(The Center Square) – Bonuses of $75 million over two fiscal years contributed to an estimated $46 million budget deficit in a school district fourth largest in North Carolina and among the nation’s 100 most populous, an audit says.
“Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools dug itself into a deep financial hole, and it’s going to take real discipline to climb out of it,” said first-term Republican state Auditor Dave Boliek after his team’s analysis. “Our schools need to be focused on teaching students. That becomes a lot more difficult when you’re staring down a $46 million budget deficit.
“By shining a bright light on these specific problems, it is our hope that a sense of urgency will develop in Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools to right the ship in a hurry.”
A call to the auditor’s tip line prompted the investigation.
Catty Moore, the interim superintendent of the district with 50,500 students, said the district since 2017 has had four superintendents, four chief financial officers, three different schools boards and “considerable turnover across several departments.” The resignation of Thomas Kranz as chief financial officer and retirement of former Superintendent Tricia McManus were criticized at a May board meeting when Moore was named to her position.
McManus was in Florida’s Hillsborough County Schools prior to being named deputy superintendent in June 2020; became interim superintendent in November that year with Dr. Angela Hairston’s departure; and had been superintendent since February 2021. In leaving, she said the financial woes “did not weigh in” to her decision.
Moore expressed gratitude for the audit.
“We are committed to transparency, accountability, and to rebuilding the public’s trust by showing good stewardship of public dollars,” she said in a message penned to the community. “Going forward, we will continue to be engaged with the auditor’s office. We will give regular updates to the Board of Education, the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, and the community on the progress we make.”
The audit said the district “has not fully corrected previous audit findings.”
Moore spoke at a school board meeting on Tuesday night, telling the audience 300 to 350 positions are facing elimination. School starts a week from Monday; another school board meeting has been called on Tuesday.
The analysis said the district:
• Overspent its annual revenue during fiscal years 2022 and 2023 while handing out $75 million in bonuses.
• Absorbed costs for staff salaries after COVID-19 supplied funding ran out, opting not to remove the positions it added during that time.
• As student population decreased, did not reduce staffing levels proportionally.
• Purchase orders exceeding budget were overrode 311 times.
And in another alarming practice, the suspense accounts that are to be “promptly investigated and resolved to ensure the account regularly maintains a zero balance” instead had a balance of $332 million on June 5.
The audit presented student enrollment figures for eight years going back to 2018 alongside full-time equivalent staffing. The district had 53,878 students and 6,538 staff in 2018; 54,480 students and 6,553 staff in 2019; 50,411 students and 6,350 staff in 2022; and in 2025’s partial year 50,500 students and 6,783 staff.
The latest staff level is 29 less than in 2024. From 2018 to 2025, enrollment declined 6.2% and staffing rose 3.7%.
