Washoe trustees switch ERP implementer, approve CherryRoad and Oracle contracts

The Washoe County School District board on Dec. 9 authorized a change in the district’s enterprise resource planning (ERP) implementation and approved a new vendor and subscription agreements.

CFO Mark Mathers told the board the district will terminate the prior implementer and enter into an implementation contract with CherryRoad Technologies for roughly $9,954,960 and reapprove Oracle Cloud ERP subscription agreements for an estimated $11,433,728.25 over up to nine years. Mathers said the contract is capital‑funded and not charged to the general fund.

Chief information staff explained the switch followed concerns with the previous implementer’s staffing changes and limited Oracle expertise. The district reported paying $1,870,000 toward the earlier contract and estimated an unspent balance; the CherryRoad price is within that remaining budget once consultant and other contract adjustments are considered.

Staff warned the go‑live schedule was extended from an earlier, unrealistic April 2026 date to July 1, 2027 to allow adequate conversion, testing and training. The board asked about assurances and changed contract terms; staff said lessons learned were incorporated into the new contract and CherryRoad has deeper Oracle experience and multiple K‑12 references.

Trustees approved the agreements; President Smith remarked on the scale and public nature of the work. What happens next: the ERP team will continue vendor onboarding, finalize contract credits for prior work where applicable, and begin phased implementation and district training in advance of a planned July 1, 2027 completion.