As WKU prepares for the upcoming fall semester, it will temporarily be moving forward with no one working in the Office of Internal Audit.

The Office of Internal Audit is supposed to hold administrative and academic departments accountable by reviewing a department’s activities and spending, according the office’s website.

But in recent months, both of the office’s workers — Director of Internal Audit Jennifer Miller and Internal Auditor Sarah Reece — have quit, leaving the two-person operation unmanned, according to Jason McKinney, chair of the Board of Regents’ finance and budget committee, to whom the office officially reports.

McKinney said in an email that Miller resigned from her position in March. She took a job as director of internal audit for Fruit of the Loom in Bowling Green. Reece confirmed she was leaving the job on Wednesday. 

The Finance and Budget Committee’s search for a new director has experienced challenges during the past few months, McKinney said. “The COVID-19 shutdowns occurred shortly after Jennifer’s resignation,” he said. “We thought it would be prudent to temporarily postpone searching for a replacement for the position given the uncertainty.”

According to Bob Skipper, director of media relations, WKU is planning on filling in the vacancies in the short term.

“We are making plans for interim staffing so the internal audit function remains covered in the absence of permanent staff,” Skipper said in email.

Reece said that she felt comfortable at WKU, but she felt like it was time to leave the hill.

“”I’ve enjoyed my time at WKU immensely,” Reece said in an email. “I’ve had the pleasure of meeting driven, dedicated people here at WKU and feel fortunate to call many of them my friends. There were many factors contributing to my decision to leave WKU, some of which are personal in nature, and I feel this is the best decision for me at this time.”

The Herald reached out to Miller for comment but she did not respond in time for publication.