State Treasurer John Fleming says the K-12 School Transparency Project has identified questionable spending by Louisiana public and charter schools. The online portal launched in 2025. It allows citizens to see how public and charter schools spend taxpayer dollars and Fleming says it has uncovered potential misuse of public funds.
“$248,000 on staff retreats; $216,961 on bars, liquor stores and restaurants,” Fleming noted.
Fleming says the portal also shows how school systems have spent thousands of dollars on balloons and fireworks and there’s also a case where a political donation was made. The state treasurer says nearly everyone wants to see teachers make more money and it’s possible that could happen if state dollars were spent appropriately.
“It’s little wonder that teachers can’t get a pay raise because of the administrators in-between who, in some cases it would appear, are misdirecting those funds,” Fleming said.
Fleming says the financial data that the K-12 School Transparency Project provides to the public led to a complaint investigated by the Louisiana Legislative Auditor.
“One charter school, called, the name of it is Noble Minds, in New Orleans; in six months we found $600,000 in irregular expenditures. The school has since closed and reopened as a private institution,” Fleming explained.
Fleming urges the Legislative Auditor and the Attorney General’s office to investigate any questionable use of public funds.
More information regarding the Louisiana K-12 School Transparency Project can be found on their website.