Watertown Schools Celebrate “Pristine” Audit and $6.9 Million Growth in Net Position
- Steve Jurrens
- 16 hours ago
- 2 min read
Northeast Radio SD News – Watertown, SD - The Watertown School District has received the highest possible marks for its financial management, according to the results of the 2024-2025 fiscal year audit presented at Monday night’s school board meeting. The report, which returned an “unmodified” or clean opinion, paints a picture of a district in positive financial health with growth in its overall assets.
A Multi-Million Dollar Leap
Business Manager Heidi Clausen detailed the district’s fiscal progress, noting that the net position increased by approximately $6.9 million during the audit period. This growth brings the district’s total net position to over $137 million.
The financial breakdown for the 2024-2025 year showed:
· Total Revenue: Surpassed $113 million.
· Total Expenditures: Reported at approximately $106 million.
“An unmodified opinion or clean opinion was issued on the financial statements of the business-type activities and each major fund,” Clausen explained. “An unmodified opinion concludes that the financial statements were presented fairly, in all material respects, in accordance with the applicable financial reporting framework”.
Federal Funding Success: Zero Findings
A critical component of this year’s audit was the “Single Audit” process, which provides a deep dive into major federal programs. Due to its size and complexity, the Student Financial Aid cluster at Lake Area Technical College was selected for extensive testing.
This program represented approximately $10.3 million of the $15.3 million in total federal funds received by the district. Despite the rigorous compliance testing required for such a large sum, the district emerged with no negative findings.
“I am pleased to report that no findings were identified within these major programs,” Clausen told the board. “This is significant because the single audit process is very comprehensive and involves detailed testing of internal controls, documentation, and compliance with federal requirements”. Clausen extended “kudos” to the federal financial aid staff at Lake Area Tech and Emily Sovell in the business office for their careful oversight.
Board Reaction: “Fortunate to Have the People We Have”
Board President Jon Iverson, who attended the summary meeting with the auditor earlier on Monday, shared that the outside perspective on the district’s business office was overwhelmingly positive.
“The auditor spoke very highly of the work that was done here,” Iverson remarked. “He was very impressed with how things are done here. As a board, I think we are lucky—we’re fortunate to have the people we have”.
The board voted unanimously to approve the audit report. The full document, which includes a detailed Management’s Discussion and Analysis starting on page 6, is now open for public inspection at the district business office and is available on both the school district’s website and the South Dakota Department of Legislative Audit website.