Chenango Forks Central School District – Nonresident Tuition (2020M-69)

Issued Date

November 20, 2020

Audit Objective

Determine whether Chenango Forks Central School District (District) officials properly identified and billed tuition for nonresident students.

Key Finding

District officials did not adopt a clear and comprehensive nonresident admission/tuition policy. As a result, we could not determine exactly which students should have been classified as a nonresident student and should have been billed tuition. In addition, some student records contained insufficient documentation to support residency or exceptions to the policy.

Key Recommendation

Clarify the “Admission of Non-Resident Students” policy (Policy) to include all applicable exceptions.

District officials agreed with our recommendations and indicated they would or had already initiated corrective action.

Background

The District serves the Towns of Barker, Chenango, Fenton, Maine and Triangle in Broome County and the Town of Greene in Chenango County. It is governed by an elected five-member Board of Education (Board) responsible for the general management and control of operations.

The Superintendent of Schools (Superintendent) is the chief executive officer responsible, with other administrative staff, for day-to-day management under the Board’s direction. The Board outsourced select financial operations to the Broome-Tioga Board of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES), including the support and maintenance of the District’s student management system (SMS), which houses enrollment data. The Registrar maintains students’ folders and the Transportation Director updates student enrollment data in the SMS.

Quick Facts
2019-20 Budgeted Appropriations	$34.3 million
Total Enrollment	1,400
Potential Nonresident Student Enrollment	31

Audit Period

July 1, 2017 – April 30, 2019. We extended our audit period to January 9, 2014 to review prior versions of the Board’s nonresident tuition policy.