State criticizes how Modesto school district is spending federal money. Here’s why
State audits found that Modesto City Schools is out of compliance with the expectations and rules for millions of dollars of federal program funding the district receives.
The routine audits are done every four years, but Superintendent Sara Noguchi said at Monday’s school board meeting she had never seen such detailed findings in audit reports. Some items will be contested and it could take two years to address all of the findings, Noguchi said.
The state Department of Education notified the district of more than 30 findings after reviewing how the district implemented almost a dozen federal programs.
The findings were across the board at elementary schools and high schools, identifying shortcomings in complaint processes for preventing discrimination and many instances of Title III funds replacing state and local support for English learner programs. The federal money is supposed to supplement local funding.
The school district with a large proportion of low-income and disadvantaged students received almost $28 million in federal funding this year. But a review found that low-income and minority students were too often taught by ineffective and inexperienced teachers.
The state found that Modesto City Schools also needs stronger efforts to ensure students have access to courses.
In other findings:
— The district’s suicide prevention plan for grades 7 through 12 is outdated.
— Physical education courses at Johansen High do not include instruction in self-defense, gymnastics, aquatics or dance.
— More parental involvement is needed on committees concerned with educating students who don’t speak English fluently.
A review that focused on high schools underscored an achievement gap in math and language skills among English learners at Johansen and Davis high schools when compared with English-speaking students. The auditors also questioned whether Modesto City Schools should have a single budget guiding spending for its high schools, middle schools and elementary schools.
At Monday’s board meeting, Trustee John Walker referred to an item stating that federal dollars were misspent on activities of a Davis staff member including “recruiting for new enrollment outside feeder schools and district boundaries.”
Walker suggested the Language Institute at Davis recruited refugee students from outside the district in 2018 to challenge an age cap on program enrollment. Walker, who is sometimes at odds with advocates for immigrant students, proposed working with another board member on changes for English learner programs.
No action was taken on Walker’s request and the enrollment issue was dismissed as water under the bridge.
The school district is facing a mid-March deadline for making corrections, but local districts typically apply for time extensions.
Noguchi said the school district has created a separate English learner department to work on programs districtwide, and she expects to see positive results before long.
Trustee Chad Brown said he’s heard for too long students are under-performing in English language arts and math. “We have many things that are moving in the right direction,” he said.
This story was originally published February 25, 2020 at 1:26 PM.
