• Saturday, February 18, 2012
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Money Goes Missing in Troubled College's Textbook-Buyback Program, Report Says

Bishop State Community College, an Alabama institution that has drawn a swarm of investigators thicker than flies on a feral hog, now faces questions about some $262,000 in unaccounted-for funds in its textbook-buyback program. According to The Birmingham News, employees of the campus bookstore received $261,800 for buybacks from the college over the last few years, but neither the employees nor Bishop State can say whether students actually received the money for their used textbooks.

One of the employees has already drawn scrutiny for her alleged role in a criminal fraud in Bishop State’s student-aid program, which has prompted both federal and state actions.

The college has also been accused of misusing funds it received from the Bush-Clinton Katrina Fund to repair property damage caused by Hurricane Katrina. And Bishop State’s president, who also is a state lawmaker, has attracted criticism for questionable spending practices as well. The multiple inquiries follow the ouster last summer of the chancellor of the state’s system of two-year colleges.