As administrators review the accounts formerly under Jodie Nealley's control, they will likely find themselves battling against shaky bookkeeping and accounting systems.
"The accounting at Student Activities has never really been up to par," said Joanne Barnett, the theater manager at the Aidekman Arts Center.
Barnett has been at Tufts for 27 years, and over the past few years she has seen a pattern of student groups not receiving profits on-time from ticket sales.
The Office of Student Activities (OSA), directed by Nealley until she was fired earlier this month for allegedly embezzling approximately $300,000, was in charge of getting the money to the groups.
Barnett does not suspect that money was stolen from the box office; instead, she feels that it was just not handled carefully.
"[There have been] more than occasional instances where the paperwork seems to get 'lost,'" she said. "I've gotten to the point where I've told student groups that they really need to double and triple check that the money gets through."
These recordkeeping issues add to the woes of an office plagued by charges of embezzlement and bring difficulties to an already-complicated financial system.
"It's definitely a complex set of accounts because [the OSA handles] so many different types of activities," Director of Conferences and Summer Programs and Interim OSA Director Paul Tringale said. These activities bring the office into contact with student-group budgets and campus center profits.
Meanwhile, Tufts Community Union (TCU) senators have been looking into a deficit of up to $104,312.31 that student organizations accrued during the last fiscal year.
Part of that may be the result of embezzlement, but at least some of the debt is attributable to shoddy recordkeeping.
"[There was] some accounting that wasn't as tight as it could have been," TCU President Neil DiBiase said.
Sarabande, a Tufts dance group, was among the organizations affected by this problem.
Profits from last year's fall show were not transferred into Sarabade's account, so TCU records initially showed that the group had a $1,048.11 deficit going into this year.
Sarabande President Marissa Pierce, a senior, said that the situation has been fixed, but noted that the delays were frustrating.
Other groups may also have more profits than originally projected, so the total deficit among them could continue to shrink as financial records get straightened out, according to TCU Treasurer Evan Dreifuss.
Another paperwork problem has been the late processing of transactions near the end of last year. As a result, some organizations thought they had more money in their accounts than they actually did.
There was also some miscommunication toward the end of the year between senators and groups.
The Elections Commission, for example, purchased a multiyear license for software. This led to a $7,696.68 deficit at the end of last year, but Dreifuss said this figure is misleading because the group will require less money for the next two years now that it has already paid for the license.
DiBiase said that some of these issues stem from former Budget and Fiscal Coordinator Ray Rodriguez' departure at the end of last year. Rodriguez worked closely with Senate accounts, and his transition out of the position threw a wrench in the system. It also temporarily gave Nealley more autonomy over Senate funds.
"[There's] a relationship between the Senate and the budgeting and fiscal coordinator. Both rely on each other, and unfortunately last year there were some problems with that relationship," DiBiase said. "We were frustrated with the pace at which things were being processed."
Embezzlement also likely played a role in the deficits. Particularly suspicious is the $25,914.11 deficit that the Senior Class Council ran last year.
The council annually has a number of revenue-generating events, such as pub nights and Senior Week, so it fits the profile of the type of group the administration thinks Nealley may have targeted.
This year's Senior Class Council Treasurer Dan Freeman confirmed that the group typically has a lot of interaction with the Office of Student Activities.
"We have a little bit more of a connection with the OSA than I'd say a normal club does," he said.
Dreifuss said that since a lot of the council's profits come from cash, it may be difficult to determine the extent of embezzlement, if there was any.
"The hard part about it is a lot of these things are cash-based operations and there's not a lot of a paper trail you can follow to figure it out," he said.
The second largest deficit came from Fall Ball, which ran $19,779.76 in the red. But Dreifuss said he does not suspect any foul play with this account.
"That wasn't really a cash-generating activity so I wouldn't expect there to be anything wrong with that," he said.
Director of Public Relations Kim Thurler said that auditors will examine all of these accounting concerns during their investigation.
"The Tufts Audit and Management Advisory Services Office is doing a thorough review of existing financial policies, procedures and controls - including recordkeeping practices - relating to student organizations and activities," she said in an e-mail. "We will make whatever changes are needed to strengthen those procedures and protect against misuse of university resources."
But she could not further discuss the specifics of what the audit has unearthed after it initially found signs of embezzlement.
"We cannot comment further on details of what is part of an ongoing criminal investigation; to do so could compromise that investigation," she said.
Jessica Venezia, a spokesperson for the office of Middlesex County District Attorney Gerald Leone, Jr., said on Monday that no charges have been filed yet against Nealley.
