Finding Text
Condition: During our audit, we requested supporting documentation for the meal counts done by the
Charter School and reported to MDE. We encountered the following:
• The Charter School was unable to provide support for the numbers reported at the St.
Paul school site for months tested.
• The meals reported at the Burnsville school site did not agree to the numbers listed in the
meal counts.
• Meals appear to be over-reported in the month of November based on the support
received.
• The Average Daily Attendance reported at the Burnsville school site in November varied
from other months tested.
Criteria: Charter Schools are required to count meals at point-of-service at all school sites and claim them
in CLiCS in the category of approval based on direct certification or a household application for
educational benefits. The Charter School was unable provide supporting documentation to
affirm that accurate meal counts at all school sites took place and in the proper manner as noted
in the condition above.
Cause: Unknown
Recommendation: We recommend the Charter School devise a well-documented counting system to track meals
daily and retain documentation for support. We also recommend a review of individual school
site information for accuracy in future fiscal years.
Management Response:
STEP Academy staff members will ensure that meal counts are taking place daily, being documented accordingly, and
being reported appropriately.