Columbia Public Schools
Anna Munson

Financial officer in Columbia (Mo.) district resigns after being charged with theft

March 19, 2018
Anna Munson is accused of stealing funds—before she was hired in Columbia—from a band booster club in Chesterfield, Mo.

A woman hired 10 months ago as chief financial officer of the Columbia (Mo.) school district has resigned after being charged with a felony in St. Louis County.

The Columbia Tribune reports that Anna Munson, 45, is charged with felony theft. She allegedly withdrew at least $17,500 via ATM transactions and wrote a check to herself for $1,000 on the account of the Marquette Band Boosters at Marquette High School in Chesterfield, Mo.

A probable cause statement says an investigation uncovered “numerous purchases made with the credit/debit card linked to the account which did not appear to be legitimate purchases ...”

Marquette High School is part of the Rockwood School District. Munson was the treasurer of the booster club. 

The Columbia district does not believe any local funds are missing, a spokesman says.

According to court documents, Munson became sole treasurer of the booster club in October 2014 after convincing the band director at Marquette High that only one person should have the position. Previously there had been co-treasurers.

Unauthorized ATM withdrawals began soon after she assumed the job of treasurer and continued until August 2016. The missing funds were not noticed until another treasurer took over the account in September 2016, the statement reports.

When the Columbia district hired her, Munson was chief financial officer at Riverview Gardens School District in St. Louis County, a job she had held since 2014. She had been the executive director for federal grants at St. Louis Public Schools for seven years and has seven years’ experience with the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education as the director of business management for the Missouri Schools for the Severely Disabled and as a supervisor for compliance in special education.

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