Marshall Public Schools audit petitioner: ‘We expect good things’

MARSHALL, Mo. (KMIZ)

A former Marshall Public Schools parent and concerned citizen said she "expects good things" to come from an audit of the school district.

"We expect this will benefit the school district... We'll be able to move forward in providing better instruction for our students and direct the attention of the school district to provide teachers better pay," petitioner Della Newton told ABC 17 News.

The citizens-requested audit was announced by the auditor's office Wednesday morning. A representative of the office met with school district leaders on Tuesday, at which time documents related to the comprehensive performance audit were handed over.

Newton said three of her children have graduated from the school district. Since that time, "[the district] is not even close to what it used to be," Newton said.

The petitioner said she and over 900 other Marshall residents signed the petition which needed 750 signees to move forward. Newton included she's very confident in the auditor's office.

Newton said the petition submitted was the second attempt at filing such paperwork. She added the first petition failed by fewer than 10 signatures.

It's unclear why the citizens have requested the audit. When asked, Newton said she thought it was 'important' and that it covered multiple items. About the scope of petition audits, the auditor's website says, "the audit is partially based on information provided, including concerns from the chief petitioner and citizens."

The website added that petition audits cover the current time period and the previous fiscal year after it has started.

Steph Deidrick, the spokeswoman for the Missouri State Auditor's Office, said the signatures were submitted in June 2020 and verified two months later. Citizens were allowed 10 days to remove their signatures after the audit was posted on the auditor's website.

Deidrick said this type of audit could typically cost the district $65,000--$85,000.