The state auditor blasted two Kansas City, Mo., charter schools Tuesday for mishandling their 2012 closures.
Missouri Auditor Tom Schweich gave both the Urban Community Leadership Academy and the Renaissance Academy for Math and Sciences "poor" ratings for wasting money and failing to keep adequate records as the schools shut down.
Among the expenses Schweich's report cited, Renaissance Academy spent $4,355 on an unnecessary holiday party. The charter school also paid $12,6441 for five people to attend the Missouri Charter Public School Association conference to give a presentation on school closures.
The other closed school, Urban Community Leadership Academy, couldn't provide invoices or receipts for more than 500 closure-related expenses.
"The school was unable to provide many records requested," the report says. "The business manager indicated her records are stored in multiple locations, including storage facilities, her home, and her office."
Schweich says both schools failed to competitively bid for professional services relating to the closures.
