Finding for Recovery Issued After Former Canton Schools Employees Continued to Receive Paychecks, Attendance Bonuses

COLUMBUS – A finding for recovery totaling $39,970.57 was issued Thursday against four former employees of Canton City Schools, who received paychecks and attendance bonuses months after they were no longer employed by the district, Auditor of State Keith Faber announced.

The finding against Jason Huff Jr., Kyra Kennedy, Jacob Kent, and Melissa Leasure was included in an audit of the district’s finances from July 1, 2023, through June 30, 2024.

The full report is available online at https://ohioauditor.gov/auditsearch/search.aspx.

Kennedy, Kent and Leasure worked as bus drivers, and Huff worked as a bus assistant until leaving those positions in fiscal year 2024.

Their departures were not reported to the district’s human resources department, however, and all four continued to receive biweekly paychecks for about six months, along with bonuses for their attendance.

Huff was paid $9,376.93, Kennedy was paid $8,690.27, Kent was paid $11,823.53, and Leasure was paid $10,079.84.

“The district clearly did not have controls in place to ensure only those actually employed received paychecks and attendance bonuses,” Auditor Faber said. “There’s no excuse for this happening.”

District Treasurer Jeff Gruber and his bonding company and Assistant Transportation Director Theresa Vazquez are jointly and severally liable for the finding for recovery.

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The Auditor of State’s Office, one of five independently elected statewide offices in Ohio, is responsible for auditing more than 5,900 state and local government agencies. Under the direction of Auditor Keith Faber, the office also provides financial services to local governments, investigates and prevents fraud in public agencies, and promotes transparency in government.