CCSD's Financial Officer Resigns Under a Cloud

Put the best face on it and say that Michael Bobby, Chief Financial Officer of the Charleston County School District, had too many responsibilities when he also stepped in as Interim Superintendent of the district in October 2014. Those months could account for the sloppy bookkeeping that produced an unexpected deficit of $18 million. 

That's being generous.

However, a preliminary survey of the last five years in CCSD has revealed that dipping into the reserve fund has proceeded much longer, or, as Board member Todd Garrett puts it, "There was no discipline in spending" for the past five years, now causing the district's reserve fund to fall towards a downgraded credit rating--and we know how much the district borrows every year.

The endemic overspending was not the policy of one person. Let's hope the Board and interim chief financial officer Glenn Stiegman can mop up the mess properly.

Surprisingly, former superintendent McGinley could not be reached for comment on CCSD's budget woes.