Legacy Prep Charter School Audit

Special Examination on the
Legacy Prep Charter School

Jefferson County, Alabama
October 1, 2019 through September 30, 2021
Filed: September 23, 2022
Department of
Examiners of Public Accounts
401 Adams Avenue, Suite 280
Montgomery, Alabama 36104-4338
P.O. Box 302251
Website: www.examiners.alabama.gov
Rachel Laurie Riddle, Chief Examiner

22-389
State of Alabama
Department of
P.O. Box 302251, Montgomery, AL 36130-2251
401 Adams Avenue, Suite 280
Rachel Laurie Riddle Telephone (334) 242-9200
Chief Examiner FAX (334) 242-1775
Honorable Rachel Laurie Riddle

Chief Examiner of Public Accounts
Montgomery, Alabama 36130
Dear Madam:
A special examination was conducted of Legacy Prep Charter School, Jefferson County,
Alabama, for the period October 1, 2019 through September 30, 2021. Under the authority of
the Code of Alabama 1975, Section 41-5A-19, I hereby swear to and submit this report to you
on the results of the special examination.
Respectfully submitted,
Laura H. Madison
Examiner of Public Accounts
rb
22-389
Table of Contents
Page
Summary A
Contains items pertaining to state and local legal compliance and other matters.
Schedule of Findings C
Contains detailed information about findings pertaining to noncompliance with

state and local laws.
Exhibit #1 Members of the Governing Board of Directors

and Administrative Personnel – a listing of the Members of
the Governing Board of Directors and Administrative Personnel
and dates of service. 1
Exhibit #2 Schedule of Charges – a schedule that provides details on amounts

that a former employee has been asked to repay. 2
Order of the Chief Examiner 5

______________________________________________

Jefferson County
Department of
SUMMARY

Legacy Prep Charter School (the “School”) operates as a start-up public charter school
under the terms of a charter contract established by the Alabama Public Charter School
Commission (the “Commission”) as prescribed by the Code of Alabama 1975, Title 16,
Chapter 6F, known as the Alabama School Choice and Student Opportunity Act. A charter
contract is a fixed-term renewable contract between a public charter school and an authorizer
(Commission) that outlines the roles, powers, responsibilities, and quantitative and qualitative
performance expectations for each party to the contract. The Commission approved a
charter contract for the School on February 12, 2018. The School is a public charter school
and is part of the public education system of the State of Alabama. The School opened
for the 2019-2020 school year and served kindergarten through second grade. The School
served kindergarten through third grade for the 2020-2021 school year.
This report presents the results of a special examination of the School performed at the
request of Alabama State Department of Education pursuant to the Code of Alabama 1975,
Section 41-5A-5(a)(9). This special examination included tests for compliance with
applicable State and local laws.
FINDINGS
Instances of noncompliance with state and local laws and regulations and other matters were
found during the examination as shown on the Schedule of Findings and they are summarized
below.
♦ 2021-001 relates to the School’s failure to retain documentation to support expenditures,

including the public purpose of expenditures, resulting in charges against a former
employee and exposing the School to the risk of loss and misappropriation of public
funds.
♦ 2021-002 relates to the School’s failure to ensure a fair and competitive purchasing
process was followed in the awarding of some contracts meeting the bid threshold
established by the Code of Alabama 1975, Section 16-13B-1.
♦ 2021-003 relates to the School’s failure to ensure compliance with the approved charter
contract and record retention requirements in maintaining all minutes, accounting records,
purchasing records and personnel files in accordance with the Code of Alabama 1975,
Section 41-13-23.
22-389 A
♦ 2021-004 relates to the School’s failure to implement internal controls and its
noncompliance with established policies and procedures related to expenditures and the
use of credit cards.
♦ 2021-005 relates to the School’s noncompliance with approved policies for receipting and
depositing of all money collected.
♦ 2021-006 relates to the School’s failure to maintain the proper composition of its Board
and to ensure that members of the Board complete and update the required disclosure
forms during their terms.
♦ 2021-007 relates to the School’s failure to ensure that all money collected on behalf of the
School is recorded in the School’s accounting records and deposited in the School’s bank
account.
♦ 2021-008 relates to the School’s noncompliance with its approved finance policy
regarding the recording and tracking of grant money received and its failure to maintain
appropriate accounting records and supporting documentation to ensure grant money is
spent in accordance with purposes identified by the grantors.
♦ 2021-009 relates to the School’s failure to maintain supporting documentation of amounts

