EducationNews.org

By Peyton Wolcott
www.peytonwolcott.com
Friday, July 18, 2008
 
Pop quiz: Do you know whether your local school superintendent has a personal credit card paid by your district? If not, next time you bump into them in line at the pizza parlor or at church on Sunday morning, maybe you can think about asking him or her -- if you feel comfortable asking.
 
"People are more comfortable talking about the death of a loved one than discussing their credit card debt," says Ben Woolsey* of CreditCards.com. "Talking about credit card debt is an overwhelming social taboo. There is a social paradox happening -- people who are faced with credit card debt are unwilling to face their financial issues and therefore may be leaving it unresolved."
 
Although Ben's comments were directed to the general population, they can also easily be applied to parents' and taxpayers' familiarity with their own local school districts' credit card usage.
 
Two similar but not identical forces are at work constantly in our schools. On the one hand, because our schools are socialist models, there is a constant prowl for every available dollar in every possible nook and cranny. More is never enough for the school money wolf. On the other hand, there is a recognition by our districts that money is limited and times are becoming increasingly tight, and so we see our administrators going about with begging bowls in the name of our schoolchildren, approaching any and all comers like Oliver in the workhouse, pleading, "Please, sir, I want more!"   God bless us all.
 
Given these forces, and our current belt-tightening climate, coupled with the sheer numbers and sizes of credit card abuse coming to light in our schools, it's hard to imagine why any public ed administrators anywhere would still cling to their credit cards. At this point, one would think the cards would be viewed as a game of "Hot Potato" and possess all the appeal of eating blowfish.
 
Problems with credits cards range from simply using them so much that folks including board members take notice to outright fraud which lands the abusers in prison. 

Here are some examples of the broad spectrum of credit card use by public school officials:
 
o Superintendent Arlene Ackerman's Diners Club bill just before she left San Francisco USD was $45,000.
 
o Superintendent Hector Montenegro of Arlington ISD was one of Texas' highest spenders at $45,579 during 2006-07 (according to data from the Texas Education Agency; I am working with TEA to verify this amount). Hector's spending and honorarium issues including $2,000 from ERDI resulted in a special called trustee meeting last night at 9 p.m. for the purpose of discussing the following action item: "Consider placing Superintendent on paid administrative leave during continuing review of Superintendent's compliance with state laws and District requirements concerning honorariums, travel expenses and other expenses, and, if necessary, the appointment of an Interim Superintendent to be responsible for the Superintendent's duties while the Superintendent is on paid administrative leave."  NOTE:  Please check my website this morning for an update as to the disposition of that meeting. 
 
o Superintendent Joseph Wise spent $75,722.97 on 565 transactions during the 28 months he was employed by Delaware's Christina district, about $2700 per month.
 
o Superintendent Frank Tassone and assistant superintendent for business Pamela Gluckin are in prison because of their credit card and other financial abuses in Roslyn, New York;  total loss all sources:  $11.2 million.
 
o Under the leadership of superintendents Mike Moses, (interim) Larry Groppel and Mike Hinojosa, Dallas ISD allowed its employees relatively unsupervised use of district "procurement cards" to the tune of as much as $20 million per year.
 
o California's former Glenn County superintendent Joni Samples' and staff's credit card spending ($244,000 according to public records produced to publisher Tim Crews of the Sacramento Valley Mirror) included a trip for Joni to Puerto Vallarta.
 
o Montana's St. Regis School District clerk Julie Downing embezzled $514,000 from her district primarily through credit cards and cash advances.
 
o Secretary Denise Aughney embezzled $1.25 million from the Weber School District Foundation in Utah, forged foundation checks to her credit cards and personal accounts, then used credit card checks for personal expenses.
 
o Former Bremond ISD superintendent Keneth Johnson has served two years in the Texas prison system for credit card and other financial issues.
 
o Citizens in Liberty School District in Missouri are examining credit card use and abuse including purchases of pitchers of beer and a $180 spa treatment.
 
School credit card abuse, when it comes to light, shakes our communities' faith in our schools, which are based on good will for their existence and well being. Every one of the above districts has had to scramble to recover.
 
Wouldn't it be kinder and smarter in the long run for our districts to simply cut up their credit cards? Rev up your chain saws, friends; maybe we could get several administrators together and they could rip theirs up all at once one night with Dave Ramsey on his radio show. 
 
Getting rid of school district credit cards is worth thinking and doing -- and talking -- about. 
 
For more information: www.peytonwolcott.com/CreditCards.html
* Ben Woolsey is director of marketing and consumer research for CreditCards.com; he was interviewed by Business Wire regarding the study his company commissioned from GfK Roper Public Affairs and Media.
Copyright 2008 Peyton Wolcott

Published July 18, 2008