Belmont: the Billion Dollar High School

This book has it all – fraud, waste, corruption, politics, and greed. It is an outsider's inside true story about how a group of educators tried to build a public high school in downtown Los Angeles. Inspector General Don Mullinax with the help of Leslie Dutton and TJ Johnston of Full Disclosure Network expose how a school district mired in favoritism, cronyism, and self-dealing put greed and politics ahead of the safety and educational interests of children.

This book puts a spotlight on problems from 20 years ago that still exist today at most school systems across the county. It is a must read for citizens, parents, and school officials who do not want to make the same mistakes as those who came before them. The Los Angeles Unified School District had not built a high school in over 30 years. So why would a former playground supervisor be put in charge of building the most complex and politically charged school ever? This eye-opening book takes you behind the scenes of how outsider Mullinax was hired, assembled his investigative "dream team," and dealt with the challenges of uncovering what went wrong with building the nation's most expensive high school – the Belmont Learning Complex.

Mullinax exposes how a public-school system selected the highest bidder and signed an agreement to build a high school at a guaranteed maximum price of $110 million. However, the cost skyrocketed to almost $1 billion. How could that happen? This book reveals how Mullinax and his team of former FBI special agents, forensic accountants, and environmental attorneys found that every time the LAUSD had an opportunity to make the right call, they failed. Mullinax also offers 10 key takeaways from his Belmont experience to help school systems follow the right path to building and renovating school facilities.