A Florida school district has announced plans to outsource its entire information technology (IT) department to a third-party communications firm--a move district officials say could save the school system more than $1 million a year for the next 10 years.

The Okaloosa County School District will pay Titan Corp.--a company that provides communications systems and solutions to such federal agencies as the U.S. Department of Defense--between $25 million and $35 million over the next five years in exchange for a full range of technology services, from network maintenance and wireless internet access to IT support and computer refreshes. The contract includes a renewal clause that could extend the deal to the 2013-14 school year, officials said.

The 30,000-student district is the latest school system to outsource its entire technology department--a trend that already has caught on in Detroit and Cobb County, Ga., in metropolitan Atlanta, where school leaders have been able to increase efficiencies in light of shrinking budgets, while still maintaining their commitment to technology in schools.

Titan will furnish Okaloosa County's 43 facilities with desktop and laptop computers, network servers, and support services, including help-desk support, remote-desktop management, asset management, and local- and wide-area-network support and management. The company also will provide technology retrofits, web-site development and maintenance, and commercial software applications.

District Chief Information Officer J.C. Connor said the contract would ensure that every student and faculty member throughout the district enjoys the same access to technology no matter what building they're in. He also believes the service portion of the agreement will free up busy educators, who often spend too much time worrying about technology, to do what they do best: teach students.

Besides freeing up more time for classroom instruction, officials say the deal will save money while helping them keep better track of technology spending. It also will eliminate the need for full-time technology staff and bring the responsibilities for planning and resource allocation together under one roof, they say.

"We now have a coordinated effort throughout the district, as opposed to a bunch of ad-hoc plans," Connor said.

In deciding to outsource, he said, the district gave considerable thought to the fate of current technology staff members and determined it could make the transition with "little impact."

Of the 32 positions that were eliminated, Connor said about half these employees had served in instructional positions or as librarians before and would be allowed to return to their original posts. Some staff members were offered new positions as instructional technology directors responsible for training teachers in how to integrate technology into the classroom more effectively. Others, he said, were offered jobs with Titan. Six employees who declined the offer were granted assistance in finding new jobs elsewhere.