PA Title Teachers

[bobcat]

Our school has just been notified that our Title I program will be audited this spring. I'm new to the position and was wondering if anyone out there could give me a heads-up as to what to expect and how to prepare. I have asked my coordinator, but she wasn't much help. A whole other story, but basically she wants to see me fail. So, I want to make sure I'm overprepared and when they come in for the audit, I want her to see that I'm capable without her help. Thanks for any input you can provide!!

 

[MrsM]

Our audits always happen during the summer break, and our director handles it. We make sure our director has the eligibility notebooks (lists for next year's kids), but in your case it would be currently serving kids. When we pack our classrooms, we have personal items boxed separately from Title I items, and the auditor may choose something off the inventory to say, "Show me X." The director requested that boxes be labeled well so that he opens as few as possible to find whatever was requested. Everything not consummable has to be marked "Title I" and the month/year it was purchased, easiest to do this when opening the delivery boxes.

It's probable that there'll be one or two things you'll have to fix, but it's not looked at as "fail". If your coordinator tries to hang you with it, argue back with her. Many districts are found to have one or two things to fix, and if they don't threaten funding, you are certainly within expected limits. It's difficult to know everything you have to comply with, that's what a coordinator is for!

 

[Sue W.]

Our Audit

Our Minnesota district was audited this past spring. There was no checking of materials or equipment here. Our records were checked.
Random student names were selected and files requested. If I remember correctly, some of the names were students who had been served the previous year. I don't temember being asked for files for tested students who did not qualify, but I keep those scores. Some of us keep all the tests, others just the scores for students served in past years. Two people went through the requested files, and spoke with us briefly. We were to have test scores and signed parent permission slips for each child served. Because our testing is, in a large part, similar to what is done by classroom teachers we did not need "permission to test" signed documents for the public school students, but since we also provide service for 2 parochial schools, we also need permission to test forms for those students.
There was one file I couldn't find but there didn't seem to be a problem with that. I explained that the child had transferred to a different district and that I may have failed to keep a copy when records were sent. It didn't seem to be a problem.