Wayne County Board approves 3-year internet contract, upgrades district backbone

The Wayne County Board of Education approved a three-year internet-services contract on March 17, 2026, to run from 2026 through 2029 that will upgrade the district’s main feed and site connections, a district presenter said.

Mister Smith, who introduced the district’s solicitation and evaluation, told the board only one vendor—Spectrum Business, the incumbent—responded to the request for proposals. He said the vendor offered two pricing options and recommended upgrading to a 20‑gigabit main feed with 10‑gigabit connections to other sites to improve the district’s technology capacity and complement existing data-center equipment. “Our recommendation is to go with the 20 gig to the main feed and then 10 gigs everywhere else for the next 3 years,” he said.

Smith described sample pricing: about $625 per 10‑gigabit site before the E‑Rate discount, which he said would amount to roughly $62.50 per site after the program’s 90% discount, and a smaller charge for the main feed. The contract is to be funded through the federal E‑Rate program, which the presenter said provides the district a 90% discount on eligible internet services.

A board member moved to approve the second option—the 20 G main feed and 10 G to other sites—and another member seconded the motion. The board approved the motion by hand-raise; the chair announced the motion passed.

The contract term is three years, through 2029, and the district plans to work with the vendor and E‑Rate processes to implement the upgraded connections. The board did not record a roll-call vote in the public transcript; individual vote tallies were not read aloud.

The board’s approval completes the procurement step; staff will finalize contract documents and coordinate installation and testing with the vendor and the district’s IT team.