Purpose of Audit

The purpose of our audit was to determine whether District officials managed the school lunch fund’s financial condition for the period July 1, 2014 through January 14, 2016.

Background

The Cooperstown Central School District is located in the Village of Cooperstown and the Towns of Burlington, Hartwick, Middlefield, New Lisbon and Otsego in Otsego County. The District operates two cafeterias, which serve approximately 885 students and is governed by an elected seven-member Board of Education. The District contracts with Milford Central School District to manage its school lunch operations. Budgeted appropriations for the school lunch fund for the 2015-16 fiscal year totaled $422,000.

Key Finding

• District officials have not performed a cost-per-meal analysis or an analysis of their meals per labor hour (MPLH) that would have allowed them to identify the loss per meal equivalent, and identify potential areas where they could cut costs or enhance revenues.

Key Recommendation

• Complete a cost-per-meal analysis and explore methods for increasing revenues and decreasing expenditures to a level that allows the fund to be self-sustaining and monitor the MPLH.