Fayette County Public Schools needs a forensic audit, not just a review | Opinion

The Fayette County School Board recently voted to approve an independent external review of district finances. That decision is a step forward, but let’s be clear: it is absolutely NOT ENOUGH. A review may scratch the surface, but it will never get us to the truth.

An independent external review is limited in scope. It looks at whether the district followed its existing policies and procedures. It is essentially a compliance check; a way to see if the right boxes were marked. What it does not do is dig into every dollar, investigate suspicious transactions, or establish who may have been responsible for financial mismanagement.

What Fayette County needs is an independent forensic audit. A forensic audit goes far deeper. It traces financial transactions, follows money trails, examines electronic records, and asks the tough questions: where did the missing millions go, who authorized questionable expenditures, and was fraud or misconduct involved? A forensic audit is designed not only to uncover the truth, but also to provide evidence strong enough to hold people accountable in a court of law.

This distinction matters now more than ever. Millions of taxpayer dollars are unaccounted for. Emails are now surfacing that show how information was hidden and how key details were deliberately kept from the public. Even Superintendent Demetrus Liggins has admitted that communication has been lacking, that transparency was missing, and that he was wrong. His words made it clear: the buck stops with him.

That acknowledgment, while important, does not erase the damage that has been done. The community has been left in the dark, and trust has been broken. Senator Stephen West voiced what many of us feel when he said he was deeply disappointed with the lack of information presented before the state committee. Fayette County did not show up with the transparency and clarity the public deserves. Instead, what we have seen is a performance of smoke and mirrors.

I am not here to say that anyone stole anything. I am not here to demand that people be sent to jail. But with so much secrecy and so little transparency, it is entirely reasonable to ask tough questions. If nothing improper has occurred, then there should be no fear of a full forensic audit. The truth should be able to withstand scrutiny.

But while the financial chaos has captured headlines, we cannot forget the real mission of Fayette County Public Schools: educating our children. Right now, 56% of our high school students are NOT proficient in math. That is more than a statistic; that is a warning bell. While millions of dollars go missing and administrators expand buildings and bureaucratic positions, our children are falling behind. Our priority should not be building more schools or adding more layers of administration; it should be making sure every child can read, write, and do math at grade level.

We want the truth. We can handle the truth. And we especially want to know who allowed this level of financial chaos, who benefited, and who looked the other way.

Anything less than a full, independent forensic audit is an abdication of responsibility. The families of Fayette County, and the taxpayers who fund public education, deserve accountability, transparency, and nothing less than the truth.

Rock Daniels is a Lexington businessman.