Pennsylvania Auditor General Eugene DePasquale doesn’t rule out anything, including bankruptcy, to help the struggling Penn Hills School District, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported. The district is about $172 million in debt, stemming from two recent construction projects, and the state Department of Education has added it to a list of districts in financial recovery status. Issues swirling around the district include alleged misappropriation of funds in several areas, from misuse of credit cards, to filling personal vehicles from district gas pumps, to questions involving construction of the new schools. A grand jury suggested no criminal charges, but the school board has asked state Attorney General Josh Shapiro’s office to conduct its own investigation. The grand jury report, released Feb. 5, attributed the district’s dire financial position to poor leadership, favoritism and mismanagement in the construction of the two schools. It recommended only legislative reforms.
