Vicksburg Warren board approves new financial software, contracts and international hires; tables weapons-detection award

The Vicksburg Warren School District board on Thursday approved a series of contracts and personnel items and moved forward with a plan to replace the district’s financial software, while tabling a separate award for weapons-detection equipment.

The board voted to enter into an agreement with Courage Technology for district financial software and related modules, approved a three‑year contract for removal and disposal of district assets with Next Tech Operations, awarded a five‑year bow‑hunting lease on 16th Section land to South Park Bow Hunters and approved a districtwide copier/printing services contract to Taseva. The board also approved selection of Stepping Stones Group LLC to provide speech‑language pathology (SLP) services after a request‑for‑proposals process, and approved the personnel agenda that included teachers hired through an international recruitment program that uses H‑1B visas. A bid for weapons‑detection equipment was tabled for further review.

Why it matters: the software and service contracts affect how the district manages money, inventory and outsourced services; the personnel approvals respond to an ongoing teacher shortage. Board members pressed staff on cost, transition risk and contract terms before approving several items.

Most consequential vote: financial software and transition plan

District staff recommended replacing the current finance platform with Courage Technology’s suite, citing lower recurring costs and vendor implementation support. ‘‘We’re looking to do an implementation in 2026, but there’s leg work to get that software in place for 2026,’’ a district staff member reported during discussion. Laura Hughes, a district staff member, told the board the first‑year cost is $45,700 (the agenda referenced an initial start‑up fee of $350 in addition) and that ongoing annual fees average about $35,000. Hughes said the company offers a bank‑reconciliation module intended to automate manual reconciliation work.

Board members repeatedly questioned timing, conversion risks and vendor adoption across other Mississippi districts. ‘‘We need to plan appropriately. We need to make sure that we take every opportunity to train the staff completely,’’ a board member said, expressing concern about past troubled conversions. Staff said roughly 50 other Mississippi districts use the vendor under consideration, and the district would not operate two systems concurrently after conversion.

After discussion the board approved the software contract and the related implementation plan.

Other contract decisions and procurement actions

- Disposal contract: The board approved a contract with Next Tech Operations for removal and disposal of district assets. During the meeting staff clarified the contract term is three years (07/01/2025–06/30/2027) and the board voted to reconsider and then reapprove the item with the corrected term.

- Sixteenth‑section lease: The board awarded the lease for Section 28 (Township 15 North, Range 4 East) to South Park Bow Hunters for $3,440 for a five‑year period beginning 07/01/2025; staff said that group was the only bidder and the same lessee held the prior lease.

- Copier/printing services: With one remaining bidder after a withdrawal, the board awarded a 36‑month printing and copying contract to Taseva; staff said the proposal will provide new devices and service for the district and is cheaper than the current monthly cost.

- Speech‑language pathology services: Following the RFP review and scoring, the board approved selection of Stepping Stones Group LLC as the SLP services vendor, subject to a contract with the district’s addendum.

- Weapons‑detection bid tabled: Staff recommended Jackson Communications under a bid‑exception letter; board members questioned why the lowest bidder was not selected and asked staff to return with additional justification and, potentially, a rebid. The board voted to table that item.

Open purchase‑order practice and budget oversight

The board approved a practice authorizing open purchase orders for certain vendors at an initial per‑order limit of $1,500. Staff explained departments use these limited open POs for small emergency purchases and the finance office reconciles receipts against the PO balance as purchases are made. Board members asked for stronger reconciling controls and clarified the process for closing and re‑opening POs.

Personnel slate and international hires

The board approved the personnel agenda that included multiple teacher hires recruited internationally and sponsored under H‑1B immigration procedures. Staff told the board an immigration attorney’s fee is $3,500 per teacher and a recruiters’ fee is $2,500 per teacher. Board members asked whether the district would be responsible for repatriation (airfare) costs if an internationally hired teacher were dismissed within a set period; staff said the district could be responsible for repatriation fees and committed to returning with precise contract language and cost exposure details.

Project updates and finance report

Staff delivered a fiscal update showing fiscal‑year‑to‑date fund balance and the district’s fund‑balance percentage (15.19% of district maintenance expenditures for June 2025). Construction and renovation updates said the multipurpose buildings at Warrenton and South Park were nearing completion, RCEC renovations were in punch‑list status and several athletic and site projects were substantially complete; staff said no construction issues should interrupt school openings the next day and reported limited HVAC repairs in a few classrooms.

Votes at a glance

- Financial report (F‑1): approved. - Bow‑hunting lease to South Park Bow Hunters (sixteenth‑section lease): approved. - Disposal/removal contract to Next Tech Operations (07/01/2025–06/30/2027): approved (motion to reconsider corrected contract term and reapproved). - Financial software agreement with Courage Technology (F‑6): approved. - Weapons‑detection award: tabled for further review. - Copier/printing services award to Taseva (F‑8): approved. - Open purchase‑order list and procedure (H‑7): approved (open POs at $1,500 per PO as presented). - Speech‑language pathology award to Stepping Stones Group LLC (H‑11): approved, contract to include district addendum. - Personnel agenda including internationally recruited teachers (J‑1): approved; one board member recorded as opposed.

What’s next

Staff will return with contract addenda where missing, clarifications on cost‑of‑living and CPI language for multi‑year contracts, more detail on potential repatriation liabilities for internationally hired staff, and additional documentation requested about the weapons‑detection procurement before the board considers that award again.

Reporters’ note: This story is based on the board’s July 31, 2025 public meeting transcript and the motions recorded in the meeting minutes. Direct quotes are attributed to district staff or board members when the transcript provides names and roles.