First Arrest in DISD Credit Card Ordeal
Submitted by Allen Gwinn on Fri, 09/08/2006 - 16:36.
The FBI, today, arrested 42-year old Marsha Ollison and charged her with theft in connection with her District-issued procurement card.
According to investigators, Ollison used her card to charge numerous personal items including $12,000 in groceries. Indeed, Dallas.Org's Databases shows Ollison made numerous charges at grocery stores, department stores and the like.
Ollison (now, formerly) worked in the Superintendent's office as an administrative assistant.
First Arrest
O.K. Great! Another secretary will be held accountable for P-Card misuse.
And her boss is/was?
Is this what we can expect? A trickle of secretaries and office managers who didn't even make 50K after 20 years--possibly compelled to spend inappropriately by the never-ending "lack of appreciation".
All this isolated case does is buy more time for the dubious "sacred cows" to think up the six degrees of separation to show how their purchases were "for the students" or "to increase student achievement".
How will it be determined if something was bought as a personal gift/reward or supposedly purchased as and incentive for teacher appreciation, perfect attendance, retirement or volunteer of the year?
Why parade one lone secreatary when certainily others with better titles had similar questionable purchases?
It's starting to look like some were able to buy more time with their cards along with whatever was bought to "beautify" a building.(for the students, of course).
The DMN published two Pier One receipts. Will those items be "excused" if she can prove she bought them for bosses day?
Don't get it twisted, the highlights in the paper including bacon and eggs is a deal breaker; she obviously misued.
All I'm saying is even the ark was boarded two by two, and that came from an authority I try not to question.
Auditors
So, where were your internal auditors all these years? Were they not aware that the practice of giving that many credit cards would lead to all sorts of fraud and abuse?
Auditors
Based on information in DMN's first report, the DISD internal auditors did inform management of the P-Card program, S. Brokaw of problems related to the cards. It appears she or others in management positions ignored the auditors warning.