The state Department of Public Instruction is disputing the findings of an audit by the U.S. Department of Education, which found the state agency improperly ran a pandemic relief program and urged returning over $20 million.
The state allocated COVID-19 relief funding to private schools that were ineligible to receive aid, according to a September 2025 audit report by the federal department’s Office of Inspector General.
The Office of Inspector General found one ineligible school received $838,829. However, both the state and federal agencies say that money has since been retrieved from the school.
The Office of Inspector General report doesn’t name the school. Department of Public Instruction officials also declined to identify the school in response to questions from the Cap Times.
The federal audit concluded the Department of Public Instruction, which is overseen by state Superintendent Jill Underly, and the department’s contractor failed to verify information that schools provided in their funding applications. In total, the department provided more than $20 million in federally funded services and assistance to 184 ineligible schools, according to the audit.