According to a New Jersey Department of Education review of funds received from the Recovery Act, Newark Public Schools has misused funds provided for IDEA. The complete report is here.
ARRA- IDEA :: DETAILED FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Finding 1:
Condition: The district has not established a method to provide evidence of the impact the ARRA-IDEA Basic and Preschool funded services will have on students. They have not established expectations for success for activities included in the ARRA-IDEA Basic and Preschool Plan.
Citation: IDEA Regulations 34CFR §300.202.
Required Action: The district must have a plan for the evaluation of each activity specified in the ARRA Plan. The district can consider individual progress towards the Individualized Education Program goals and objectives, pre and post test scores, report cards and classroom observations. They may also consider data to track mathematics and reading scores using the purchased programs.
Finding 2:
Condition: Condition: The ARRA IDEA plan recorded in EWEG system did not match the intended use of these funds for services to special education students. This was discovered through document review and interviews with district administrative staff.
Citation: EDGAR, PART 80–Uniform Administrative Requirements for Grants and Cooperative Agreements to State and Local Governments, Section 20, Standards for financial management systems.
Required Action: The district should review the ARRA-IDEA plan recorded in EWEG and, if necessary, amend the application to assure concurrence between the grant application and allowable program expenditures for IDEA.
Finding 3:
Condition: The district was not in compliance with the requirements for the provision of services to nonpublic schools. The contract with the service provider agency(s) has not been executed. Also, the district was not able to provide affirmations of the consultation with the nonpublic representative as the district advised that the meetings have not been held.
Citation: IDEA Regulation 34 CFR 300 and 301 (Assistance to States for the Education
of Children with Disabilities and Preschool Grants for Children with Disabilities).
Required Action: The district must submit a copy of the fully executed contract with the nonpublic service provider, develop procedures to capture consultations specifically for IDEA and ARRA-IDEA services, and obtain confirmation of consultation forms from the nonpublic schools. The district must submit its updated contract(s) and control procedures to the NJDOE for review.
Finding 4:
Condition: The district is not in compliance with the requirements for services to nonpublic schools. The district does not participate in consultation and collaborative decision making with the nonpublic schools; communicate directly with the nonpublic schools regarding the delivery of service and new requests for service; maintain a list of students being served; and current service plans.
Citation: IDEA Regulation 34 CFR 300 and 301 (Assistance to States for the Education
of Children With Disabilities and Preschool Grants for Children With Disabilities).
Required Action: The district must conduct consultation activities with the nonpublic schools and develop procedures to participate in a collaborative decision making process with the nonpublic schools. In its communication with the nonpublic schools, the district must clarify how services will be delivered and the process for authorizing new requests for services that come through the district and not the provider. Additionally, the district must generate a list of students receiving services under ARRA-IDEA, and revise the students’ service plans to match the list.
Finding 5:
Condition: The ARRA-IDEA consolidated application on the EWEG system is missing the verification of affirmation of consultation for nonpublic preschools located within the district.
Citation: IDEA Regulations 34CFR §300.130-300.144.
Required Action: The ARRA-IDEA consolidated grant must be revised to include the nonpublic preschools consulted with, in addition to the decision making rationale pertaining to why parentally placed preschool students are not receiving services.
Finding 6:
Condition: The district did not have detailed equipment inventory for items purchased with ARRA-IDEA funds.
Citation: EDGAR, PART 80–Uniform Administrative Requirements for Grants and Cooperative Agreements to State and Local Governments, Section 32, Equipment.
Required Action: The district must have formal tracking of equipment purchased with federal grants. Although the state threshold for reporting equipment is $2,000 in the EWEG system, the district may have its own lower threshold. All inventoried items should include tag number, cost, location, purchase date, and item description.
Finding 7:
Condition: The district is charging ineligible costs for instructional software that is being used across general education programs in the district and is not solely for the benefit of students with disabilities. Amounts charged must only pay for the excess costs of providing special education and related services to children with disabilities.
Citation: IDEA Regulation 34 CFR 300.202(a)(2) (Use of Funds).
Required Action: The district must remove the ineligible costs and submit adjusting entries showing the removal and board approval for the adjustments. A detail listing of all adjusted costs must be submitted to the NJDOE for review.
Finding 8:
Condition: The district is charging ineligible costs for electronic hardware including 12 servers that are being used for district wide programming and are not solely for the benefit of students with disabilities. Amounts charged must only pay for the excess costs of providing special education to children with disabilities.
Citation: IDEA Regulation 34 CFR 300.202(a)(2) (Use of Funds).
Required Action: The district must remove the ineligible costs and submit adjusting entries showing the removal and board approval for the adjustments. A detail listing of all adjusted costs must be submitted to the NJDOE for review.
Finding 9:
Condition: The district has assigned an employee to an unrecognized job title. Employee #37593 is certificated as an elementary school teacher and also a teacher of the handicapped. This employee is assigned to an unrecognized job title of “Crisis Teacher.” Position assignment is inconsistent with certification.
Citation: N.J.A.C. 6A:23-4.2(r).
Required Action: In accordance with the administrative code, the district must use recognized titles and assign employees to positions commensurate with their certifications.
Full monitoring report for Newark Public Schools.
