Schools’ food unit manager resigns
posted by Loki on Oct.28.2009 at 11:56 am
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By JOSEPH GIDJUNIS
Courier-Post Staff
The Camden school district’s food services manager, linked last summer to a damaging review of his department revealing $1.5 million lost to mismanagement and $500,000 going uncollected, has resigned.
The board of education accepted the resignation of Tony Robinson with an undisclosed settlement, effective immediately. The board members suspended Robinson with pay in July after an internal audit of the food services department recommended new leadership.
The decision to suspend Robinson came the same month as an analysis released by consultants from the New Jersey-based Edvocate faulted the department for significant budgeting mismanagement.
The report strongly suggested removing several supervisors and replacing them with outside providers or making significant internal changes.
“(The director) is not integrated into the district goals and shows no evidence of being able to identify key issues and address them,” the report states.
The recommendations and findings of the report were not made public, but the Courier-Post obtained a copy independently.
Robinson was with the school district for nearly nine years, at a salary of $95,920, according to district records.
Since the suspension, an outside consultant has been trying to reorganize the department. And in September, the school district approved a $50,000 contract with the New Jersey-based WISS & Co. to begin the first phase of a forensic audit of the department to review accounts, check receipts, track deposits and interview employees about the missing supplies and money.
Board members did not rule out an additional investigation with such a large scope involving the department, said Finance Chairwoman Barbara Coscarello.
Board member Jose Delgado said the district is expecting an update sometime in November.
The district prepared nearly 2.2 million breakfasts, lunches and snacks during the 2007-08 fiscal year, but average meal costs were 31 cents higher than what is typical. Specific losses were estimated, including 93,867 units of milk annually, and as many as 1,307 meals daily.
In addition, the Board of Education has been subsidizing the department — expected to be self-sustaining — at a cost of $4.7 million in fiscal year 2007 and $3.3 million in fiscal year 2008, according to the report.
Reach Joseph Gidjunis at (856) 486-2604 or jgidjunis@gannett.com