paid to employees as stipends and bonuses.
CHARGES AGAINST A FORMER EMPLOYEE
As reflected on Exhibit 2, the charges against the former Chief Executive Officer and Head
of School resulted from payments made from the School’s checking, money market, and
credit card accounts for which the public purpose could not be documented or identified.
Official demand was made on the former Chief Executive Officer and Head of School
requesting payment totaling $311,516.53. The former Chief Executive Officer and Head of
School appeared at a meeting before the Chief Examiner and submitted further evidence
related to the charges. Additionally, evidence related to the charges was requested and
submitted from School officials. As a result, relief in the amount of $311,516.53 was
granted, as evidenced by the Order of the Chief Examiner contained in this report.
EXIT CONFERENCE
Members of the Governing Board of Directors and Administrative Personnel, as reflected on

Exhibit 1, were invited to discuss the results of this report at an exit conference held by
conference call. Individuals in attendance were: Darlene Wilson, Orazio Macarella, and
Ruqayyah Abdullah, Board Members; Van Moody, former Board Member; Jonta Morris,
former Chief Executive Officer and Head of School; and Ginger Lusty, former Chief
Financial Officer. Representing the Department of Examiners of Public Accounts
were: Jason Paulk, Chief Legal Counsel; Dixie B. Thomas, Special Projects Manager; and
Laura Madison, Examiner.
22-389 B
Schedule of Findings
C
Ref.
No. Finding/Noncompliance
2021-001 Finding:
The expenditure of public funds is subject to the restrictions contained in
Section 94 of the Constitution of Alabama 1901, as amended. Section 94
prohibits governmental entities, here Legacy Prep Charter School (the “School”),
from granting public funds or a thing of value in aid of, or to any individual,
association, or company whatsoever, unless the funds or thing of value is for a
public purpose. Whether funds or a thing of value is used for a public purpose
depends on whether a direct public benefit of reasonably general character is
provided to a significant part of the public rather than a remote or theoretical
benefit. Adequate documentation must be retained to support the public purpose
of any such expenditures. Documentation to support the public purpose of
expenditures totaling $311,516.53 was not properly retained. Expenditures paid
from the School’s checking, money market, and credit card accounts were
reviewed and revealed the following:
♦ Numerous expenditures were made utilizing the School’s checking and credit
card accounts for items or services considered to be unallowable uses of
public funds based on the documentation provided. These expenditures
included the following:
Expenditures at Restaurants and for Food Delivery Services $ 5,415.56

Expenditures at Retail Stores and Online Retailers 2,650.97
Expenditures for Gift Cards for Staff and Families of Students 3,180.95
Expenditures at Entertainment Venues 1,401.13
Expenditures for Flowers and a Finance Charge 280.29
Total $12,928.90
Legacy Prep Charter School D

Jefferson County
Ref.
Finding Continued:
♦ Numerous expenditures were made utilizing the School’s checking, money
market, and credit card accounts for which adequate and/or complete
invoices, receipts or other documentation to support the purpose of the
purchases were not provided. These expenditures included the following:
Expenditures at Restaurants and for Food Delivery Services $ 4,895.13

Expenditures at Retail Stores and Online Retailers 8,558.38
Expenditures to Vendors including Hotels.com, Airbnb, United Airlines,
Southwest Airlines and CarRentals.com 5,605.06
Expenditures for Gift Cards 19,320.00
Expenditures to Vendors including Apple, Slappey Communications,
and Harris Communications 17,477.74
Expenditures to Vendors including Facebook, Job Fair Services,
In Big Color, and Awful Cool Industries 3,092.17
Expenditures to Vendors including Jamm Entertainment, TopGolf,
SpareTime, and Life Touch Massage 5,618.40
Fees, Interest, and Other Bank Charges 4,953.46
Expenditures to Vendors including Lavinia Group, BBC Consulting,
and Individuals 110,474.87
Expenditures to Kickstart, Inc. and Wood Fruitticher Grocery Co., Inc. 19,558.37
Expenditures to Vendors including West Music and School
Transportation Services 15,600.58
Expenditures to Vendors including Logo Express and Board on Track 5,567.85
Expenditures for Payments made to Employees with Notations of being
for Various Stipends, Perfect Attendance Payments, and Other
Payments Outside of Regular Payroll 20,935.72
Expenditures to Employees of the School with Notations of being
for Reimbursements 1,324.62
Expenditures to vendors including Joy Pittman Human Resource
Development Strategist, Accutrain, and Alabama Institute for
Education in the Arts 9,020.00
Expenditures for Unidentifiable Purposes with Vendors including
1-800-FLOWERS, LiveLARQ.com, and Herschel 46,585.28
Total $298,587.63
The School’s failure to retain documentation to support the purpose of

expenditures exposed the school to the potential loss and misappropriation of
public funds. These amounts are reflected as charges against a former employee
on Exhibit 2.
Recommendation:
The School should implement procedures to ensure that expenditures made from
public funds are properly documented to include the purpose of the disbursement
to ensure compliance with Section 94, Constitution of Alabama 1901, as
amended.
Legacy Prep Charter School E

