Sheldon ISD trustees on Jan. 24 debated whether to proceed with contracting a firm to perform facility condition assessments for buildings 20 years or older after staff presented the RFQ process and recommended negotiating with the highest‑scoring bidder.

Staff described the RFQ process: the district published the request in the Houston Business Journal, received seven firm responses and convened a review committee composed of staff and administrators to score qualifications. “By law, we have to try to negotiate a contract with the top scoring firm,” a staff member said while describing the procurement rubric and scoring process.

Several trustees pressed staff on references and publicly reported problems involving one large bidder’s prior work in other districts. Trustee Mister Rivas said he had done his own research and raised concerns about the bidder’s record in Cleveland and Grand Prairie and asked for further explanation of why that firm ranked highly. Dr. Saeed, identified at the meeting as executive director of maintenance and facility sustainment, described the committee composition and the evaluation criteria used to rate competence on facility condition assessment work.

A representative for the top‑ranked firm addressed trustees and said the company completed the facility condition assessment for Cleveland and had turned over work to the district when that district paused bond planning; the representative offered to provide a letter from the Cleveland superintendent and board president documenting the engagement.

After an extended question‑and‑answer exchange about references, scope and the district’s desire for a firm that performs assessments in‑house rather than passing work through subcontractors, the board voted to table the item for further discussion. The motion to move forward with the recommended negotiations had been seconded and debated but was not adopted; trustees asked staff to provide additional documentation and references before reconsideration.

No new vendor contract was executed at the meeting. Staff said the facility condition assessment is intended to produce a prioritized list of needed repairs so the district can allocate remaining bond dollars appropriately and plan future work.

The board also requested that staff continue to monitor procurement integrity and to provide clearer references and examples of prior assessments that match Sheldon ISD’s size and needs.