TSU touts financial progress as state audit points to past problems

While a recent state audit highlighted administrative issues under Tennessee State University’s former leadership, TSU’s new president stresses that the school is now on track to improve its financial future.

TSU President Dwayne Tucker announced during a board of trustees meeting that the school has exceeded its financial goals this year, by decreasing budget deficits and increasing revenue. 

He credited this victory, in part, to a $96 million agreement that the university made with the state this summer. 

“That funding has allowed us to invest in resources that can help us continue our sustainability at Tennessee State University,” he said.

The agreement lets TSU shift money to support its operational needs over the next three years. The funds — which were previously allocated for deferred maintenance — make up a portion of the $250 million that the state allocated to TSU in April 2022 to make infrastructure upgrades and capital improvements.

Tucker said that TSU decreased its budget deficit by $13.2 million this fiscal year and is on track to eliminate its deficit within three years instead of the expected five.

At the same time, a state audit points to past financial mismanagement at the school.  

The Tennessee Comptroller of the Treasury released a report detailing how a lack of oversight plagued the state’s historically Black public university with an “error-prone environment.”

Some concerns included erroneous financial statements, inadequate daily operations, and deficiencies in managing federal programs, causing subsequent cash flow deficits.

The report also found that the school’s leadership failed to report timely and accurate student enrollment information for federal direct loan and Pell grant programs. And many students who withdrew from the university reportedly didn’t receive refunds.

TSU’s responses to address these concerns are included in the audit.

“We are committed to fostering a culture of accountability and continuous improvement throughout TSU,” the university said in the report.

Many of the findings were already flagged in past audits and cover the time period between July 2023 and June 2024, well before Tucker became the school’s president. Tucker stressed the university’s commitment to resolving any lingering issues.