Jefferson County
Ref.
2021-002 Finding:
The Code of Alabama 1975, Section 16-6F-8(d)(4), states that “public charter
schools shall be subject to competitive bid laws in the same fashion as local
boards of education.” Therefore Legacy Prep Charter School (the “School”) is
subject to the Code of Alabama 1975, Section 16-13B-1(a), which requires all
expenditure of funds of whatever nature for labor, services, work, or for the
purchase of materials, equipment, supplies, or other personal property involving
fifteen thousand dollars ($15,000) or more made by or on behalf of any city or
county board of education to be made under contractual agreement entered into
by free and open competitive bidding, on sealed bids, to the lowest responsible
bidder. Additionally, the Code of Alabama 1975, Section 16-13B-4(d), provides
that all original bids, together with all documents pertaining to the award of the
contract, be retained in accordance with a retention period of at least seven years
established by the Local Government Records Commission and to be open to
public inspection. During the examination period, the School expended in excess
of $15,000 for various goods or services without properly bidding them or
maintaining supporting documentation of items purchased utilizing the State of
Alabama's Statewide Contract bid list, joint purchasing agreements, or other
means. The School did not have procedures in place to ensure expenditures
which met the competitive bid law threshold requirements were competitively bid
and that all documentation of the awarding of contracts was retained in
accordance with statute. As a result, the School did not ensure a fair and
competitive purchasing process was followed in the awarding of some contracts.
Recommendation:
The School should implement procedures to ensure a fair and competitive
purchasing process is followed in the awarding of contracts meeting the threshold
established by the Code of Alabama 1975, Section 16-13B-1(a) as well as
retaining bid documentation in accordance with the Code of Alabama 1975,
Section 16-13B-4(d).
Legacy Prep Charter School F

Jefferson County
Ref.
2021-003 Finding:
The Code of Alabama 1975, Title 16, Chapter 6F, known as the Alabama School
Choice and Student Opportunity Act, established the Alabama Public Charter
School Commission (the “Commission”). The Commission reviews applicable
applications; approves or rejects public charter school applications; enters into
charter contracts with applicants; oversees public charter schools; and decides
whether to renew, not renew, or revoke charter contracts. A charter contract
is a fixed-term renewable contract between a public charter school and an
authorizer (Commission) that outlines the roles, powers, responsibilities, and
quantitative and qualitative performance expectations for each party to the
contract. The Commission approved a charter contract for Legacy Prep Charter
School (the “School”) on February 12, 2018.
Section 9.1 of the contract states that the School is subject to Alabama laws for
public records including the Alabama Department of Archives and History’s
record retention requirements for local school boards. The Code of Alabama
1975, Sections 41-13-22 and 41-13-23 developed a records disposition authority
for local boards of education that establishes retention and disposition
instructions for records.
According to the Local Boards of Education Records Disposition Authority, the

following records are required to be maintained and retained:
♦ Board Meeting Minutes/Meeting Packets are considered permanent records

documenting the making and implementation of policy. Meeting minutes are
the primary documentation of the making of policy for the local school
system and of local system implementation of federal and state educational
policy. The meeting packet includes all reports and attachments provided at a
meeting of the board of education. Minutes from the School’s Board
meetings were requested to be reviewed. It was determined that Board
Meeting Minutes/Meeting Packets could not be provided for twenty-two (22)
of the forty-eight (48) meetings scheduled during the examination period.
♦ Routine accounting records are considered temporary records. However,

these records are required to be retained for two (2) years following audit.
These are records of original entry, including journals, registers, subsidiary
ledgers, records of deposits of funds, deposit slips and other banking records,
receipt books and student fundraisers for the School. The School failed to
provide supporting documentation and approval for journal entries made on
the School’s ledgers.
Legacy Prep Charter School G

