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East Otero board approves YIT LLC IT outsourcing contract after district cybersecurity review
Summary
Board voted to outsource IT operations to YIT LLC (Austin Brunson) and cited recent cybersecurity work that improved cyber-insurance coverage; the contract was approved for $24,819.84 and staff described ongoing steps to harden backups, training and ticketing.
The East Otero School District No. R1 board approved a contract June 29 to outsource key IT functions to YIT LLC, a local technology partner led by Austin Brunson, in a bid to strengthen cybersecurity, implement a help-desk/ticketing system and professionalize device lifecycles.
Austin Brunson told the board the district had gaps in backups, inventory and security awareness that left the system vulnerable to phishing and other attacks. "It's not a matter of if we have the cyber attack, it's when," Brunson said, arguing the vendor's recent work on staff training and backups had already increased the district's cyber-insurance coverage and lowered premiums.
Brunson described YIT LLC's role as augmenting existing on-site staff (retaining two district employees for boots-on-the-ground support), running a ticketing system to triage day-to-day issues, instituting device life-cycle plans, and helping administrators evaluate technology purchases for compatibility and cost-effectiveness. Board members asked about vendor experience, local hires and student apprenticeships; Brunson said his company has worked with regional districts since 2017 and hires local students for internships.
The board approved the YIT LLC quote ($24,819.84) by roll call vote. Dr. K said the partnership has already helped with cameras, access control and insurance compliance and will expand to broader IT operations. Staff will return with a scope-of-work summary and implementation timeline and will continue to keep two district IT employees involved in day-to-day support.
The contract vote was unanimous by roll call.
