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Lincoln-Way Board Plans Forensic Audit Of District Finances

CHICAGO (CBS) -- The south suburban Lincoln-Way school district board voted unanimously Thursday night to bring in an outside auditor who will get down to the nitty-gritty, in an attempt to determine if any fraud or questionable spending plunged it into financial trouble.

The meeting by the Lincoln-Way Community High School District 210 board was the first at Lincoln-Way North High School since its August vote to close the school, and emotions were raw. The crowd groaned when outside auditor Edward McCormick told board member Chris McFadden that he had never in 20 years met with an audit committee of the board. Several times the crowd had to be gaveled to order.

Todd Velky of the group Lincoln-Way Area Taxpayers Unite said board members failed to do their job and drew cheers and thunderous applause when he demanded the immediate resignations of all but the two newest board members, McFadden and Ronald Lullo.

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McFadden let it be known ahead of time that he would ask in executive session for a forensic audit, which examines spending from the ground up, After meeting behind closed doors for about 45 minutes, the seven-member board voted unanimously to request bids for such an audit.

The board did not specify how far back the audit would go or how soon it would be conducted. But the taxpayers' group, which gathered more than 2,700 signatures on audit petitions in a matter of days, wants it to go back to 2005.

Other speakers said the financial trouble has led to a lack of trust and said some students and parents from other Lincoln-Way schools have singled out Lincoln-Way North students for ridicule because of its impending closure.

"If parents and students continue to act this way, there's no way the Lincoln-Way district will adapt to the closing," said Jordan, a Lincoln-Way North sophomore.

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