Audit: $27,489 in items missing at UA-Pulaski Tech

FAYETTEVILLE -- An internal audit made public Friday states that University of Arkansas-Pulaski Technical College found that a staff member improperly provided bid information to a vendor.

The college's police department was involved with an investigation but "that part of the investigation concluded" with no further action taken by police, Chancellor Margaret Ellibee said.

The audit document states that the employee resigned in December and that the employee's supervisor, the dean of the college's School of Fine Arts and Humanities, resigned in January. Auditors also found some items purchased over market cost or not in use.

An inventory check completed as part of the same audit found that 50 items with a total value of $27,489 were unable to be located, the report states. The items missing from the college's School of Fine Arts and Humanities included 12 laptop and desktop computers.

University of Arkansas System auditors in a separate report, also made public Friday, described claims that an administrative analyst in UA-Fayetteville's UAteach program improperly used purchase cards assigned to her for $14,994.78 in "unauthorized, non-University related purchases."

The audit report states that the employee, on the same day she was questioned about some of the charges, resigned March 6. The employee, who was named in the report, "reportedly admitted to having signed the Director's name without his approval on certain Procurement Card Forms but claimed the charges were for UAteach program related expenses."

A police investigation was referred in June to the Washington County prosecuting attorney's office, according to the audit report. The case remains under review, Whitney Doolittle, a deputy prosecuting attorney, said in an email.

"I requested additional information from UAPD, which was turned over to me around the first of September," Doolittle said.

At UA-Fayetteville and UA-Pulaski Tech, the internal audits were completed "based on receiving notification from the University's management," according to letters from the UA System Chief Audit Executive Jacob Flournoy addressed to the University of Arkansas board of trustees.

The board approved the audit reports Friday at its meeting on the Fayetteville campus, at which point they were made public.

Details in the UA-Pulaski Tech audit do not include the name of the former employee suspected of improperly helping a vendor. The audit report states that the employee, who worked as technical coordinator for the college's School of Fine Arts and Humanities, has a brother who owns a business and that "information was provided in order for [the business] to submit the lowest (winning) bid for equipment for the Center for Humanities and Arts (CHARTS) building."

However, the "Director of Procurement was able to prevent the bids in question from becoming purchases," the report states.

Ellibee, in an interview, said the former dean "knew of aspects of what were going on."

She said that when the college learned of the issue, they contacted the UA System.

Ellibee noted that safeguards mitigated the improper activity, with the audit proving the college "had a good structure in place, and now we have even a better structure in place that is very fair, very transparent."

Both audits state that information has been forwarded to the state Legislative Audit, as required under state law when there is a report of a loss of public funds.

State auditors issue reports to the Legislative Joint Auditing Committee, and reports can be passed on to prosecutors for further action.

Metro on 09/15/2018