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Southfield trustees approve going to market for up to $100 million in bond proceeds after auditors deliver unmodified FY25 opinion
Summary
Trustees unanimously authorized marketing previously approved bond series (not to exceed $100 million) and heard Plante Moran deliver an unmodified opinion on the district’s FY25 financial statements; auditors flagged enrollment-driven revenue declines and noted the single-audit remained in draft as federal guidance was finalized late.
Trustees of the Southfield School Board on the board’s final regular December meeting voted unanimously to authorize taking previously approved bond series to market “not to exceed $100,000,000,” a move Superintendent Jennifer Green said is intended to keep capital projects on schedule.
The vote followed a presentation by auditors from Plante Moran. Michael Foster, partner in charge of the district audit, told the board, “we're issuing an unmodified opinion on the financial statements,” the highest level of assurance an auditor issues. Foster also said the single-audit for federal awards remained in draft because the federal compliance supplement was issued after the financial-statement audit.
Why it matters: auditors and district staff said the district’s revenue decreased from $106.8 million in 2024 to $102.1 million in 2025, driven largely by shrinking enrollment. Paul Bryant and Phil Norris explained that enrollment of 4,482 students and a state per-pupil foundation amount of $12,410 were key drivers of that decline and that expiring COVID-era funding reduced federal revenue. The general fund ended FY25 with a reported fund balance of about $12.1 million, equal to roughly 11.45 percent of expenditures, above the district’s 10 percent target and the state early-warning threshold of 5 percent.
Board action: Superintendent Green presented Report 6333, titled “Southfield Schools 2026 school building and site bond,” and asked trustees to consider making the item actionable because there were no other regular meetings in December. Trustee Talisha Belk moved “that we open and approve” the report; the motion was carried on a unanimous roll-call vote called by the board secretary.
Auditors’ details and caveats: Foster and his team reported no disagreements with management and no audit difficulties. Foster said Plante Moran had tested federal programs including the education stabilization fund and Head Start and was issuing unmodified opinions for those programs; however, he noted the single-audit process was being finalized now that the federal compliance supplement had been issued.
What’s next: The district will proceed with the bond sale to fund scheduled facility work and will provide follow-up reports and project-level updates as work proceeds. Auditors will finalize the federal-awards single audit now that the compliance guidance has been received.
