LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — Fayette County school district leaders met with the media Monday to address ongoing audits, potential budget changes, and school calendar adjustments, one day after the school board approved a special meeting for March 4.
The district is currently being audited by both the state and an independent firm following reports that about $16 million went missing last year. Questions have been raised about the district's contingency fund and overall budgeting practices.
"We're participating and cooperating as much as they need us to but both are ongoing at this point," Superintendent Dr. Demetrus Liggins said.
Both audits are expected to be completed later this year, possibly as early as this spring. A district spokesperson said updates will be provided as the district receives them.
Liggins also addressed the possibility of personnel changes in the coming year. With the Kentucky legislative session running through April, the district does not yet know how much state funding lawmakers will allocate compared to the budget numbers submitted in January.
"Absolutely there will be changes, as there is every single year," Liggins said.
The district also lost nearly two weeks of in-person learning due to January weather. The decision to designate most of those days as traditional snow days was made to preserve the district's meal funding, but additional days are expected to be added to the school calendar. Two days have already been added — one in March and one in April.
"We're hoping to make decisions once the winter season is done with us. This is my fifth year here and every year has been different," Liggins said.
Liggins added that amendments to the school calendar are not expected to be finalized until late March or early April.
As the March 4 special meeting approaches, Liggins declined to speculate on what will be discussed, saying only that the agenda will be made public as required by law. Some believe the meeting may be connected to a lawyer's inquiry into performance issues involving district leadership. The meeting is scheduled to begin at 5:30 p.m.
