Former metro elementary school PTO president under investigation for ‘inappropriate use’ of funds

NEWTON COUNTY, Ga. — The Newton County School District is investigating a former PTO president to see if she inappropriately used PTO funds.

In an email, Newton County said they are “investigating allegations of inappropriate use of PTO funds by former East Newton Elementary School PTO president, Ms. Kaci Marks, during the 2022-2023 school year. We have obtained the organization’s financial records, and an audit is being conducted by an independent auditor.”

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Channel 2′s Michael Doudna was live on WSB Tonight at 11 p.m. Thursday in Newton County at East Newton Elementary. Parents said that Marks was the long-time president of the organization.

Channel 2 Action News obtained the financial records through an open records request. The records included bank statements detailing payments from the PTO account.

We brought the records to Georgia Ethics Watchdogs’ William Perry.

“People are giving their hard-earned money thinking they are helping their kids at school, and it seems like someone is taking advantage of that,” Perry said. “It’s pretty indicting when you see bank records and charges like this.”

The bank records show PTO funds were used on a phone bill, Hulu, Amazon, and other items that seemed to be for personal use.

“The expenditures are highly questionable,” Perry said.

The largest expenses seem to relate to flowers.

According to social media, Mark’s business is Kaci’s Kreations, a florist specializing in weddings, proms, and other special events.

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According to the bank records, the PTO account spent more than $18,000 on purchases from Carlstedts, a wholesale florist in Atlanta.

The bank records also indicate the PTO account paid for more than $1,000 worth of pottery.

“It’s not just a hand in a cookie jar but seems to be repeated behavior that is benefiting her or her business,” Perry said.

Channel 2 Action News called Kaci multiple times, left messages, sent a text and went to her home to get a comment but received no response.

The school district says they will not have further comment until the investigation is complete.

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