Missoula school board approves new ERP contract, adopts calendars and course catalogs, and OKs Costa Rica trip

The Missoula County Public Schools board voted unanimously to approve several administrative and program actions at its recent meeting, including a multi‑year contract to move the district off its Munis enterprise resource planning (ERP) system to Tyler School ERP Pro, adoption of school calendars and course catalogs for 2026–27, and approval of an international student trip to Costa Rica.

ERP replacement: Denise Williams, executive director of business services, presented a conversion plan to Tyler School ERP Pro that district staff said is designed specifically for school districts and includes prebuilt reports for required state data collections. Williams described a 15‑month implementation schedule beginning April 1 with a target go‑live date of July 1, 2027; an annual contract cost of about $177,105; and a one‑time implementation charge of $105,005.40. Williams said the switch should generate operational efficiencies and reduce some IT hosting and upgrade costs the district currently bears for Munis. "We would go live with this new software product on 07/01/2027," she told the board. IT staff confirmed the vendor uses AES‑256 encryption and said the contract contains language preventing the sale of district data.

Course catalogs and curriculum: Assistant Superintendent Amy Shattuck and principals from the district’s three large high schools presented new course offerings that will appear in next year’s high‑school catalogs: examples included a dual‑credit literature pathway at Big Sky, an Outdoor Pursuits PE option at Hellgate, expanded computer science and a Principles of AI course at Sentinel, and other career and dual‑credit courses across the district. Trustees and students discussed how course sign‑ups drive staff FTE and how the district ensures graduation requirements are met. Trustee Denise Juno and department chair Ezra Shearer pressed the administration on how Indian Education for All (IEFA), the state‑mandated curricular integration, is being embedded and assessed; Shearer commented that the district’s previous course‑proposal form did not explicitly ask about IEFA implementation.

Calendars and trip: The board approved elementary, middle and high‑school calendars for 2026–27 after discussing "soft‑start" arrangements for kindergarten, sixth and ninth grades and communications plans. Trustees also approved an out‑of‑country student trip to Costa Rica; the trip organizer said the cost is about $4,300 per student and described fundraising and scholarship efforts to support participation.

Votes at a glance: - ERP contract (Tyler School ERP Pro): approved unanimously; implementation: 15 months, go‑live 07/01/2027; annual cost ~$177,105; implementation fee $105,005.40 (Denise Williams presented). - High‑school course catalogs: approved unanimously after presentations from principals and assistant superintendent. - 2026–27 calendars (elementary/middle/high): approved unanimously. - Costa Rica student trip: approved unanimously; approximate cost $4,300 per student; fundraising and scholarship mechanisms described by trip organizer. - Montana School Boards Association dues renewal: approved unanimously. - Personnel report (appointments and retirements): approved unanimously.

Why it matters: The ERP contract represents a multi‑year technology and financial commitment that will change how the district manages payroll, HR, procurement and accounting; contract terms, data security and implementation costs were the central operational concerns raised by trustees. The curriculum and calendar votes shape courses available to students and the academic calendar families will plan around.

Next steps: The district will begin implementation planning with the vendor and continue communications around calendars and course offerings; trustees asked staff to monitor IEFA integration and course proposal processes.