Board OKs mental‑health grant, approves multiple budget and policy items; auditors give MMSD a clean opinion
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Summary
On Jan. 26 the board accepted a $1.935 million U.S. Department of Education grant to expand school psychology training, approved an administrator retirement plan and other consent agenda items, declared capacity limits for specialized open‑enrollment programs, and received a clean financial audit with no federal/state compliance findings.
The Madison Metropolitan School District board approved several administrative and fiscal items at its Jan. 26 meeting and received a favorable audit.
Grants and personnel: The board accepted $1,935,457 from the U.S. Department of Education for a mental‑health services professional demonstration grant to expand supervised practicum and internship experiences in coordination with the University of Wisconsin Department of School Psychology. Administration said the grant includes funds for a school psychology supervisor and scholarships for interns to aid recruitment and retention of school psychologists.
Consent and finance items: The board approved several consent items, including a blanket purchase order for Follett library materials (totaling $469,548.24 for FY26) and other routine expenditures. The board approved three administrator retirement plan candidates and passed a notice of disallowance for a statutory claim against the district.
Open enrollment and policy: The board declared no open seats for several specialized programs (LEAP, Project SEARCH, deaf and hard of hearing center, medically fragile programs, early childhood sessions, etc.) because those programs fill annually with in‑district students and the district faces staffing constraints in some specialties. The board also approved a revision to policy 4.023 (internal transfers) so students approved for internal transfer will continue on their established feeder pattern and will not need to reapply when moving from elementary to middle or middle to high school.
Audit: External auditors presented the 2024–25 financial statement audit and issued an unmodified (clean) opinion, reporting no federal or state compliance findings and no material weaknesses. Auditors noted the district’s unassigned fund balance at about 12.2% of GAAP general fund expenditures, within the district target range. Auditors also highlighted upcoming GASB standards that will affect financial reporting and disclosures.
Board members praised finance and audit staff for the clean audit and asked administration to continue close budget coordination as the district prepares the FY27 budget.