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NATCHEZ — During its Tuesday meeting, the Natchez-Adams school board authorized the purchase of the STOPit phone app, which the students have already been using while it was state-funded.

The cost is $4,242 annually. 

The STOPit app allows students to safely and confidentially report incidents of cyberbullying, self-harm or other issues that may affect their safety and well-being, said school safety and security director Melvin Davis.

The app allows the students to send text messages, photos or videos as evidence that allows officials to address those issues immediately, Davis said.

“Since 2021, the (Mississippi Department of Education) has paid for STOPit for the entire state and now they’re pushing that responsibility on the districts,” he said.

Davis said he looked at the cost of similar apps from two other vendors and found the STOPit app to be the most affordable and effective.

Green said the app would be introduced to students during orientation and would also be advertised on the school district’s webpage and with informational flyers.

More detailed information about the app can be found at www.stopitsolutions.com.

In other matters, the school board also opened bids for professional, contractual and instructional services as well as for principal coaching and exceptional services for the 2023-24 school year. All bids were taken under advisement.

The school board also authorized an emergency purchase of diesel and gasoline pumps from Petroleum Equipment Holdings LLC for $19,773.85 to be used for school buses, replacing pumps that are no longer operable and have older parts that can no longer be purchased.

The contract to install the pumps was the lesser of two bids received. The second bid from Petrol LLC was $21,557.91.