June 2005
Contact: Dorothy Wills-Raftery
(845) 255-1400 xt. 1209

Business Office Integrity Forum Held at Ulster BOCES

A Business Office Integrity Forum was recently held at the Ulster BOCES Conference Center in New Paltz to address Business Office functions and duties from the legal and auditor perspectives.

This workshop, which is the second in a series of regional sessions, was jointly developed and presented by the four-county Mid-Hudson Region BOCES (Ulster, Dutchess, Orange-Ulster, and Sullivan) as part of an on-going cooperative effort to provide staff development for Business Office personnel regarding administrative and financial matters.

In the aftermath of recently alleged criminal activity that took place in a Long Island school district, the purpose of the Forum was to focus attention on properly and effectively managing internal controls in today’s Business Office environment.

“This issue isn’t just something you read about in the newspaper; it affects every single school in New York State,” states Jerome F. Callahan, Ulster BOCES assistant superintendent for administration. “Even though the integrity of our BOCES’ area schools was never in question, we are trying to heighten vigilance, raise awareness, and encourage Business Office professionals to reevaluate their internal controls for the purpose of maintaining and enhancing public confidence in our ability to handle their money well,” states Callahan.

The workshop, which was attended by over 120 participants, featured a panel of distinguished professionals that included attorneys, an independent auditor, and a representative from the New York State Office of the State Comptroller. Topics covered included accountability procedures, legal requirements, and reviewing decided-court case studies.

“Through this Forum, we reviewed the elements necessary to ensure school Business Offices run at the highest levels of integrity and honesty,” denotes Callahan.

“It was a positive event,” states Stephen Bangert, director of business and financial services for Highland Central School District, who attended the forum with his entire office staff. Bangert says he especially appreciated the discussion led by John Clarkson, assistant comptroller for the New York State Office of the State Comptroller. “It gave us a perspective in what we can expect to change in terms of regulation levels of internal control; we have a pretty good understanding of internal controls here. Thank you to the four-county BOCES for putting it together.”