Gov. Evers names auditor of Milwaukee Public Schools

Gov. Tony Evers announced Monday that MGT of America Consulting will conduct the audit he ordered of Milwaukee Public Schools operations.

It's one of two audits ordered by Evers to get the district "back on track" after he learned of major problems with MPS' financial reporting and early childhood education . A second auditor, yet to be announced, will look at the district's academic practices .

After proposing the idea for audits in early June, Evers said he decided to move forward when the plan won support from state Superintendent Jill Underly , Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson and Milwaukee School Board members.

Evers said the audits will mark the first examination of MPS of its kind since an initiative 15 years ago, when then-Mayor Tom Barrett and then-Gov. Jim Doyle called for an independent evaluation of MPS' finances and operations.

MGT previously recommended closing MPS school buildings, has taken over control in other school districts

MGT was one of just two vendors who submitted proposals for the audit, according to Britt Cudaback, Evers' office's communications director. In order to move quickly, Evers' office only accepted applications from companies that had already been vetted through another state contract, a consulting contract for the UW System.

MGT, a Florida-based consulting firm run by former Republican lawmaker Trey Traviesa, has worked with MPS before. The district hired MGT in 2017 to create a long-term facilities plan, though MPS didn't follow the firm's recommendation to close or repurpose 20 schools with declining enrollment. MPS is creating a new facilities plan this year with another firm, Perkins Eastman, which launched a website for the process last week.

In MGT's proposal for the new operational review, it didn't note whether it would examine facility usage but said it will look at staffing levels, training, hiring practices, operational efficiency, budget development, financial management and workflow.

The firm specializes in working with education agencies. It has been tapped by officials across the country not only as a consultant on school operations, but in some cases to take over management of schools.

In Gary, Indiana, state officials in 2017 ordered MGT to take control of the local school system for seven years to reverse its deficit. Some local officials opposed MGT when they realized the state's former Republican superintendent of schools was on the MGT board, the Chicago Tribute reported . MGT returned the reigns to local officials this summer after making deep budget cuts and leaving the district with surplus funds, the Tribune reported .

MGT had a rough landing after operating Adams County School District 14 in Colorado, under state orders. Local officials opposed the firm's involvement, questioned MGT's spending of district dollars on subcontractors, and sued MGT for release of records when the firm was investigating district employees, Chalkbeat Colorado reported. The company paid the district a $1.5 million settlement last year, CBS reported .

Evers hasn't called for a takeover of MPS, though others have floated the idea. Dale Kooyenga, a former Republican state senator and current president of the Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce, told Spectrum News he plans to convene stakeholders to discuss ideas for changes at MPS, including the possibility of a temporary state takeover, when state lawmakers are back in session in January.

Marva Herndon, president of the Milwaukee School Board, said she hoped the audits of MPS would help the district find areas of improvement without heading for a takeover, which she said would cause the "community to lose their voice" in electing the school board members who currently oversee the district.

"I had no problem with the governor bringing in auditors," Herndon said. "Typically you're going to find something that needs improvement or corrections, or processes and procedures to be developed."

In a press release , Evers said he thought MGT brought valuable experience working with public schools and conducting operational reviews with commitments to a "student-centered approach" and “evidence-based recommendations to improve central office effectiveness and efficiency.”

"I’ve been clear from the beginning that the folks selected to conduct the independent, outside audits of MPS bring expertise and specific experience in classrooms, schools, and helping support school districts facing significant challenges, which is critical if we’re going to identify issues and have meaningful conversations in the future about solutions," Evers said in a statement. "MGT fits that build."

Audits could be done in six months, Evers said

Cudaback said Monday it was still unclear how much the operational audit would cost and how long it would take, as the contract is still being finalized.

Evers told reporters in June that he hoped to see both audits done within six months, but added: "You never know with those types of things."

"We want it to be a really, really deep, deep, deep dive for these two firms that are going to be doing that," Evers said, according to a transcript provided by Cudaback. "And on the educational side, that’s going to mean they’re going to have to talk to a lot of people: parents, teachers, everybody — as many people as they can in the Milwaukee area."

Cudaback has declined to provide details on the funding source for the audits. A previous press release said funding would come from "federal dollars available between underspending of previously awarded contracts and funding already allocated for Milwaukee that has not yet been spent."

MPS is also being monitored by DPI, at a cost of $260,000

While Evers' audits get underway, MPS is also carrying out a corrective action plan , overseen by the state Department of Public Instruction, to fix urgent vacancies and flaws in the district's finance office and complete its standard annual financial audits.

MPS has agreed to pay DPI $260,000 for the department's staff time monitoring the district's progress on the plan through next June. In the payment agreement, DPI noted MPS needs an "extraordinary level of intervention" to complete its financial reports and DPI might need to hire staff specifically to work with MPS.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Gov. Evers names auditor of Milwaukee Public Schools