The Missouri State Auditor's Office is preparing to launch a performance audit of the Special School District of St. Louis County, an agency that has spent the past three years mired in financial strain and mounting scrutiny over how it restrains and secludes students with disabilities. Officials say they expect to cooperate fully with the review.
According to the district's own website, ssdmo.org, the state auditor's office will conduct a performance audit of the district.
A spokesperson for Missouri Auditor Scott Fitzpatrick did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment, per the same report.
Years of Financial Warning Signs
The district has faced years of financial pressure, including a state funding gap and concerns about federal funds. Its officials have projected deficit spending while benefits are expected to remain unchanged.
Budget Snapshot and Audit Precedent
The district's FY25 budget provides a concrete measure of the financial strain. According to the Special School District's FY25 Annual Budget Report, the district projected $79.8 million in deficit spending, with revenues down $4.6 million and expenditures up $24.8 million from the FY24 budget. As a separate local precedent, the Missouri State Auditor's Office said its August 2026 report on St. Louis Public Schools was the second audit of that district and again assigned it the lowest possible rating, "poor." That completed audit provides a comparison for the newly announced Special School District review, but it does not establish what findings the new audit will produce.
Those pressures remain a concern.
Federal Scrutiny Over Restraint and Seclusion
The financial pressure is accompanied by federal scrutiny of the district's treatment of students with disabilities. Earlier in 2026, the U.S. Department of Justice released an investigative report on restraint and seclusion and threatened litigation if the district did not change its practices, the Post-Dispatch reported. The report alleged that crisis intervention was being used as a routine response to student behavior rather than as a last resort required under state law, and characterized the measures as overused across the district.
A fox2now.com account of the federal review reported that roughly 300 students were secluded approximately 4,000 times over two years, while 150 students were restrained 777 times. The station said the investigation found the practices discriminatory and said they prevented children from receiving a full education.
The same report described a family's lawsuit alleging that the district improperly secluded its 9-year-old son, who has autism and ADHD. The lawsuit says he was placed in a seclusion or observation room 66 times over two school years, for a total of about six hours.
The station's coverage also referenced a separate incident from March 2025, when Charnita Thomas was accused of grabbing and shoving a 7-year-old student into a closet and blocking the door; she later pleaded guilty to misdemeanor assault. Missouri law, per an excerpt of Revised Statutes of Missouri Section 630.175, states that restraint or seclusion shall not be used in habilitation centers or community programs serving people with developmental disabilities that are operated or funded by the Division of Developmental Disabilities, except through an approved emergency intervention system identified in an individual support plan.
Echoes of a Recent City Schools Audit
The Special School District's coming review follows a similar audit the state conducted of St. Louis Public Schools, completed in August. That review gave St. Louis Public Schools a rating of poor, according to the Post-Dispatch. A separate notice from the Missouri State Auditor's Office indicates the report found the district's board did not act as an effective governing body, though full details of that finding were not available in the material reviewed.
The auditor's office notes on its Audits in Progress page that the State Auditor may examine school districts and certain special taxing districts as part of its regular oversight functions. The office also maintains a searchable database of completed audit reports covering public schools and general district operations.
For now, families and staff connected to the Special School District of St. Louis County are left waiting to see what auditors uncover, even as the district continues to grapple with the fallout from the federal investigation and its own financial forecasts. The review is getting underway.
