Ammons’ first operational audit shows dramatic turn-around

In July 2007, incoming President James Ammons inherited 35 state operational audit findings from his predecessor, Interim President Castell Bryant.

Less than two years later, he and his financial management team have another reason to be proud: they've shrunken that number down to seven, one fifth of what it was.

The first operational audit for Ammons’ administration, released on Tuesday by the Florida auditor general’s office, recommended that FAMU speed up its collection procedures for returned checks, ensure that vendors get paid in a timely manner, do a better job monitoring cell phone usage, and improve security over its PeopleSoft Financials System.

Altogether, the findings were relatively minor compared to what auditors discovered during Bryant’s watch. In her operational audit, state auditors found that $39 million had been spent without following all the required rules.

Every two years, multiple findings turn up in the operational audits of public universities all across Florida. The University of Florida’s most recent operational audit cited 21 issues. There were 22 at FAU, 15 at FIU, 13 at UCF, 13 at USF, 12 at UWF, 10 at New College, 8 at FGCU, 7 at UNF, and 3 at FSU.

The Florida Board of Governors has also had its share of operational audit findings. In October, auditors reported that the BOG did not fulfill all the required statutory obligations before it disbursed two grants totaling $23.25 million to UF.

This latest news shows that FAMU has returned to the steady performance it boasted during the tenure of past President Frederick S. Humphries. During that period, there was an average of only 5 to 7 findings on each operational audit.

Read the full audit here.

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