The rollout of a new software system that underlies Hillsborough County Public Schools’ daily operations has become a massive headache for teachers, administrators and school board members, who in recent meetings have called the development a failure, a dropped game, a “holy mess” and a “shitshow.”

The district purchased the Synergy program in 2019 for more than $8.5 million to replace the outdated system it developed itself more than 30 years ago. The pandemic and technical problems caused delays, and the 2024-25 school year was the last chance to put the program into action under the original contract. If implementation had been delayed until next year, it would have cost the district another $2 million for something it wasn’t using, district IT chief Thomas Weeks said in a recent meeting.

But the school year so far has been marred by technical complaints about Synergy and a rocky rollout that left many district staff with little to no training in using the program. Board members have described teachers going back to taking attendance on paper; students facing inaccurate schedules and errors on their report cards, some of which falsely indicate they are not on track to graduate; and staff facing a tremendous burden filling out forms, particularly those required by law for students with special needs.

They fear the difficulties could lead to problems for the district in terms of compliance with regulations and, if present, funding: The money the district receives from the state is dependent on the number of students it serves, and the numbers must be accurate.

“We have failed our teachers, we have failed our school administration, and we have no one to blame but ourselves,” board member Patti Rendon said at a Sept. 5 meeting.

About two meetings in September, Board members summed up the frustrations of overwhelmed teachers so thoroughly that Hillsborough Classroom Teachers Association President Rob Kriete said he little to add.

“Today I was with a group of teachers, and when I said ‘synergy,’ there was such energy, and it was not positive energy,” board member Nadia Combs said during a meeting this week.

The Board asked Superintendent Van Ayres for a concrete plan on how to proceed until the group meets for a workshop on September 24th.

Several members have sharply criticized Weeks for not providing them with regular updates on the software problems, saying it was frustrating to listen to teachers’ complaints before getting any news from the district’s technology director.

Weeks said the district bears responsibility for an incomplete rollout plan that left staff unprepared for the change. He also blamed Synergy’s manufacturer, Edupoint, for technical issues — because it’s an off-the-shelf product, only Edupoint could “change it behind the scenes” to make it work for the district, he said — and described the transition as a massive but necessary change with inevitable teething issues.

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“This is the biggest undertaking this district has undertaken in 33 years,” he said Sept. 5. “This is not something that is going to happen easily, quietly, and quietly. … Everyone has to embrace this change.”

In an email Thursday, district spokeswoman Tanya Arja attributed many of the problems to the district’s request that Edupoint “change its product in many ways to meet our unique needs,” and said the company visited schools this week to work with district staff. Some problems also stem from a learning curve with the new system, she said.

“The district is not satisfied with the current state of the product and is currently reviewing its options,” she wrote.

The school district did not make Weeks available for an interview. Edupoint did not respond to a request for comment.

At Tuesday’s meeting, the school board unanimously rejected Weeks’ request for more than $120,000 for a consulting firm to review the district’s technology plans and help find replacements for the aging hardware. The proposal had little to do with Synergy, although Weeks said the firm could provide someone to help the district through its difficult period. School board members said they wanted to see improvements before spending more money on his department.

“Instead of spending money looking at someone’s products, I want you to spend the time asking yourself how we do it,” Combs said.