CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — Bluefield State College has management and oversight problems that affect everything from student debt to payouts at the bookstore, according to a state audit released to a legislative interim committee Tuesday.
 

The Office of the Legislative Auditor looked at the college’s operations from July 2005 through June 2007. In that time, it found the college couldn’t locate inventory items including two automobiles, couldn’t provide documents fully accounting for more than $3.1 million in cash receipts and has been allowing students to receive credit and graduate despite unpaid tuition and fees.
 

“BSC did not have an effective system of internal controls in place to ensure compliance with applicable state laws, rules and regulations,” the auditors concluded.
 

The audit has 31 separate findings, but during a meeting of the Legislative Oversight Commission on Education Accountability, auditors discussed what they said were the four most glaring problems.
 

Those are equipment inventory, cash receipts, accounts receivable and cash payouts at college bookstores.
 

In the first instance, the audit found that school personnel couldn’t locate 170 inventory items worth about $359,000, including 101 computers and two vehicles.
 

In cash receipts, the auditors were unable to audit about $3.1 million worth of deposits properly, because of missing documentation. The audit said there’s no proof any money was deliberately misappropriated, but likewise there’s no proof it was deposited properly.
 

The audit found that in accounts receivable, the school is allowing students to pay partial amounts of tuition and fees, enabling them to receive credit and degrees while owing the school money. It also said Bluefield State has made little attempt to collect the debts.
 

Finally, the audit found that in the two years under review, campus bookstores paid out nearly $103,000 in cash without having documents to prove the payouts were appropriate refunds or other expenses.
 

The audit recommends a number of steps to strengthen internal controls, including hiring a full-time, in-house auditor to be shared with Concord University.
 

Lawmakers on the committee said the report was distressing, but some stopped short of endorsing all the auditors’ recommended remedies.
 

Delegate John Doyle, D-Jefferson, said it’s not fair to withhold academic credit or a diploma from a student relying on a third party to pay for tuition and expenses, if the nonpayment is the fault of the third party.
 

“You’re not suggesting that a student should be denied a graduation certificate he or she has earned if the money doesn’t come in and it’s not his or her fault, are you?” Doyle asked.
 

Legislative Auditor Aaron Allred said most of the problems could likely be fixed if the school pursues a collection policy that goes beyond a single token letter, but also noted, “Once you provide a student with a degree, you really do not have any leverage.”
 

Bluefield State President Albert Walker said the school has already begun formulating policies to put the audit’s recommendations into practice. In six months, when the auditors return for a checkup, Walker said the problems will be substantially corrected.
 

“The auditors have given us a real challenge that has been accepted by the institution,” he said. “Give us the six months and we will have it fixed.”
 

Walker noted the audit didn’t find any proof of fraud or intentional wrongdoing, but Delegate William Anderson, R-Wood, said the report should still be a wakeup call for the university.
 

“I would hope you’ll take these recommendations and run with them,” Anderson said. “If you find employees who are taking advantage of Bluefield State College, then I expect you’ll send them out the door.”
 

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