The Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Board of Education on Tuesday addressed financial accountability, school calendar changes, and an upcoming educator recruitment event in Kernersville.
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The State Auditor’s office released a follow-up report on March 5 to its August audit, noting:
“Most concerning were the substantial costs kept off-the-books. Our report found approximately $15 million of expenditures incurred during the fiscal year ended June 30, 2025, were not recorded until September 2025. This was a serious point of discussion during our exit conference with the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Board of Education and system administration. Leadership discussed steps already taken and their plans for corrective action, but the results of this report show that WS/FCS has not made significant progress in fixing its financial issues and restoring public trust in the school system.”
Superintendent Don Phipps doubled down on steps WS/FCS has taken to ensure fiscal responsibility during Tuesday’s meeting, mentioning work already underway such as budget-to-actual presentations in committee meetings, reviewing Program Report Codes (classifications for expenditures), and communicating potential red flags in the numbers.
“All of those things are happening, to what degree they were happening before I can’t really speak to other than we’re more diligent now, we’re trying to be more comprehensive,” said Phipps. “But I think a great deal of work’s been done: we have a positive cash flow now, we’re not holding invoices and bills for payment, we’ve implemented the electronic check writing in terms of paying vendors. Does that mean we’re without fault? No, I think there are always going to be things that we can improve on and we’re looking for every opportunity to do that.”
Chief Human Resources Officer Chris Weikart spent a large portion of the meeting thoroughly reviewing budgetary amendments in the new Tyler Enterprise Resource Planning system, the state mandated financial system designed to make financial reporting more efficient and modern.
The district will hold Aspiring Educators Day at East Forsyth High School in Kernersville. The first day, April 10, will be open to students enrolled in the Teacher Cadet and Teaching as a Profession programs. The next day will be exclusively for jobseekers throughout the community. Attendees will participate in professional development opportunities like mock interviews, resume workshops, and networking.
The board meeting also adjusted the school calendar to make up two inclement weather days: April 6, previously a Teacher Professional Day, will now be a typical school day, and the last day of the year will now be May 26, the day after Memorial Day, instead of May 22.
The next Board of Education meeting will be held March 31.
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