Jefferson County
Ref.
Finding Continued:
♦ Purchasing records documenting the requisitioning and purchasing of supplies
and equipment, and authorizing payments for products are temporary records
required to be retained for two (2) years following audit. These records
include, but are not limited to, purchase orders, quotes, invoices, purchasing
card receipts, and receiving reports. The School did not maintain supporting
documentation of all amounts expended including receipts, invoices, etc. to
support expenditure transactions.
♦ Employee personnel files are considered temporary records but should be

retained for six (6) years after the employee’s separation. Employee
Personnel Files should include the employee’s work history with the school
system as well as documentation of the employee’s salary. In addition to this
requirement, the Legacy Prep Staff Handbook 2020-2021, Section I
Employment Policies and Procedures includes a section for Employment
Agreements stating that prior to reporting to work, each employee shall sign
an annual employment agreement clearly acknowledging the terms and
conditions of his or her employment with the School. Employment
agreements were requested for employees of the School for the period of
January 1, 2020 through September 30, 2021. During this period, the School
employed eighty-five (85) individuals; however, only eleven (11)
employment agreements were provided.
Based on the absence of the records described, we were unable to determine

official actions taken by the School Board during meetings, whether money was
properly spent, whether expenditure and credit card activity were properly
accounted for in the financial records, or whether employees were paid the
correct amounts.
Recommendation:
The School should ensure compliance with the approved charter contract and
record retention requirements. All minutes, accounting records, purchasing
records, and personnel files should be maintained in accordance with the Code of
Alabama 1975, Sections 41-13-22 and 41-13-23.
Legacy Prep Charter School H

Jefferson County
Ref.
2021-004 Finding:
Choice and Student Opportunity Act, established the Alabama Public Charter
charter contracts with applicants; oversees public charter schools; and
decides whether to renew, not renew, or revoke charter contracts. A charter
contract is a fixed-term renewable contract between a public charter school and
an authorizer (Commission) that outlines the roles, powers, responsibilities, and
quantitative and qualitative performance expectations for each party to the
contract. The Commission approved a charter contract for Legacy Prep Charter
School (the “School”) on February 12, 2018.
Section 9.1 of the charter contract states that the School should document and
follow internal control procedures and that the school will utilize the same
financial accounting system and procedures as non-charter public schools.
Additionally, the School’s finance policy sets out that purchases should be
initiated through the submission of a request for purchase prior to the expenditure
of funds and all approved requests should be reviewed and verified as being
budgeted. Further, policies and practices documented in the School’s Staff
Handbook for 2020-2021 set forth procedures for purchases to be approved prior
to being made. The Staff Handbook also has established policies and terms of
use for credit cards that limit credit card usage to business purposes and in
circumstances where a purchase order was not an option.
Evidence demonstrating the School’s implementation of internal control

procedures related to expenditures was not found during the examination.
Documentation to support the School’s compliance with its own policies,
procedures and practices was not available to support all purchases, including
documentation of prior approval and budget review. Documentation
demonstrating the staff members’ understanding and acceptance of the School’s
terms of use for credit cards was not provided. The School’s failure to implement
internal controls and its noncompliance with established policies and procedures
exposed the School to the risk of misappropriation of public funds.
Recommendation:
Internal controls should be established and implemented to ensure all purchases
are approved prior to purchase, documentation is maintained to support all
purchases, and policies and procedures are followed related to credit card use.
Legacy Prep Charter School I

Jefferson County
Ref.
2021-005 Finding:
The Board of Directors of Legacy Prep Charter School (the “School”) approved a
Finance Policy on March 10, 2020, which includes provisions for the deposit of
money received by the School. The policy states that money received is to be
deposited into the School’s bank accounts in a timely manner, defined as being
within two to three business days. Further, the School’s policy states that all
deposits are to be accompanied by the Receipt of Deposit Form that notates the
source of funds, the amount, and the account number of the deposit. Receipt
books provided for the examination were used by the office staff to record
payments made by cash, checks, and credit or debit cards. Testing revealed the
following matters:
♦ Receipts for cash and checks collected could not be reconciled to the School’s
bank deposits and deposits were not made timely. Additionally,
documentation could not be provided to determine which receipts were
included in deposits.
♦ The School allowed individuals to pay fees with credit/debit cards.
Collection reports from the card processing company show collections
totaling $29,048.09 paid to the School using credit/debit cards. Of this
amount, $1,074.63 was retained by the card processing company as
processing fees and $27,703.46 was deposited into the School’s bank account.
The School was only able to provide receipts totaling $2,122.00 instead of the
$29,048.09 collected.
♦ The School collected money for students’ breakfast and lunch meals through
a third-party vendor. Documentation of these collections and deposits was
requested for testing; however, the School did not provide any source of
documentation to support the money collected.
The School’s noncompliance with approved policies for receipting and depositing
all money collected exposed the School to the risk that all money collected was
not entered into the accounting records or deposited into the School’s bank
account.
Recommendation:
The School should comply with the approved finance policy regarding the receipt
and deposit of all money collected.
Legacy Prep Charter School J

