DURHAM, N.C. — A newly released state performance audit found that North Carolina Central University did not consistently enforce controls over procurement and travel cards, creating risks that improper purchases could go undetected.
The Office of the State Auditor reviewed card activity from July 1, 2025, through Feb. 28, 2026. NCCU processed 6,027 procurement-card transactions totaling about $2.8 million during that period, according to the report.
Auditors examined 477 transactions totaling $371,645. They found 87 transactions, or 18% of the sample, were reviewed seven to 267 days after the university’s deadline. Another 56 transactions totaling $46,644 lacked a required receipt or a documented business purpose.
The report also identified 52 transactions totaling $21,186 that were automatically approved after documentation was uploaded, bypassing required supervisory review. Auditors said 139 sampled transactions did not comply with university rules, including prohibited purchases, purchases made by cardholders who had not completed required training, travel-card purchases that did not qualify as travel expenses, and 16 transactions used to split five purchases below established limits.
In a separate review of spending limits, auditors found seven of 140 cardholders had one or more system limits above the amounts documented in approved applications. The audit did not allege that the exceptions proved theft or fraud. It said the weaknesses increased the risk of fraud, waste, abuse and misuse.
The auditor recommended stronger monitoring, recurring training, changes to approval-system settings, better enforcement of purchasing rules and periodic review of card limits. NCCU’s own procurement manual requires weekly reconciliation and approval, itemized receipts, a documented business purpose and supervisory sign-off. It also prohibits splitting transactions to avoid card limits.
Chancellor Karrie G. Dixon said in a Sept. 22 response included with the audit that the university agreed with the findings and recommendations. NCCU said it had begun updating manuals, introducing electronic applications and maintenance forms, developing required training and standardizing documentation of card violations. The university listed additional corrective actions and implementation deadlines for each finding.
The audit used nonstatistical sampling, so its sample results cannot be projected to every university transaction. The report was dated Oct. 16 and first posted by the state auditor Oct. 19.
Sources
- Office of the State Auditor performance audit, Oct. 16, 2026
- NCCU Procurement Card Manual, revised October 2025
Photo Credit: File photograph of the North Carolina Central University Student Center, March 2, 2022, by Some Dude From North Carolina via Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Cropped and resized; adapted under the same license.
Editor’s Note: This article was drafted with the assistance of artificial intelligence and was reviewed and fact-checked by a member of the NC Political News editorial team before publication.