Louisiana Legislative Auditor
Daryl G. Purpera, CPA, CFE

September 28, 2015

Prevailing Faith Academy May Have Used Scholarship Funds for Other Purposes

Prevailing Faith Christian Academy did not maintain accounting records and cannot provide documentation as to whether $84,924 of its expenses were school-related and should return funds to the Louisiana Department of Education (DOE), according to an audit report issued Monday by Legislative Auditor Daryl Purpera’s office.

In 2012, Prevailing Faith Christian Academy, in Monroe, Louisiana, began participating in the Student Scholarships for Educational Excellence Program (SSEEP), administered by DOE, which allows low-income families to send their child to the school of their choice.

The Louisiana Legislative Auditor’s (LLA) Investigative staff conducted an audit looking into irregularities in the school’s finances after exceptions were noted by DOE in the testing of the Academy’s Agreed-Upon Procedures for the year ended June 30, 2014.

Five of the school’s non-payroll expenditures were tested, and all five were found to either lack the required supporting documentation or the expenditure did not meet the criteria for educational purpose, the report said.

School Administrator Dr. Charles Brown stated that the school used a contract accountant until February 2014, but then stopped because DOE did not request any financial records after that date. While the school maintained separate bank accounts for SSEEP funds and its other funds, it did not keep accounting records for the entire period from July 1, 2013 to June 30, 2014, according to the audit.

Dr. Brown said, “the school discarded all vendor invoices and the documentation obtained for the agreed-upon procedures report.” However, to answer questions for the investigative audit,
Dr. Brown “requested copies of invoices from the school’s vendors and provided the records that he could obtain.”


In their investigation, auditors also found questionable payments for payroll and accounting services, and an invalid lease arrangement for the school’s building.

As a result of LLA’s audit findings, DOE withheld $13,636 from the Academy’s final scholarship payment. The Academy received $248,773 from DOE for the period July 1, 2013 to June 30, 2014, according to the audit.

Based on the available records, it appears the school used $84,924 of SSEEP funds to pay invoices that either did not meet the program regulations or could not be documented.

For more information contact:

Legislative Auditor
225.339.3800



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Office of the Louisiana Legislative Auditor | www.LLA.La.gov