Jefferson County
Ref.
2021-006 Finding:
Choice and Student Opportunity Act established the Alabama Public Charter
charter contracts with applicants; oversees public charter schools; and decides
whether to renew, not renew, or revoke charter contracts. A charter contract is a
fixed-term renewable contract between a public charter school and an authorizer
(Commission) that outlines the roles, powers, responsibilities, and quantitative
and qualitative performance expectations for each party to the contract.
The Commission approved a charter contract for Legacy Prep Charter School
(the “School”) on February 12, 2018. The contract between the Commission and
the School contains provisions directly related to the School’s Governing Board
(the “Board”).
These provisions include that the Board should at all times have at least twenty
percent (20%) of its members be parents of students who attend or have attended
the School for at least one (1) academic year. Based on documentation provided
by the School, there were nine (9) months during the examination period when
the Board’s composition did not include the required twenty percent (20%) of
parent members. The documentation provided by the School revealed five (5)
months during the examination period in which there were no parent members on
the Board.
Additionally, the contract requires a Public Charter School Governing Board
Member Disclosure Form to be completed by each Governing Board Member.
This form is a public document and should be made available at the school for
inspection by other Governing Board members, the staff, or the community. It is
the duty of the Governing Board Member to report and update this information
throughout the term of contract. Governing Board Member Disclosure Forms
were requested for all members that served during the examination period;
however, the School was unable to locate and provide any of the forms for
review.
The School did not have proper controls in place to ensure the required
composition of the Board was maintained and that members of the Board
complete and update the required form during their terms.
Recommendation:
The School and the Board should ensure compliance with the terms of the charter
school contract with regards to the composition of the Board and ensure required
disclosure forms are completed, on hand, and available for review.
Legacy Prep Charter School K

Jefferson County
Ref.
2021-007 Finding:
Finance Policy on March 10, 2020, which includes provisions for gifts,
donations, and bequests. The policy states that “Legacy Prep graciously accepts
gifts, bequests, donations, and other forms of voluntary contributions from
individuals and organizations. Gifts may include cash, real or personal property,
stocks, bonds and other securities, services, or in-kind contributions. The Head
of School will ensure that any offered gift imposes no undue financial burden or
obligation to Legacy Prep. Any gift or bequest constituting revenue will be
deposited in the proper fund.”
In March 2020, the School began receiving online donations through PayPal (an
online payment system). Donations were made for the playground fund,
reopening efforts, general donations, and monthly dues. As the balance of the
donations accumulated in the PayPal account, the School paid bills related to
website design, Facebook ads and flower orders. Revenues and expenditures
resulting from these transactions totaling $4,486.71 were not recorded in the
School’s accounting records. Controls and procedures were not in place to
ensure that all money collected and expended on behalf of the School was
recorded in the School’s accounting records or deposited into the School’s bank
account. As a result, $4,486.71 in money collected on behalf of the School was
not recorded in the School’s accounting records or deposited into the School’s
bank account, nor were the related expenditures recorded in the School’s
accounting records.
Recommendation:
Internal controls and other procedures should be implemented by the School to
ensure that all money collected on behalf of the School is recorded in the
School’s accounting records and deposited in the School’s bank account.
Legacy Prep Charter School L

