An audit released Thursday showed that spending on and the quality of programs for gifted students statewide are largely unmonitored, and some academically gifted students may not receive the intended educational benefits.
According to State Auditor Leslie Merritt, "Our audit reveals that a portion of these funds were diverted away from gifted students and that the state did little monitoring to ensure that intended ... benefits were actually delivered."
The audit began in May 2007 after
parents raised concerns that funds intended for the
Academically or Intellectually Gifted program were
being used for other purposes while AIG students
were being left underserved.
Merrit's investigations confirmed those concerns.
"As a father of two kids who were in the NC Public
School System, I believe that taxpayers’ money
should be used to educate students on every
skill-level, and for some AIG students this just
isn’t happening as it was intended,” Merritt
concluded.