Auditing Services

Joseph K. Lumsden Bahweting Anishnabe School, a Northern Michigan University charter school located in Sault Ste. Marie serving approximately 610 kindergarten through eighth-grade students, is soliciting sealed bids for certified annual auditing services covering a five-year period from July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2031 (fiscal years 2027–2031). The scope of work requires comprehensive audit services compliant with Michigan Department of Education guidelines, Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP), and the Michigan School Auditing Manual, including Single Audit Act compliance portions, financial statements reporting, detailed revenue and expenditure breakdowns by fund, and management discussion and analysis templates. Bidders must provide firm resumes, peer review copies, lists of previously audited school districts, itemized audit fees for each fiscal year, single audit fees if applicable, and per diem costs for additional services with clearly identified travel time and expenses. The District will conduct preliminary test work in May or June of each year, with draft reports and final audit presentations to the Board of Education required by October. Sealed bids must be submitted by 2:00 p.m. on Friday, May 15, 2026, to the Director of Business and Finance. The Board of Education reserves the right to reject any proposal and to award to other than the lowest quotation when deemed in the District's best interest, and any deviations to the original quotation require prior District approval.

All bids must include completed Affidavits of Compliance with the Iran Economic Sanctions Act and Familiar Relationship Disclosure forms as required by Michigan law; no specific set-asides for disadvantaged enterprises are identified in the procurement documents. The school district operates under the oversight of four entities: the Michigan Department of Education, Northern Michigan University, the Bureau of Indian Education, and the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians. The District maintains three funds with significant financial activity: a general fund with a balance of $4,526,670 and annual revenues of $14,844,173; a student activity fund with $10,625 and annual revenues of $26,490; and a school service fund with $57,955 and annual revenues of $498,218 as of fiscal year 2025. The Board reserves the right to extend the contract beyond the initial five-year term subject to satisfactory performance evaluations and budget availability. While no specific budget range is stated in the procurement documents, the audit fees will be based on itemized costs submitted by bidders for each fiscal year, along with additional costs for single audits and per diem services as applicable.