked monthly and that advisers and principals will have access to the same files.

Staff also described several standard forms and monitoring steps: a profit‑and‑loss template for events, a fundraising approval form to be signed by principals before events, a standardized deposit and signature process for student treasurers, and individualized Google Sheets for clubs so student treasurers mirror district bookkeeping. The presentation noted an earlier auditor finding about a misplaced sales tax figure (noted in the audit as $4,279 where the correct amount was $42.97) had been corrected and that a sales‑tax calculation tab was added to the templates.

Board members and staff discussed electronic signature options and the potential for workflows that would prevent incomplete submissions. The business office committed to returning to the board with samples and a status update in January and a fuller progress summary in March and June.

The motion to accept the external audit report, the extra classroom activity fund report and the management letter was made, seconded and approved by voice vote.

What happens next: staff will implement the forms and Google Drive process, perform monthly reviews of reconciliations, and present implementation progress to the board in January and at subsequent meetings.