Ithaca College

Posted on behalf of Gerald Hector, Vice President for Finance and Administration.

It is with great pleasure that I share with the campus community the news that the College’s office supply contract has been awarded to Staples Advantage, resulting in what I am certain will be a great partnership between the two institutions.

This is the first contract awarded under the College’s Strategic Sourcing initiative.  The Office Supply Advisory subcommittee performed a formal Request for Proposal (RFP) process, and determined that the proposal submitted by Staples will deliver the best overall value to Ithaca College.

This six year contract will provide the College with great discounted pricing, as well as other financial incentives. In addition, over the duration of the contract Staples will offer two summer student internships per year and will participate in the annual Career Services “job fair,” with the goal of hiring one Ithaca College graduate per year. 

The deep discounted pricing is based on a three day a week desktop delivery service, with the same great discounts available at the local retail Staples location for those rare situations when office supplies are needed immediately. 

Staples Advantage also offers an Employee Purchase Program, which allows Ithaca College employees to enjoy the same discounted pricing the College receives under our agreement.

It is important to note that the more we all take advantage of this contract, the greater the positive impact it will have on the College’s budget. And since many of you already purchase office supplies through Staples, I am sure that the transition period will go smoothly.

Online office supply purchases will continue to be done via http://www.Stapleslink.com.  New pricing will go into effect on Monday, October 13th.

More details—including what products are eligible and any changes to the purchasing process--will be posted on the Strategic Sourcing website shortly.  We will continue to keep the campus community updated on the progress of the Strategic Sourcing initiative.