Miss. Auditor Praises Jackson State University - Brief Article

Black Issues in Higher Education, August 3, 2000

JACKSON, Miss. -- State Auditor Phil Bryant has praised Jackson State University officials for improvements since he issued a demand to collect nearly $147,000 to offset problems with missing inventory three years ago.

"It is important for the taxpayers to know the staff at Jackson State has been very good stewards of their property," Bryant said last month, during a news conference with Jackson State's president, Dr. Ronald Mason.

Reports released by Bryant's office show the percentage of missing items at Jackson State had dwindled from 9.5 percent in 1993 to 5.3 percent in 1995. It fell from 1 percent in 1997 to 0 percent in 1999. The value of Jackson State's furniture, equipment and other fixed assets -- excluding land and buildings -- is $18.56 million, according to the audit completed earlier this month.

Mason, who went to work at Jackson State on Feb. 1, says the report is a good sign.

"We hope they get the message that Jackson State is a good investment and that we can watch our money," Mason says.

Bryant says Jackson State made improvements in property management procedures and usage of a computerized electronic bar code system to keep better track of inventory.

For years, Jackson State encountered problems when equipment such as computers were either improperly tagged or misplaced.

Problems first were uncovered in the early 1990s, when auditors reported equipment was missing. Some equipment had been missing up to 20 years.

University officials recovered much of the missing equipment in recent years, Bryant says. Problems festered, he says, because a sound accounting system was not properly in place.

When Bryant issued his demand for $146,864 on Jackson State in July 1997, he gave the university 30 days to pay up or face a lawsuit from the attorney general's office. Jackson State alumni and other school supporters contributed funds to pay the demand.