Dublin City Schools asks for ‘unprecedented’ $1.45M advance from state

Dublin City Schools has asked the state for an “unprecedented” advance of $1.45 million of QBE funding to meet its September financial obligations, including payroll and benefits.

The request has been submitted to the Governor’s Office of Planning and Budget for approval, State School Superintendent Richard Woods said in a letter Monday to Dublin Superintendent Fred Williams.

“I want to ensure you understand that this is an absolutely unprecedented request for our Department (of Education) to make,” Woods wrote. “The position Dublin City Schools has placed its teachers, support staff, students and families in is completely unacceptable and untenable – hardworking teachers and staff members should never have to report to work wondering if they will be paid for their time, and students and families should never be uncertain whether their tax dollars will be managed responsibly enough to continue school operations month-to-month. 

“As state school superintendent, my responsibility is to these teachers, staff members, students and families. That is the sole reason we are willing to consider this advance.” 

State officials alerted Woods last month after discovering the school district owed almost $5 million in overdue payments to the State Health Benefit Plan, withheld employees’ share of premium payments for months without paying them to the health plan and had not completed an audit since 2021. After looking into the system’s finances, state officials now project the system will face a $13.4 million cash flow shortage by the end of the current fiscal year.

School officials have until Friday to send a deficit reduction plan – with a balanced budget – to the Department of Education.

“You should prioritize the requirement to submit a true deficit reduction plan that demonstrates balanced cash flow projections for FY26 and a clear path to a balanced budget in FY27. We have yet to receive a satisfactory response to this request, which was initially due Aug. 22, 2025,” Woods wrote in his most recent letter.

The City Board of Education met Monday night but did not discuss Woods’ letter or the request for an advance from the state. 

“We’re trying to make sure we have adequate funding until we can get a TAN (Tax Anticipation Loan) or something, so we asked for the advance,” board chairman Kenny Walters said Tuesday. 

Board members were updated at the meeting by accountants working to provide the state with all requested information, while also “reworking” the amended 2026 budget.

“Were there any significant reasons for why it needs to be done redone?” asked board member Regina McRae. 

“I just personally want my numbers on it because I want to make sure the numbers that I’m presenting are ones that I can rely on,” said Samantha Jenkins, an Athens-area certified public accountant. “I’m not gonna sign off on anything that I don’t know is accurate, and I’m not going to present something that I know is not accurate.” 

Jenkins presented an overview of the 2022 audit, which painted a much different financial situation with that fiscal year ending with a $5.5 million fund balance.

“That was a year of a lot of COVID revenue,” she noted.

The system hired an accounting firm to perform audits due to a post-COVID backlog with the state Department of Audits & Accounts, but the state is now conducting the 2023 and 2024 audits, as well as the upcoming one for 2025.

Jenkins said about 80 to 90 percent of the information requested for 2023 has been submitted. “As soon as they’re requesting it, we’re trying to get it sent to them.”

The state has not yet made any requests for 2024 information, she said, adding that accountants are closing out 2025 so that financial reports from that year can be generated and provided to state officials. The system remains without a finance director after Chad McDaniel resigned late last month.

Woods said in his letter that the Department of Education has “advocated that the Office of Planning and Budget provide this single month of forward funding.” However, he said all potential future funding requests from the school system “are completely contingent on your prompt submission of the documents outlined above, along with the swift completion of all other directives of the Financial Improvement Plan.”

“As emphasized in our prior correspondence, the financial health and solvency of Dublin City Schools is the responsibility of the local superintendent and local board of education. GaDOE  is willing to provide support well beyond our fiscal and statutory obligations only because of our concern for the students who depend on Dublin City Schools, and the teachers and support staff who rely on the district for their livelihoods.”

The school board closed Monday night’s meeting for more than two hours for an executive session, after which they voted approve a handful of personnel moves. 

Earlier, Williams provided to board members copies of a letter from the city of Dublin, written to the state with concerns of whether the school board will be able to meet financial obligations to the city, including $304,540.13 in tax refunds – paid so far on the school board’s behalf – from successful property tax appeals. None of the other obligations listed in the letter are due, he said.

 “The only thing that we have outstanding with the city of Dublin is the payment from the taxes that were appealed,” Williams said.

Dublin resident Burt Evans addressed the board during the public comment period of the meeting, saying it is “past time for taxpayers to get transparency, answers and the truth from the superintendent and board,” rather than tired slogans. Noting that the system passed a 25 percent tax increase last year, he said the board’s duty is to be better stewards of the taxpayers’ money.

“Are things so bad that we need two public safety directors? Is our public image so bad that we need two PR people?” Evans asked.

He said he’s heard from lots of fellow Dubliners who are angry but want the board and superintendent “to rectify these problems.” Some friends, he said, are so upset that they refuse to attend football games with Evans.

“My goal is to end up with a city school system that we are all proud of, not just a football team we are proud of.”

During board member comments, McRae thanked Evans, who had left by that time, for sharing his thoughts with the board.

“He said he would like for us to figure out what to do to fix this. I hope that’s the sentiment of the community, that they want us to fix it,” she said.

Before adjourning the meeting, Walters said the board has “worked diligently on our deficit reduction program.”

Personnel moves approved by the board including three resignations: Sheryl Moore, teacher; Jesse Thompson, bus driver and teacher; and Stephanie Strudwick, food service worker; and a retirement: James Bailey, ROTC instructor.