Harlandale ISD Network Operating Center Firewall (E-Rate)

Harlandale Independent School District (HISD) in Bexar County, Texas, is soliciting proposals for a District-managed, on-premises Next-Generation Firewall solution to enhance perimeter security for its centralized data center environment. The procurement seeks a FortiGate 600-series F or G generation appliance (or equivalent) to support a network serving approximately 15,000 users and 17,000 computers and wireless devices across 30 locations within a 14 square-mile area. The firewall solution must provide comprehensive security features, including stateful packet inspection, application-layer visibility, intrusion prevention, advanced malware protection, URL filtering, SSL/TLS decryption, DNS security, east-west segmentation, zero-trust policy controls, and real-time analytics. Proposals are due by February 19, 2026, at 1:00 PM Central Time through the Bonfire Portal, with vendor questions accepted until January 20, 2026, at 10:00 AM Central Time. The evaluation criteria include price (30 points), other costs (5 points), vendor reputation (15 points), quality of service (15 points), ability to meet needs (10 points), past relationship (10 points), underutilized business compliance (5 points), and long-term cost (10 points).

The contract is funded through E-Rate and will cover a three-year term from July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2029, with two optional one-year renewal periods. Vendors must maintain specific insurance coverage, including $1,000,000 professional liability per occurrence, $2,000,000 aggregate general liability, and $2,000,000 in umbrella coverage. The district encourages participation from underutilized businesses and requires vendors to comply with federal regulations, Texas Government Code provisions, and district policies, including cybersecurity requirements and data protection standards. Pricing must include all installation, configuration, training, and ongoing technical support costs, with delivery F.O.B. destination and no sales taxes included. HISD reserves the right to make multiple awards, reject any or all proposals, negotiate terms, and terminate contracts for convenience or non-appropriation of funds. While no specific budget range is mentioned, the comprehensive requirements suggest a significant investment in network security infrastructure for the school district.