BCSD to implement a corrective action plan in response to the New York State Comptroller’s Office findings about school building access
Press release
BATAVIA, NY — August 7, 2026 — The safety and well-being of students and staff is the Batavia City School District’s top priority. The district acknowledges receipt of the findings and recommendations outlined in the Building Access Report S9-26-10, issued by the Office of the New York State Comptroller (OSC) for the period of July 1, 2024, through November 30, 2025.
The district takes this report — and the security of our students and staff — seriously. We deeply value the constructive recommendations offered by the OSC and accept the findings outlined in the report. While the district accepts full responsibility for the audit’s findings, we wish to provide the community with additional context regarding the report.
First, during the audit period, the district experienced administrative and clerical turnover within the Human Resources Department. This transition period made it difficult to develop and maintain a consistent, written process for the deactivation and collection of building access fobs for departing employees.
Second, it is important to note that the audit found only five fob accounts belonging to former employees that were not deactivated between August 2025 and December 2025. This represents just 0.6% of the total 792 fobs issued by the district.
The district has already taken swift and decisive corrective action to resolve these administrative oversights. To ensure our facilities remain secure, the district has implemented new safety measures, including immediate fob deactivation and written procedures for assigning fob access.
The district has successfully deactivated and collected all duplicate or unnecessary fobs. We have established clear, written protocols for the activation and deactivation of employee fob access, which includes routine periodic monitoring to prevent future oversights.
“We would like to thank the Office of the New York State Comptroller and their audit team for their professionalism and collegiality during the audit process,” said Jason Smith, Superintendent of Schools. “This report offered valuable feedback to help improve our security practices, which allows us to continue to provide a safe learning environment for our students and a safe workplace for our faculty and staff.”
The district’s written corrective action plan, which addresses the audit’s findings and recommendations, will be prepared in response to this final audit report and filed with the OSC within 90 days. The district will also submit the audit report and corrective action plan to the New York State Education Department.
For more information about the Batavia City School District’s commitment to school safety, view the 2026-27 District Wide Safety Plan.