San Jose - The Santa Clara County Office of Education (SCCOE) today took the extraordinary measure to announce that it will launch independent, third-party audits and reviews to identify and resolve the SCCOE's substantial financial, operational, and data management issues.
The SCCOE will seek independent, third-party experts to assist in urgently resolving issues related to recently identified and uncovered potential evidence that suggests unauthorized (1) expenditure of public funds; (2) contract awards; (3) expenditures of public funds for personal legal fees; (4) waivers of legal conflicts; (5) investigations of the Board of Education; and (6) surveillance, internet technology monitoring (including emails), and other security risks. Local law enforcement was also contacted regarding these security concerns. In addition, the SCCOE will fully cooperate with any federal investigation into Head Start, which continues to be under federal review.
"The Santa Clara Office of Education takes very seriously our obligation to provide critical services to our key stakeholders including our most vulnerable students, local school districts, charter schools, community partners, and families. Thus, it is critical that we maintain the SCCOE's fiscal and operational integrity and that is why I am immediately seeking experts to conduct complete audits of Office of Education budgets, expenditures, and operations," said Interim Superintendent Dr. Charles Hinman.
"I support Interim Superintendent Dr. Hinman's call for complete independent reviews of SCCOE's finances and operations," said County Board of Education President Maimona Afzal Berta. "Any potential misuse of public funds needs to be investigated immediately. The Board of Education is committed to ensuring fiscal and operational oversight in accordance with state law and board policies, while being accountable to the citizens who elected us as fiduciaries of the public interest. As Board President, I will be relentless in ensuring our taxpayer dollars are spent educating our students, especially those most vulnerable."
###
