About Us

Procurement Services

The Office of Procurement Services (OPS), Fairfax County Public Schools, is a customer-oriented office that provides high quality service. OPS strives to be the best in the nation and to become a role model for other school districts while continuing to combine the best practices in procurement with the use of technology to meet the ever-changing needs of our customers.

Purchasing Support serves as a “first point” contact for FCPS procurement activities. This section issues and administers Invitation for Bids (IFB), Request for Proposals (RFP), Sole Source and Emergency contracts, and one-time purchases. Small Purchase orders are printed and mailed through the Purchasing Support office. Schools are advised, but not required, to use their procurement card for orders totaling less than $5,000.

Purchasing Support adheres to the Fairfax County Purchasing Resolution (pdf), which is an extension of the Virginia Public Procurement Act (VPPA) contained in the Code of Virginia .

Purchasing activities includes assisting schools, centers, and departments with the development of specifications, issuance of solicitations, conducting pre-bid/proposal conferences, tabulation of bids, conducting Selection Advisory Committees (SAC) meetings, and administering contracts throughout the life of the contract. The Purchasing Section also has been delegated the authority to award and administer sole source contracts, maintain the contract register and update catalogs for all contract items including equipment, software, and textbooks. They also manage the contract for office supplies and accountable equipment (uninstalled items costing in excess of $5,000 with a useful life greater than one year).

Purchasing Support provides schools, departments, and centers the capability to order textbooks through eSchool Mall or Textbook Exchange. The freight management program helps to control the cost of shipping textbooks. To assist personnel responsible for equipping new and renovated schools, OPS maintains Guidelines for Equipping Schools.

The Warehouse receives, stores, and delivers textual materials, supplies and equipment for schools, centers, and offices (professional and nonprofessional). Oversight includes daily courier service that delivers internal mail and related information to all schools, centers, and administrative offices. The internal mail services also picks up and processes outgoing United States mail for elementary and middle schools and administrative centers. Performs special projects such as moving furniture and equipment between schools for science fairs and concerts. The Warehouse is the key distribution center for FCPS.

The Financial Services FASTeam provides information technology services to the functional offices within the Department of Financial Services. These services, some of which are developed in-house and others which are out sourced, include system administration; application development and modification; reports development; systems analysis, testing, maintenance, end-user training, and documentation; operation of a Hot Line to handle calls from end users; and the development and maintenance of Department of Financial Services web sites.