Dear WS/FCS Staff and Families,
Today the North Carolina Office of the State Auditor released a follow-up report to the August 2025 Rapid Response Report into the district’s Fiscal year 2024-2025 deficit. It provides a more detailed review of the overspending of state funds last year and looks at the terms of the district’s loan from the Child Nutrition Fund.
We have acknowledged that poor practices led to last year’s deficit. Since we first began working with the Auditor’s Office last spring, the district has taken corrective action to address those issues, including regular reconciliation of budgets to ensure that we are not overspending.
The Auditor’s follow-up report confirms that the district has taken steps to remedy these internal control deficiencies. We continue to work to strengthen financial processes to improve oversight and compliance with professional standards. We are following a two-year action plan to further stabilize operations, standardize procedures, and strengthen accountability.
In January, the Board of Education adopted an addendum to the Child Nutrition Fund loan to ensure it will be repaid this fiscal year with appropriate interest – satisfying issues raised by the Auditor in this follow-up report.
WS/FCS is in a new era of fiscal responsibility. We have a balanced budget. We have practices in place to ensure it stays that way. We are on the path to recovery and long-term stability.
We remain committed to transparency and rebuilding your trust by continuing to show our progress. You can read our responses to the findings, the full report and more details on our financial status at the Community Budget Update web portal.
Sincerely,
Don Phipps
Superintendent
Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools