AUDIT COMMITTEE SUMMARY
August 18, 2020
Audit of Parks & Recreation Summer Youth Program
Report Issued July 9, 2020
Audit Objective
Determine if the Summer Youth Program is managed effectively and efficiently.
Background
The Parks & Recreation (Parks) Department offers the Summer Youth Program (SYP) for eight weeks from June through August every year. The program offers sports, craft projects, active games, art exploration, fitness and nutrition, reading opportunities, and math and science enrichment activities. The program is offered at City community centers (for children ages 6 to 14) and participating school sites (for children ages 6 to 12). In FY 2019, 4,629 participants registered for the program at 56 sites staffed with over 300 employees. The program had a FY 2019 general fund budget of $962,264, aided with $208,281 in Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds. During 2020, the number of sites and participants were significantly reduced due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The SYP participant registration fee is based on a sliding scale according to the family’s annual income and size. A reduced fee is available to families that qualify with the proper support documentation. The SYP fee schedule follows:
Full Program Fee - 1st child $260; 2 children $420; 3 or more children $580
Reduced Program Fee - 1st child $25; 2 children $40; 3 or more children $55
Parks has developed self-monitoring standards to administer the SYP that are approved by City Council per State requirements every year. Additionally, Parks conducts site visits in order to correct deficiencies.
Scope
The audit scope included the Summer Youth Program for fiscal year 2019.
Conclusions
Parks effectively and efficiently manages the SYP. Parks has developed effective controls for the management and administration of registration fees and expenditures. Additionally, Parks is in compliance with Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) reporting requirements and is administering the SYP in accordance with City Council-approved self-monitoring standards. However, we determined that Parks was not in compliance with program training requirements.
We recommended that the Director of Parks & Recreation: 1) ensures staff training requirements are met as established by self-monitoring standards, and 2) develops controls to ensure all training is documented and retained.
Parks & Recreation Management agreed with the audit findings and has developed positive action plans to address them.