Schools, districts to get more control over how to spend trust-lands money

Schools and districts may be getting more autonomy in how they spend their trust-lands money — funds that can go for academic programs such as after-school tutoring.

An audit presented Friday in the audit subcommittee of the Legislative Management Committee recommended changes in how the schoolchildren's trust is overseen.

More talk on School Trust Lands funds is slated for Friday, when the State Board of Education addresses two proposed rules to ensure school Community Councils and school boards have flexibility to determine the uses of the School Trust Lands funds in ways best to serve local needs.

"The needs of different schools throughout the state are so different," said Natalie Gordon, Utah PTA Trust Lands commissioner.

Gordon says her son's school, Millcreek Junior High in Bountiful, uses the funding for after-school tutoring and a bus to take the children home afterward. But a different school may need the funding for reading specialists — or technology education, she said.

Auditors said Friday they believe State Office officials can give more responsibilityto local school districts in trust-land issues. At the same time, auditors believe the State Office needs to have more oversight of its staff that deals with School Trust Land issues.

State Superintendent Patti Harrington said the audit was welcome and "in scope." Action has been taken on many of the audit's administrative recommendations, she said.

In 1999, the Legislature created the School Land Trust Program, which is administered by the School Children's Trust Section at the State Office. The interest and dividends earned on the nearly $900 million permanent school fund — equating to $25.3 million in fiscal year 2008 — are distributed to the local school districts for distribution to each school, according to the audit.

Utah received $163 million in Trust Land funds for fiscal year 2008.

Each public school (charter school and district school) has a School Community Council, which recommends to the district's school board a plan on how to spend the funds. The Community Council typically includes the principal, parents and teachers.

"The school Community Councils are a fabulous piece of local control," Gordon said. "Every school looks and sees how their money would be best spent."

Auditors said 92 percent of the plans reviewed by the Children's Trust Section since 2004 have met or exceeded expectations.

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