After Accounting Failures Leave It $1M Short, a Small Washington Town Scrambles to Save Its School

Thanksgiving had not yet arrived when 7-year-old Reagan Fletcher handed her mother, Kael, a green‑marker Christmas list meant for the North Pole. It began with caring wishes — she asked for her best friend to move back and for a classmate to heal from a broken wrist — and included the usual: an iPad and a pair of boots. The list's final, heartbreaking line asked Santa to keep her school open.

This fall, Reagan and the residents of Prescott, Washington, learned their small district could be forced to close after accounting failures and turnover left it roughly $1 million in debt. In 2021 the district reported a $2 million surplus; by 2024 officials discovered the district — which serves about 219 students and employs roughly 40 staff in a town of about 360 residents — faced nearly $1 million in credit‑card and loan obligations.

State education officials told Prescott in June that it must secure roughly $1 million in reliable revenue by March 31, 2026, to continue operating in the 2026‑27 school year. If the district cannot present a feasible two‑year plan to eliminate debt and restore a balanced budget, the state may dissolve it.

Parents, teachers and local businesses have mobilized, launching a grassroots Save Prescott School campaign. The community has raised roughly $77,000 through donation pages, auctions, dinners, festivals and sales, and is planning a formal gala in March aimed at adding $100,000 more.

How the Shortfall Emerged

At a May meeting, the school board and then‑superintendent Justin Bradford said they learned last fall that purchases had been made with funds already committed elsewhere. They also discovered that the district's business manager — who worked remotely from Seattle — had been providing inaccurate financial reports dating back to the pandemic, and that accounting controls were weak.

A state audit and a letter from the Washington State Department of Education recommended placing Prescott under "enhanced financial oversight," citing unsupervised accounting, inefficient invoice processing and repeated turnover in finance roles between September 2021 and August 2024. No individuals were named, and no criminal charges have been filed.

The district entered state financial oversight in March 2024 and reduced its 2024‑25 budget by about $750,000. Even after additional cuts and staff reductions, Prescott still faces an approximate $1 million deficit.

Local Leaders Seek Multiple Solutions

When Bradford resigned earlier this year, Principal Jeff Foertsch stepped in to lead the district and said he was surprised by the scope of the problems. "There were a lot of people we did not know we owed money to — I was getting emails saying [we were] a year past due, and there were no records on it," he said. "We were spending more than we were bringing in, and whoever was in charge of reporting those numbers was not reporting it correctly."

“We were spending more than we were bringing in, and whoever was in charge of reporting those numbers was not reporting it correctly.” — Jeff Foertsch, Principal and Acting District Leader

On Dec. 10, a financial oversight committee recommended that State Superintendent Chris Reykdal begin the formal process to dissolve Prescott while the district seeks new revenue. The superintendent can halt that process if Prescott demonstrates measurable and reliable revenue of at least $1 million by March 31, 2026.

Foertsch said the district's plan includes several avenues: selling teacher housing (valued at roughly $380,000), asking voters to approve a special tax, continuing community fundraising and lobbying the state legislature for targeted relief. Local leaders point to a precedent in which the state provided special‑fund money to help another troubled district buy insurance after an audit found serious financial problems.

Community Response and Stakes

Teachers, parents and local businesses have mounted a wave of fundraising events: auctions, spaghetti dinners, restaurant partnerships, engraved nameplates for school bricks, and a Breakfast With Santa Claus. The parent‑teacher organization has also raised funds to restore extracurricular activities cut during budget shortfalls — including a fifth‑grade ski summit and a band trip.

Travis Zigler, president of the Prescott Education Association, emphasized that the community must move past assigning blame and focus on saving the school: "This community deserves to have their school." Kaleb Young, a PTO member and Prescott graduate, warned that dissolving the district would scatter students to distant districts, disrupt friendships and local supports, and remove services such as summer meal assistance that many families rely on.

“I wish that there was more time,” Young said. “We’re working with what we’ve got, and people are scrambling and rushing, and we’re doing what we can.”

Wider Context

Prescott is one of several Washington districts under financial oversight; six others faced similar scrutiny as of late 2024. Across the country, districts in New Jersey, North Carolina, New Hampshire, Arizona and West Virginia have grappled with severe budget shortfalls tied to mismanagement, turnover and inadequate controls — illustrating how fragile local education financing can be for small rural communities.

Prescott's fate will hinge on whether the town can marshal reliable revenue and present a credible multi‑year budget plan to state officials before the March 31, 2026 deadline.