Jefferson County
Ref.
2021-008 Finding:
Finance Policy on March 10, 2020, which includes provisions for grants
received. The policy states that grant proposals must specifically identify
conditions for use of funds, reporting requirements, term of grant, and funding
mechanism. Monies received shall go into specifically identified grant revenue
and expense line items on the School’s monthly and annual budgets. Monies will
be coded to the revenue and expense line-item accounts and further broken
down/tracked/reported, by individual grant. Our review of reports from the
School’s accounting software showed that grant revenues and expenditures were
coded to general purpose revenue and expense accounts. When requested,
the School provided grant documentation for many of the grants received that
indicated the intended use of the grants.
However, documentation demonstrating how grant funds were tracked and spent
in order to support that grant funds were used as intended was not provided.
Inquiries made of the former Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Head of School
regarding the public purpose of certain expenditures were met with the
explanation that grants funds were used to make the following purchases:
♦ Funds in the amount of $9,456.44 were used to purchase meals and other
food-related items for staff members. These meals included the following:
ü Lunches were often purchased for staff members and individuals
interviewing for staff positions at the School. On numerous occasions,
the School utilized meal delivery services for these purchases and
incurred charges for delivery fees and service fees, in addition to tips
being paid for the services.
ü Purchases were made to provide meals to the School’s staff members for
meetings, staff appreciation and holiday luncheons. These included
payments made to food truck vendors, caterers, and various restaurants.
ü Purchases were made to provide staff members with other items such as
coffee and other drinks purchased from various restaurants including
Starbucks, Insomnia Cookies, Nothing Bundt Cakes and Daylight
Donuts.
Legacy Prep Charter School M

Jefferson County
Ref.
Finding Continued:
♦ Funds totaling $1,785.95 were used to purchase gift cards for employees of
the School. According to the former CEO and Head of School, these were
given as gifts to teachers to retail stores and restaurants based on employee
preferences. There were also purchases in the amount of $2,000.00 made for
gift cards at Wal-Mart with notations of being given to families of students;
however, documentation of which families and how those families were
determined was not provided.
♦ Funds in the amount of $2,015.01 were spent at entertainment venues such as
Top Golf, Dave and Busters, and Spare Time for staff outings and retreats for
the School’s staff and leadership.
♦ Funds in the amount of $2,165.00 were paid to Life Touch Massage to
provide chair massages for staff members at the School.
While the amount of grant funds received by the School exceeded the amount of
purchases noted above, without sufficient documentation to indicate which
grant’s funds were used to make purchases, we were unable to determine that
funds were always spent as intended by the School’s grantors. The School’s
failure to properly record and track grant funds in accordance with adopted
policies could lead to the mismanagement of grant funds received.
Recommendation:
The School should comply with the approved finance policy regarding the
recording and tracking of grant money received. The School should ensure that
all grant funds are spent in accordance with the purposes identified by each
grantor and ensure that appropriate accounting records and supporting
documentation are maintained.
Legacy Prep Charter School N

Jefferson County
Ref.
2021-009 Finding:
Section 94 of the Constitution of Alabama 1901 prohibits governmental entities
from lending credit or granting public money or a thing of value in aid of, or to
any individual, association, or corporation. The language of Section 94 has been
interpreted by the Supreme Court of Alabama to allow the appropriation of public
funds when the appropriation is for a public purpose. The paramount test to
determine what is a public purpose should be whether the expenditure confers a
direct public benefit of a reasonably general character; that is to say, a significant
part of the public, as distinguished from a remote and theoretical benefit. To
ensure that the expenditures of the Legacy Prep Charter School’s (the “School”)
funds are made in accordance with Section 94, proper supporting documentation
should be maintained to demonstrate the public purpose of the expenditures.
Additionally, the School’s Staff Handbook regarding amounts paid to employees,
states that “The pay and attendance bonus are determined by the CEO, based on a
percentage of workload calculation. For school-based teams, workload is defined
by on-campus hours before, during or after the school day.”
Employees of the School received payments noted as being for holiday stipends
in the amount of $13,400.00, a bonus in the form of gift cards totaling
$18,400.00, and $2,000.00 for perfect attendance during the examination period.
These disbursements were made from the School’s appropriation from the
Alabama Education Trust Fund based on the School’s accounting reports.
Documentation to support the percentage of workload calculation used to pay
these amounts was requested from the School and the former Chief Executive
Officer (CEO); however, only amounts paid were provided.
The School failed to maintain documentation demonstrating the public purpose of

all expenditures, therefore, we were unable to determine whether expenditures
were made in compliance with Section 94 of the Constitution of Alabama 1901
and in accordance the School’s policies enumerated in its Staff Handbook.
Recommendation:
The School and its staff should ensure that policies and procedures are in place to
document the expenditure of funds, including amounts paid to employees as
stipends and bonuses.
Legacy Prep Charter School O

