New audit praises UM System for “improvements” more than a year after scathing report

State Auditor Nicole Galloway praised the UM System in a new audit report issued Thursday which found “improvements” in the UM System more than a year after her office issued a blistering report.

The March 2017 audit criticized the system for handing out $2.3 million in hidden bonuses. It also found that MU’s former chancellor, Bowen Loftin, had kept a six-figure salary and a luxury car allowance two years after he resigned.

“The audit findings last year showed a pattern of bonus pay to top staff without clear guidelines or performance metrics, as well as a highly lucrative contract for a former chancellor that contained no accountability to taxpayers,” Auditor Galloway said in a statement Thursday. “Our follow-up found that the incentive payment program has been eliminated, and the highly paid position created for the former chancellor has been eliminated. I’m pleased the university system has taken these steps toward more effective fiscal management. Once again, this report shows audits get results.”

UM System President Mun Choi said he was pleased with the progress detailed in the report and said the university will continue to be more accountable with state resources.

“I’m very grateful for the hard work by Auditor Galloway on this important audit of the University of Missouri System,” Choi said. “She and her staff have done a great job in holding us accountable, ensuring we are following transparent and sound business practices in our operation of the state’s largest public university. The citizens of the state of Missouri have our promise that we will continue to practice effective stewardship, reducing costs and reinvesting those savings for student scholarships, faculty research and community engagement.”

The follow-up report comes on the heels of the news that the legislature restored millions of dollars in funding that Gov. Eric Greitens had previously cut.

“It’s a much better situation,” Choi told ABC 17 News when asked how this year’s budget compares to last. “Last year, we did not get our core restored. This year we did. Now, we still have a long way to go because we do still face a budget deficit.”

Lawmakers have repeatedly praised Choi and MU Chancellor Alexander Cartwright for the work they’ve done at Mizzou and throughout the UM System. However, university leaders still have some tough decisions to make in the near future.

“Those decisions are really being contemplated right now at all of the campuses, not just Mizzou,” Choi said. “And that’s because higher ed is being transformed because of the changes that we see in overall state support and more competition with students that exists, not only within the state of Missouri, but at institutions outside of this state. So, they’re exploring many different options including administrative restructuring, academic portfolio review and just finding ways for us to collaborate more across the system so that we can have a better delivery of services in IT, HR and finance.

“We’re really committed to improve the university going forward,” he added.