The Ohio Auditor of State is seeking repayment of nearly $500,000 from the former business manager of a Columbus charter school, after issuing a finding for recovery over money taken from the school. Michelle Scott, who worked for Westside Academy in Columbus’ Hilltop area, misappropriated over $480,100 from the school over four and a half years, according to the auditor’s finding, reported by the Columbus Dispatch on October 21, 2026.
A finding for recovery is issued when public funds have been misspent or property has been misappropriated. The case began after Heather O’Bannon, director of Westside Academy, reported suspected theft to the auditor’s office. The auditor’s special investigations unit then investigated the school. Scott resigned from her position in September 2022.
Scott was indicted in Franklin County in April 2025. The charges against her were engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity, theft in office, and tampering with records. The indictment followed the auditor’s investigation into the missing school funds.
In March 2026, Scott pleaded guilty to a second-degree felony charge. A Franklin County Common Pleas judge sentenced her to a minimum of four years and up to a maximum of six years in prison, followed by three years of probation. The judge also ordered her to pay restitution of $363,384.44.
O’Bannon said Scott “betrayed the trust placed in her.” She said she was grateful to the Ohio Auditor for uncovering how Scott was “causing significant harm to our school and depriving our students of valuable educational resources.” The director’s statement described a loss that reached beyond the school’s accounts and into what was available for students.
Westside Academy is sponsored by the Buckeye Community Hope Foundation. The school has said it is committed to strengthening financial accountability following the theft. It is also committed to recovering the funds taken from the school, as the state pursues repayment through the finding for recovery.
The finding for recovery sets out the state’s claim for the more than $480,100 the auditor says was misappropriated. Scott’s court case has already resulted in a prison sentence, a period of probation to follow, and the separate court order for $363,384.44 in restitution. The school’s stated next steps are to strengthen its financial accountability and to recover the funds.