Jefferson County
This Page Intentionally Blank
Members of the Governing Board of Directors
and Administrative Personnel
Members Term Dates
Darlene Wilson July 2020 through July 2022
Orazio Mancarella November 2020 through November 2022
Ruqayyah Abdullah December 2020 through December 2022
Shakeyla Tarver September 2019 through January 2020
Taajah Witherspoon March 2018 through February 2020
Jaime McKinney September 2019 through March 2020
Earlisha Williams March 2020 through October 2020
Greg Johnston August 2019 through December 2020
Karen Johnson July 2020 through June 2021
Abby Guerin Russell January 2021 through July 2021
Adam Arrington December 2020 through August 2021
Brian Hamilton August 2017 through August 2021
Van Moody November 2020 through September 2021
Administrative Personnel
Jonta Morris, Chief Executive Officer September 2021

and Head of School
Chardra Gordon, Former Chief Financial Officer February 2020
Ginger Lusty, Former Chief Financial Officer September 2020
Julie Phinnix, Former Chief Financial Officer March 2021
Willie Davis, Chief Financial Officer Indefinite
Legacy Prep Charter School 1 Exhibit #1

Jefferson County
Schedule of Charges
Amount
Relieved
Amount Amount By Chief Amount
Person/Official Charged Date Charged Paid Examiner Unpaid Description of Charge
Directly Charged To:

Jonta Morris, Former Chief Executive The expenditure of public funds is subject to the restrictions contained in Section 94 of
Officer (CEO) and Head of School the Constitution of Alabama 1901 , as amended. Section 94 prohibits governmental entities,
at Legacy Prep Charter School here Legacy Prep Charter School (the "School"), from granting public funds or a thing of value
in aid of, or to any individual, association, or company whatsoever, unless the funds or
thing of value is for a public purpose. Whether funds or a thing of value is used for a
public purpose depends on whether they bring about a direct public benefit of reasonably
general character to a significant part of the public rather than a remote or theoretical
benefit. Adequate documentation must be retained to support the public purpose of
any such expenditures.
Various $ 12,928.90 $ $ 12,928.90 $ Numerous purchases were made utilizing the School's checking and credit card accounts for
items or services considered to be unallowable uses of public funds based on the documentation
provided. The expenditures included purchases made at various restaurants and for food
delivery services, including DoorDash and GrubHub, denoted as for staff. Purchases were
also made at retail stores including Wal-Mart, Target, Costco, and Amazon for snacks,
candy, sodas, goodie bags for staff, and staff retreat supplies. Additionally, gift cards were
purchased for staff at numerous stores including Best Buy, TJ Maxx, Nike, Old Navy,
Target, Loft, Ralph Lauren and for families of students at Wal-Mart. Finally, purchases were
made at entertainment venues including Dave and Busters and Top Golf.
Various 4,895.13 4,895.13 There were numerous expenditure transactions from the School's checking and credit card
accounts made at restaurants including Chick-fil-A, Southern Kitchen, McAlister's and
Panera and for food delivery services such as DoorDash. Adequate and/or complete invoices,
receipts or other documentation to support the purpose of the disbursements was not provided.
accounts made at retail stores, including Target, Costco, Sam's, and Publix, and online
retailers including Wayfair, eBay and Amazon. Adequate and/or complete invoices, receipts
or other documentation to support the purpose of the disbursements was not provided.
accounts made to vendors including Hotels.com, Airbnb, United Airlines, Southwest Airlines
and CarRentals.com. Adequate and/or complete invoices, receipts or other documentation
to support the purpose of the disbursements was not provided.
accounts made for gift cards. These gift cards were purchased through the School's banking
institution and at retail stores. Adequate and/or complete invoices, receipts or other
documentation to support the purpose of the disbursements was not provided. There were
surcharges associated with some of the transactions which are also included.
Sub-Total Forward $ 51,307.47 $ $ 51,307.47 $

Jefferson County 2 Exhibit #2
Schedule of Charges
Amount
Relieved
Sub-Total Brought Forward $ 51,307.47 $ $ 51,307.47 $
Various 17,477.74 17,477.74 There were numerous expenditure transactions from the School's checking and credit
card accounts made to vendors including Apple, Slappey Communications and Harris
Communications. Adequate and/or complete invoices, receipts or other documentation
Various 3,092.17 3,092.17 There were numerous expenditure transactions from the School's checking and credit
card accounts made to vendors including Facebook, Job Fair Services, In Big Color and
Awful Cool Industries. Adequate and/or complete invoices, receipts or other documentation
Various 5,618.40 5,618.40 There were numerous transactions from the School's checking and credit card accounts
made to vendors including Jamm Entertainment, TopGolf, Spare Time, and Life Touch
Massage. Adequate and/or complete invoices, receipts or other documentation to support
the purpose of the disbursements was not provided.
for fees, interest, and other bank charges. Adequate and/or complete invoices, receipts
made to vendors including Lavinia Group, BBC Consulting, and individuals. Adequate
and/or complete invoices, receipts or other documentation to support the purpose of the
disbursements was not provided.
made to vendors including Kickstart, Inc. and Wood Fruitticher Grocery Co., Inc. Adequate
made to vendors including West Music and School Transportation Services. Adequate
made to vendors including Logo Express and Board on Track. Adequate and/or complete
invoices, receipts or other documentation to support the purpose of the disbursements
was not provided.
Sub-Total Forward $ 233,650.91 $ $ 233,650.91 $

