MTN News reported on the alleged misappropriation of funds within Heart Butte School District in February of 2023.
Now new developments have unfolded, bringing with them serious concerns over the school's financial future.
The school board meeting scheduled for January 9, 2024, will be solution-oriented, an effort to keep the school open after findings from an internal review revealed the extent of mishandled district funding.
An investigation is ongoing, however, at least one district employee allegedly used district purchasing cards to make unauthorized transactions for personal use totaling roughly $70,000. Nearly $300,000 unauthorized dollars have been issued to district credit cards.
An additional $1.45 million of debt has been accrued due to mishandling of payroll taxes and retirement benefits.
The Heart Butte School District fears the total debt accrued to be roughly $3.5 million by year's end, a figure that could ultimately shut the school down.
To mitigate the debt, the district is proposing to lay off 31 non-essential employees, and 188 students may be at risk of losing access to their current education.
“These children, they already experience a great deal of insecurity, like food insecurity, so to rip the support out from under them could really change the trajectory of their life in a negative way," Tara Walker Lyons said. "I think that pointing fingers and, you know, assigning blame, that's for other people. I'm interested in solutions. I'm interested in finding out how we can pool our resources and save this school and save this community."
MTN News contacted Heart Butte superintendent Mike Tatsey, who declined to comment at this time.
We will update you as we get more information.
