Audit 350408

2024-003 - Special Tests and Provisions – Participation of Private School Children Assistance Listing Number 84.010 Title 1 Department of Education Passed Through North Dakota Department of Public Instruction Criteria For programs funded under Title I, Part A (Assistance Listing 84.010), a local educational agency, after timely and meaningful consultation with private school officials, must provide equitable services to eligible private school children, their teachers, and their families. Eligible private school children are those who reside in a participating public school attendance area and have educational needs under Section 1115(c) of the ESEA (20 USC 6315(c)). The amount of funds a local educational agency makes available for equitable services under Title I, Part A must be equal to the proportion of funds generated by private school children from low-income families who reside in participating public school attendance areas. A local educational agency must determine the proportional share available for services for eligible private school children based on the total amount of Title I funds received prior to any expenditures or transfers of funds within the program, such as reservations for administration, parental involvement, and district-wide activities (20 USC 6320(a)(4)(A)). Local education agencies determine the proportional share by multiplying the proportion of children from low-income families who attend private schools and live in participating Title I attendance areas by the local educational agency’s total Title I allocation (including any funds transferred into Title I). Condition The documentation the District provided supporting numbers of private school children attending used in the allocation of funds provided to private schools did not agree to the allocation calculation. Context Two participating private schools are within the District’s service area. The supporting documentation for students attending both of these participating private schools did not agree to the allocation calculations. Cause The District did not maintain proper supporting documentation to support the number of students from participating private schools. Effect Allocation of Title I funding provided to local private schools may not be correct. Questioned Costs None Repeat Finding This is not a repeat finding. Recommendation We recommend the District retain all supporting documentation in accordance with their record retention policies and ensure the supporting documentation and the information used in the allocation calculations agree. Management’s Response The discrepancy stemmed from the timing of data collection for the nonpublic schools. Worksheet G was initially completed using estimated numbers during a different month (October) than when final numbers were collected, resulting in a mismatch with the Final Rank & Serve data. Although the final numbers used were those approved by DPI, we do not have a corresponding Worksheet G to verify those figures from that specific month. Moving forward, we will collect Worksheet G forms monthly from our nonpublic schools -mirroring the process used for public schools through our child nutrition system. This will ensure consistent documentation and verification of data, and prevent future discrepancies. Additionally, we recognize that the nonpublic schools' systems are unable to retrieve historical free/reduced lunch data month by month, which reinforces the need for this proactive monthly collection.

2024-003 - Special Tests and Provisions – Participation of Private School Children Assistance Listing Number 84.010 Title 1 Department of Education Passed Through North Dakota Department of Public Instruction Criteria For programs funded under Title I, Part A (Assistance Listing 84.010), a local educational agency, after timely and meaningful consultation with private school officials, must provide equitable services to eligible private school children, their teachers, and their families. Eligible private school children are those who reside in a participating public school attendance area and have educational needs under Section 1115(c) of the ESEA (20 USC 6315(c)). The amount of funds a local educational agency makes available for equitable services under Title I, Part A must be equal to the proportion of funds generated by private school children from low-income families who reside in participating public school attendance areas. A local educational agency must determine the proportional share available for services for eligible private school children based on the total amount of Title I funds received prior to any expenditures or transfers of funds within the program, such as reservations for administration, parental involvement, and district-wide activities (20 USC 6320(a)(4)(A)). Local education agencies determine the proportional share by multiplying the proportion of children from low-income families who attend private schools and live in participating Title I attendance areas by the local educational agency’s total Title I allocation (including any funds transferred into Title I). Condition The documentation the District provided supporting numbers of private school children attending used in the allocation of funds provided to private schools did not agree to the allocation calculation. Context Two participating private schools are within the District’s service area. The supporting documentation for students attending both of these participating private schools did not agree to the allocation calculations. Cause The District did not maintain proper supporting documentation to support the number of students from participating private schools. Effect Allocation of Title I funding provided to local private schools may not be correct. Questioned Costs None Repeat Finding This is not a repeat finding. Recommendation We recommend the District retain all supporting documentation in accordance with their record retention policies and ensure the supporting documentation and the information used in the allocation calculations agree. Management’s Response The discrepancy stemmed from the timing of data collection for the nonpublic schools. Worksheet G was initially completed using estimated numbers during a different month (October) than when final numbers were collected, resulting in a mismatch with the Final Rank & Serve data. Although the final numbers used were those approved by DPI, we do not have a corresponding Worksheet G to verify those figures from that specific month. Moving forward, we will collect Worksheet G forms monthly from our nonpublic schools -mirroring the process used for public schools through our child nutrition system. This will ensure consistent documentation and verification of data, and prevent future discrepancies. Additionally, we recognize that the nonpublic schools' systems are unable to retrieve historical free/reduced lunch data month by month, which reinforces the need for this proactive monthly collection.