Superintendent asks board to re-bid portion of IT contract

Tuesday, October 10, 2006

Detroit Public Schools Superintendent William F. Coleman III today issued the following statement about the District’s Information Technology contract:



“I am recommending that the school board rescind the award of the telecommunications portion of the IT contract. I am also requesting that the board re-bid the telecommunications portion of the contract.



My staff and I believed when we recommended that GVC/Information Solutions Group be awarded the contract that we were acting in the best interests of the District and the taxpayers of the City of Detroit. I still believe that. But it is clear that the GVC/Information Solutions Group contract is becoming a major distraction that has the potential to hamper our mission as an education institution.



The problem stems from allegations of unfairness and influence peddling, particularly as they relate to my relationship with an individual from Dallas who appears to have been associated with the Information Solutions Group. I learned at the last board meeting, months after the contracts were awarded, about his attendance at the bidders’ conference for the IT Sourcing RFP. His involvement has led to allegations and concerns of undue influence. All allegations of unfairness and influence peddling are completely and unequivocally false.



While we are confident of our choice of GVC/Information Solutions Group as the telecommunications services provider and while we are proud of the fact that this process was fair and transparent, we are concerned about the unjustified clouds of suspicion that continue to hover over the GVC/Information Solutions Group contract.  They are a needless distraction.



This administration and the board remain committed to reaching out to small, Detroit-based businesses. We remain unwavering in our commitment to being good stewards of the District’s resources on behalf of the children, parents, residents and small business owners of this city.



And we remain just as committed to integrity and to avoiding even the hint of impropriety. Therefore we are determined to remove any cloud of unfairness or undue influence that lingers over our business practices, including this one. I have no doubt that re-bidding this contract will help us accomplish this.



We encourage all telecommunications businesses, large or small, Detroit-based, minority- owned or otherwise, to submit proposals once the new RFP is issued.



It is the policy of this administration and the board that all contracts are awarded with the highest degree of competence, integrity and transparency.”

About the Detroit Public Schools



The Detroit Public Schools, founded in 1842, is one of the nation’s largest public school systems. Detroit Public Schools is a school district of choice and is open to children who live outside the city. The District offers numerous competitive academic and career technical programs.



Among these world-class programs are the Foreign Language Immersion and Cultural School, Michigan’s only public school of its kind; Davis Aerospace, one of few college prep high schools in the country where students can obtain a pilot’s license; the Detroit School of the Arts, a multiple award winning performing arts high school; and Crockett Technical High School, a digital technology high school.



For more information about the District, visit our website at www.detroitk12.org.