CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The West Virginia State Auditor’s Office has honored a McDowell County Schools employee after the administrator used a state purchasing card for earning the school system $200,000 in cash back rewards.
The agency named a new award after Director of Finance Leona Ketz and presented her with the honor recognizing her office’s efforts to get the maximum rebate on purchasing cards.
During an appearance last week on “MetroNews Talkline,” Ketz credited a clerk, Darlene Cline, for starting the savings.
“Every bill that came through, she would call in and ask if they took the p-card,” Katz said. “If they took it, we would get the rebate from it.”
According to Ketz, the office developed a list of companies that accepted the purchasing card, and Cline would use the account for paying vendors to get rebates.
“Those that said ‘no,’ once a month, she would call them back again to see if they would accept it now,” Ketz said. “Some of them would, so that has been the practice.”
Ketz noted the school board supported the effort, especially as the rebates added up.
“The students there are at such a disadvantage,” she said. “When you get that kind of money where you can do new programs that you couldn’t afford before, it’s unbelievable what it does.”
State Auditor J.B. McCuskey called the award an honor to Ketz’s “dedicated service to McDowell County students,” noting on Twitter the effort has “paid off!”