Schedule of Charges
Amount
Relieved
Sub-Total Brought Forward $ 233,650.91 $ $ 233,650.91 $
made for payments made to employees with notations as being for various stipends, perfect
attendance payments and other payments outside of regular payroll transactions. Adequate
made to employees with notations as being for a reimbursement of expenses. Adequate
made to vendors including Joy Pittman Human Resource Development Strategist, Accutrain,
and Alabama Institute for Education in the Arts. Adequate and/or complete invoices, receipts
Various 46,585.28 46,585.28 There were numerous transactions from the School's checking, money market and credit card
accounts made for which the purpose could not be determined. These include transactions
made at 1-800-FLOWERS, LiveLARQ.com, and Herschel. Adequate and/or complete invoices,
receipts or other documentation to support the purpose of the disbursements was not provided.
Total Directly Charged
to Jonta Morris $ 311,516.53 $ $ 311,516.53 $

Order of the Chief Examiner

Legacy Prep Charter School Audit

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

You might also like

Legacy Prep Charter School Audit

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Legacy Prep Charter School Audit

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Special Examination on the

Legacy Prep Charter School

Filed: September 23, 2022

Rachel Laurie Riddle, Chief Examiner

Honorable Rachel Laurie Riddle

Contains detailed information about findings pertaining to noncompliance with

Exhibit #1 Members of the Governing Board of Directors

Exhibit #2 Schedule of Charges – a schedule that provides details on amounts

Order of the Chief Examiner 5

Legacy Prep Charter School

Legacy Prep Charter School

♦ 2021-001 relates to the School’s failure to retain documentation to support expenditures,

♦ 2021-009 relates to the School’s failure to maintain supporting documentation of amounts

CHARGES AGAINST A FORMER EMPLOYEE

Members of the Governing Board of Directors and Administrative Personnel, as reflected on

Expenditures at Restaurants and for Food Delivery Services $ 5,415.56

Legacy Prep Charter School D

Expenditures at Restaurants and for Food Delivery Services $ 4,895.13

The School’s failure to retain documentation to support the purpose of

Legacy Prep Charter School E

Legacy Prep Charter School F

According to the Local Boards of Education Records Disposition Authority, the

♦ Board Meeting Minutes/Meeting Packets are considered permanent records

♦ Routine accounting records are considered temporary records. However,

Legacy Prep Charter School G

♦ Employee personnel files are considered temporary records but should be

Based on the absence of the records described, we were unable to determine

Legacy Prep Charter School H

Evidence demonstrating the School’s implementation of internal control

Legacy Prep Charter School I

Legacy Prep Charter School J

Legacy Prep Charter School K

Legacy Prep Charter School L

Legacy Prep Charter School M

Legacy Prep Charter School N

The School failed to maintain documentation demonstrating the public purpose of

Legacy Prep Charter School O

Members Term Dates

Darlene Wilson July 2020 through July 2022

Orazio Mancarella November 2020 through November 2022

Ruqayyah Abdullah December 2020 through December 2022

Shakeyla Tarver September 2019 through January 2020

Taajah Witherspoon March 2018 through February 2020

Jaime McKinney September 2019 through March 2020

Earlisha Williams March 2020 through October 2020

Greg Johnston August 2019 through December 2020

Karen Johnson July 2020 through June 2021

Abby Guerin Russell January 2021 through July 2021

Adam Arrington December 2020 through August 2021

Brian Hamilton August 2017 through August 2021

Van Moody November 2020 through September 2021

Jonta Morris, Chief Executive Officer September 2021

Chardra Gordon, Former Chief Financial Officer February 2020

Ginger Lusty, Former Chief Financial Officer September 2020

Julie Phinnix, Former Chief Financial Officer March 2021

Willie Davis, Chief Financial Officer Indefinite

Legacy Prep Charter School 1 Exhibit #1

Directly Charged To: