Clarksville, TN – Earlier this week, Tennessee released an audit report of Austin Peay State University (APSU), examining the school’s financial and management practices during the 2019-20 fiscal year.
The report would identify any failures or shortcomings on the University’s part during those 12 months, prompting Mitch Robinson, APSU vice president of finance and administration, to slowly read through the long document.
He didn’t have to scroll far to find, for him, the most interesting part of the audit. On the first page of the report, he read the six words that rarely appear in an official state audit – “This audit report contains no findings.”
“It was a clean financial audit report with zero findings and zero management discussion items,” he said. “This is a very rare occurrence coming from the (state) comptroller’s office, but this didn’t happen by accident. It happened through the tremendous hard work by our finance and financial aid staffs. They deserve all of the credit and recognition. Simply outstanding.”
What makes the achievement even more outstanding is that the audit examined one of the most difficult periods in Austin Peay State University’s history. In early March 2020, the COVID-19 Coronavirus pandemic caused Austin Peay State University to pivot to remote learning.
That move created several challenges for the APSU’s Division of Finance and Administration, which still found a way to offer partial housing refunds to qualifying students and award scholarships to all summer school students.
According to the report, “while the university’s top priority remains the health and well-being of (Austin Peay’s) campus and extended communities, the following financial strategies have been enacted to safeguard the university’s financial viability during this period of fiscal uncertainty:
- Reduction of planned expenditures related to capital projects, renovations, and equipment purchases.
- Reduction of travel expenses to only those deemed necessary.
- Hiring pause for non-critical positions.
- Planned reduction of non-mandatory operating expenses.
“As the COVID-19 situation continues to evolve with new information and data, the university will remain flexible and be ready to quickly implement necessary changes as suggested or mandated by federal, state and local authorities.”
For information on Austin Peay State University’s Division of Finance and Administration, visit https://www.apsu.edu/fin-admin/index.php.
