Board approves Infosys contract amendment, citing accountability measures to fix Empower SF

The San Francisco Unified School District board approved a Fourth Amendment to its contract with Infosys Limited on March 14, authorizing a time‑and‑materials agreement that staff said narrows scope, sets prioritized work packages and adds accountability measures intended to accelerate remediation of the Empower SF payroll and human‑resources implementation. The motion passed on a roll‑call vote recorded as seven ayes.

Superintendent Wayne, interim business staff and the interim associate superintendent for business presented the amendment as different from prior changes because it defines specific work packages, includes change‑control procedures and requires weekly senior‑management communications between the district and Infosys. Staff said the top priorities in the plan are interfaces, employee payroll and time‑entry management.

Doctor Clark outlined a three‑step approach: targeted training for payroll, HR, IT and site staff; a broader RFP to bring in additional temporary vendors and contractors; and hiring for roughly 40 essential positions that will either be assigned full time to the Empower implementation or serve as backfill so operational staff can focus on remediation. Staff said about 10–11 of those positions are filled so far.

Staff described how the amendment will be funded: a combination of identified one‑time funds, salary savings from unfilled positions and a portion of the $20,000,000 audit adjustment that established a systems reserve. The presentation noted the district has organized remediation into discrete work packages and "identified close to 66 known issues, 20 new defects," and that weekly activity reports from Infosys will be required to track progress.

Public commenters were sharply critical: speakers called for halting further payments, accused the district of corruption tied to procurement and said open positions should not be treated as budget savings. Chris Klaus, a special‑education teacher, said, "Salary savings from open positions are not savings," and asked whether continued spending on the system is worthwhile; staff answered that the district needs the system operational to pay employees and that stabilization is necessary to avoid further harm.

Board members acknowledged the difficulty of the vote. Several members described deep skepticism rooted in prior amendments but said the new contract contains more explicit accountability than earlier versions; others emphasized the immediate need to maintain payroll operations for staff. Commissioners asked staff to provide regular updates and said they expect the district to demonstrate measurable progress on remediation milestones.

With the amendment approved, staff will obtain weekly activity reports from Infosys and return progress updates to the board; the district also said it will continue recruiting technical and subject‑matter staff and pursue temporary vendor support through the RFP process.

The board adjourned the meeting at 8:18 p.m.