Multiple attendees used public comment on Jan. 8 to question district procurement practices, including a long-term video-production arrangement that a speaker described as a de facto sole-source contract without clear written justification. A parent argued that sole-source designations must be justified, recorded, and revisited annually under New York procurement standards.

Nichols’ investigation did not focus on procurement violations tied to expenditures because the LMS work was treated by the district as an internal voluntary project and, at the time, no district funds had been expended on the external LLC. Nichols told the meeting his engagement prioritized code-of-ethics review, but public speakers said procurement protections guard against favoritism even when funds have not yet been exchanged.

In response, trustees said the district will put future video-production services into the budget and subject them to a formal RFP process. The board also said it will modify the internal audit schedule to include procurement reviews and said it plans governance training and outside audits to restore community trust.

Speakers asked for transparency about other long-running contracts that may have been treated as sole-source exceptions and for better record retention and written justifications going forward. The board acknowledged record-retention limits for some older contracts and said it will pursue audits and training to strengthen procurement oversight.