By Rob Alway, Editor-in-Chief
LUDINGTON — The Ludington Area School District’s Board of Education has issued a letter to the public explaining that its fund balance is much higher than its members and district administrators had believed; $2.2 million higher. The letter was signed by Dr. Bret Autrey, president of the board of education and Dr. Kyle Corlett, superintendent of the district.
The school board has been in negotiations with the Ludington Education Assocation for several months and has rejected the union’s salary increase requests, based on the district’s fund balance.
“As you may know, the district has been in contract negotiations with the Ludington Education Association,” the letter begins. “Throughout this process, we believed we were acting in good faith when relying on financial statements prepared by our Business Office. We recently received the audited financials for our 2024-25 school year and were surprised to learn our fund balance was higher than anticipated.
“In light of this information, we immediately presented a new and enhanced offer that met the union’s last proposal, including salary increases and an additional $1,400 stipend for staff.”
According to the independent audit from Vredeveld Haefner LLC of Grand Rapids, the increase in its general fund balance was $2,203,386 during the 2025 fiscal year.
“While we were pleased to be able to extend a better offer to our teachers, we are concerned how we got to this moment. We have engaged an outside consultant who is helping us understand the ‘why’ and ‘how’ behind the discrepancy,” the letter states. “Based on the consultant’s findings, the Board will take appropriate steps to review and strengthen the District’s Business Office to ensure greater accuracy in the future.”
The auditor made several comments about the district’s current accounting practices including stating that the district did not complete bank reconciliations on a timely basis at times during the fiscal year. This was contributed to a transition to a new accounting system during the year.
The auditor recommended the district should establish and enforce procedures.
Other comments included:
- The district does not have procedures in place to prepare financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles as evidenced by significant audit adjustments.
- Generally accepted auditing standards require the district to have the ability to prepare financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles.
- The audit process identified several significant journal entries which were necessary to present financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles.
- Auditing standards require that this control deficiency be reported as a material weakness.
- The district did not complete bank reconciliations on a timely basis at times during the fiscal year. Effective internal control over cash requires that bank reconciliations be completed promptly after month-end to ensure that all transactions are properly recorded and that any discrepancies are identified and resolved in a timely manner.
The auditor has recommended the district’s system of controls should be modified so that the district prepares the necessary adjustments to present financial statements and disclosures in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles.
The letter states the board of education will review and approve the auditor’s recommendations at its Dec. 15 regular meeting.
“We are committed to offering a contract that honors the dedication of our educators while maintaining the long-term financial health of our district. We want to remain competitive in our wages and benefits so we can continue to attract top educators, who are critical to student success and satisfaction. According to the district’s Facebook page, the district’s latest proposal will meet the LEA’s last requested proposal amount of a 4.5% increase for the current school year and 3% next year, plus an additional $1,400 stipend both years.
“We sincerely thank all our teachers and staff for the important role they play in educating the students in our District and look forward to a successful end to this trimester.”
See the full audit here.
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