Mark FunkHouser Ph. D.

For Mark Funkhouser, work as the city auditor of Kansas City, Mo, is less about finances than you might think. Though serving as a watchdog of the city’s fiscal management is a large part of the job, at the end of the day, it’s about improving city government and as a result, improving the lives of citizens.

With those goals as a motivation for his work, it’s no surprise that Funkhouser began his career as a social worker in Tennessee, with the aim of helping people achieve change and make decisions that would improve their quality of life. But it was the more far-reaching effects of city auditing that captured his attention.

“I became an auditor to do good,” Funkhouser said. As a social worker, “ I could deal with my case load, but if there is a problem in the way with which the social services are serving 100,000 people, we (auditors) might fix the whole thing,” he said.

Funkhouser earned his interdisciplinary Ph.D. in public administration and sociology from UMKC in 2000. As city auditor in Kansas City, a position he’s held since 1988, Funkhouser is granted complete access to the books and records of all city departments. He is charged with carrying out a continuous evaluation of the work of those departments. Yet, he says, the work has evolved far beyond checking vouchers and accounts.

“I don’t want to diminish that, but it’s about efficiency, effectiveness and equity fairness,” he said. “It’s as important to us that the government exercises its power and authority correctly as it is that the government spends the money wisely.”

With that approach, Funkhouser is credited with helping drastically improve the city’s government services. In 2003, Funkhouser was named Public Official of the Year by Governing magazine. That same year he also received the Association of Government Accountants Author Award for his scholarly contributions to the Journal of Government Financial Management.

As an adjunct faculty member teaching public administration at UMKC, Funkhouser is also interested in educating students. In the classroom, he challenges students to connect the principles of public administration with the practice of it.

”If the fire department doesn’t show up when it should show up, then a person dies of a heart attack. If it didn’t show up because the equipment was wrong, or the training was not good or the dispatch system didn’t’ work, that’s a problem. You have no idea how public finance could be so dangerous,” he said.

Funkhouser has worked under three mayors, which is highly unusual for a government official. His long tenure speaks to his talent and effectiveness as a public servant. Despite the marks he’s left, Funkhouser says his job isn’t just about making government run better: It’s about empowering citizens with knowledge about how the city works.

The University of Missouri-Kansas City (UMKC), one of four University of Missouri campuses, is a public university serving more than 14,000 undergraduate, graduate and professional students.  UMKC engages with the community and economy based on a three-part mission: visual and performing arts, health sciences, and urban affairs.

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