Board approves Sapphire SaaS agreement after debate over security and uptime

A proposed software-as-a-service agreement for the district’s Sapphire system drew extended questioning at the June 16 Exeter Township School Board meeting before winning approval.

A board member asked that item three be removed from the consent agenda to ask about two provisions in the master service agreement. The member said the contract’s security clause (section 3F) appeared to absolve the vendor of responsibility for security compromises “due to a third party’s intentional effort to penetrate such security measures,” using the transcript’s example phrased as “hacking.” The member said that raises concern because student data could be at risk.

The business administrator, Mr. Brian Fe, told the board the district carries cyber liability insurance and that many K–12 vendors include similar language in their agreements; he noted a deductible that he recalled as about $10,000. District representatives said reporting obligations and credit‑monitoring responsibilities flow differently depending on whether a vendor’s platform is breached. The board also asked about the absence of explicit uptime or service-level agreements: meeting discussion noted the contract did not specify availability percentages or firm timetables for resolving high-severity incidents.

After the discussion, the board voted 5–1 to approve the Sapphire SaaS agreement. One board member said they remained uncomfortable with the contract language and intended to vote no but did not seek to delay the district’s procurement process.

The administration said it will follow up with the vendor for clarifications on off‑hour support and availability guarantees and will document any further assurances for the record.

Next steps: district staff will finalize vendor onboarding and attempt to obtain clearer SLA commitments and security details for the district’s files and future reporting.