Still Not Immune: Fraud in the Public Charter School Sector in 2024

October 17, 2024 @ 3:00pm PST

Still Not Immune: Fraud in the Public Charter School Sector in 2024

Presenters: Brian L. Carpenter, PhD, CFE

Session Synopsis

With approximately 8,000 chartered public schools in the United States, the opportunities for fraud, waste, abuse have proven too tempting for some. This makes sense when you know that these schools are governed by volunteer boards. The concept of fraud risk management is often unheard of, nor are most school leaders prepared by virtue of their degrees (which focus primarily on education). In this presentation, prominent charter school consultant Dr. Brian L. Carpenter, CFE shares a concept he developed called the Financial Oversight Triangle as a simple mechanism to teach boards and leaders how to think about their FRM responsibilities. His model can also be used to teach the boards of small non-profits, churches, and other organizations that cannot afford to employ financial management experts.

 

Presenter Bios

For the past 19 years, Dr. Brian L. Carpenter, CFE, has helped advance parental choices in education across the US by promoting and explaining the keys to effective charter school governance, finance & operations, enterprise risk management (including fraud risk management), and strategic thinking. He has authored several books for the charter school sector, as well as having written the 500+ question test bank for the 2nd and 3rd editions of Forensic Accounting and Fraud Examination by Richard Riley and Mary Jo Kranacher (Wiley & Sons). Most of his work is focused on deterrence, however, he does occasional investigations into school leader or board misconduct.