As part of a review of the now-shelved STEM Academy expansion project, a state audit report released this week found Riverside Unified School District (RUSD) appropriately used bond money but missed key opportunities to be more transparent.
“The audit validates concerns that many community members raised throughout this process and underscores the need for greater accountability in the management of taxpayer-funded projects,” State Senator Sabrina Cervantes, who ordered the audit last year, said in a statement.
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Voters approved Measure O in 2016, a $392 million bond the district could use to repair, upgrade and build new schools.
The California State Auditor reviewed bond measure campaign materials provided by the district as well as its Long-Range Facilities Master Plan and concluded neither fully informed residents the funds might be used for new construction.
The report also found instances where fewer projects would be funded due to changes in priorities, staff presented incomplete information about project costs, and that RUSD inconsistently communicated how much of the bond money would have gone to the STEM expansion project.
“Without clear documentation of its approved allocations and commitments, the district cannot reliably demonstrate how it intends to use bond funds, increasing the risk of miscommunication to the public,” the report said.
To ensure RUSD communicates clearly in the future, the state auditor recommended that the district develop a policy by the end of this year setting a consistent methodology for presenting budgets. The auditor also recommended the district adopt a separate policy requiring staff to verify trustee-approved allocations and contracts before spending funds.
“We welcome this audit and its findings,” RUSD Board President Noemi Hernandez Alexander said in a statement put out by the district. “Our community entrusted us with these resources, and we take that responsibility seriously.”
The district said an independent committee previously confirmed the funds were used appropriately and records were publicly shared to ensure transparency.
Hernandez Alexander added that Measure O money had also been used to modernize learning environments, build new infrastructure and construct two new campuses.
“This is what $392 million in voter-approved investment looks like, and Riverside families see it every day,” she said.
Separately, the report also found progress on the joint-project between RUSD and the University of California, Riverside (UCR) had been stalled for almost a year due to delayed decision-making and unresolved negotiations.
It added the district had completed and submitted the required documents to the university but found the university prevented progress due to its “decision to put the STEM Center project on hold.”
UCR Chancellor S. Jack Hu, in a May 26 letter sent to the state auditor, said publicly available information “may have created the misperception.” He added the two institutions shared a joint statement to address that misunderstanding and showcase its leaders have been collaborating on the future of its partnership.
“From my very first conversations with the chancellor, our focus was never on a single project,” RUSD Superintendent Sonia Llamas said in the statement. “It was on how two of Riverside’s most important institutions can build a robust partnership that creates conditions for all students to thrive. That work is well underway, and all students and families will see it in the expanded UCR-RUSD partnership.”
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