The North Carolina Virtual Public School is a state-run virtual school established in 2007.  An audit published by the Office of the State Auditor today is nothing less than an embarrassment.

State auditors found:

  • Eight of 12 NCVPS courses audited did not meet required curriculum content standards, increasing the risk that students would not be taught all required subject matter.
  • There was no assurance that 11 of 12 NCVPS courses audited met adopted standards for rigor, increasing the risk that students may not master the course material.
  • NCVPS teacher evaluations were not performed consistently and in accordance with NCVPS policy.
  • NCVPS course content was not properly cited to avoid copyright infringement.

In his response to the audit, Superintendent of Public Instruction Mark Johnson disagreed with the first two findings.

It’s been a tough month for Superintendent Johnson and North Carolina Department of Public Instruction (DPI) staff.  Just last week, the Office of the Auditor published a financial statement audit of DPI for the year ended June 30, 2019.  The independent audit discovered that DPI financial statements contained significant misstatements and omissions.