RFP #18-014: Questions and Answers
Community Schools Regional Technical Assistance Centers (TACs)
Program
- Is additional information available regarding how the school districts that received Community Schools Set-Aside allocations within their Foundation Aid packages used or planned to use the funds?
The following table reflects projected expenses for the 2016-17 School Year. Final expenditures are not yet available. Expenditure categories are further described in the NYS Education Department's Guidance Document on the Foundation Aid Community Schools Set-Aside Pursuant to the 2016-17 Enacted State Budget. All omitted categories in the table below received 0% of the Total State Allocation. Note that the reported percentages exceed 98% of the total state allocation due to overlap in categories. Actual 2016-17 expenditures are not yet available.
| Projected 2016-17 School Year Community Schools Set-aside Category | Percent of Total State Allocation |
|---|---|
TOTAL EXPENDITURES IN ALL CATEGORIES |
98% |
Other Allowable Costs not Listed |
41% |
Allowable Academic Services |
27% |
Allowable Health, Mental Health and Counseling, and Dental Care Services |
12% |
Other Allowable Services |
11% |
Coordination between Schools and Service Agencies |
3% |
Totals of All Categories |
2% |
Community School Site Coordinator |
2% |
Allowable Academic Services |
1% |
Allowable Excess Transportation Costs |
1% |
Allowable Nutrition Services |
1% |
- Is additional information available regarding the professional development and/or technical assistance needs of the districts receiving Community Schools Set-Aside allocations within their Foundation Aid packages?
No additional information is available at this time.
- Can the on-site technical assistance visits and the professional development trainings be combined so that an on-site technical assistance visit could include professional development?
No. On-site technical assistance visits of approximately one full day in duration must be made to high-need districts upon the request of the district or the New York State Education Department (NYSED), and should be scheduled in coordination with NYSED program staff. These visits must focus on the needs of the targeted district. Professional development sessions should be open to all schools and districts in the region served, and should address shared professional development needs. It is allowable; however, for travel to be combined, e.g. travel for a professional development session to occur on a Tuesday could be combined with a technical assistance visit in the same geographic area on a Wednesday. (Whenever possible, professional development sessions should also be open to participants from the other technical assistance regions, provided it does not disenfranchise participants from the home region.)
- How will the TAC providers be evaluated for success during the project period?
The contracted Technical Assistance Centers (TACs) will be evaluated for success based upon the extent to which they fulfill the deliverables in the Request for Proposals (RFP), and fidelity to the final contract established with NYSED. The contracted TACs will document this success in semiannual and annual progress reports to NYSED as outlined in the RFP.
- Should the TACs be prepared to support all schools/districts in their respective regions or will there be a targeted list of schools/districts?
The TACs should be prepared to support any schools or districts requesting support in their respective regions via phone and e-mail as outlined in the RFP. More intensive targeted technical assistance visits will be limited in number as outlined on page 7 of the RFP. Schools or districts within a region will be selected at the request of the district or NYSED, and should be scheduled in coordination with NYSED program staff.
- What are the expectations for data collection as districts implement their Community School models?
Each proposal must describe a plan to collect, analyze, report, and use outcome evidence that is data-based and directly aligned to expected outcomes. TACs should expect to collect pre-assessment data from constituent schools, districts, and community-based organizations to determine appropriate technical assistance and professional development topics. (See RFP page 7.) TACs should also plan to collect data relevant to contracted activities in order to implement effective self-evaluation and to report on progress and success in implementation. (See RFP page 8.)
- Can the project period include a planning period or is the expectation that implementation begin July 2018?
The expectation is that implementation will begin July 1, 2018.
- How will the NYC Technical Assistance Center work in collaboration with the NYCDOE Office of Community Schools? Are there any explicit expectations around collaboration with this office?
Per the RFP page 6, TAC staff and consultants will become familiar with individual districts’ Community School strategies and will develop collaborative and supportive relationships with districts and community partners in the region to facilitate the identification and implementation of strategies to improve student outcomes. There are no explicit expectations specific to this office outlined in the RFP. Bidders may wish to address this in their Project Description and/or Work Plan.
- How many individual community schools will the NYC TAC be expected to directly support? Can an updated list of these schools be provided?
The New York State Education Department expects Community School TACs to serve any school requesting assistance. See question 5 for additional detail. As of May, 2017, the New York City Department of Education anticipated that 215 Community Schools would serve over 108,000 students in New York City in the 2017-18 school year. You may wish to contact the New York City Department of Education’s Office of Community Schools for additional information.
- Page one of the RFP states: “Bidders or subcontractors who are affiliated with, or perform work for, school districts implementing Community School strategies must have a clear and separate governance and oversight structures in place to prevent any conflict of interest or the appearance of a conflict of interest.” What type of conditions would constitute a conflict of interest?
Conditions that could constitute a conflict of interest include, but are not limited to:
- An entity contracted by both NYSED and a school district might encounter conflicts of interest in determining which services to include under the contract with NYSED versus the contract with the district; or
- A bidder contracted by a school district might experience pressure or bias in determining which schools in their region to target for services under the NYSED contract.
- How will the schools within a region/district be selected for TAC services?
Schools or districts within a region will be selected at the request of the district or NYSED, and should be scheduled in coordination with NYSED program staff. (See RFP page 7.)
- Will the TACs be open to assist any community school in NYS that seeks assistance, whether or not they have been referred by their district directly?
TACs may assist any community school that seeks assistance within the region they are contracted to serve, provided the district supports the school’s request.
- The RFP states that the Central/Western Region TAC will hold the communication strategy, including the state-wide website and newsletter. Why was this region selected to hold this responsibility?
The Central/Western Region was selected to hold the primary technical responsibility for the website and newsletter based on the comparably smaller number of districts and students it will serve, and the smaller number of targeted technical assistance visits they may be asked to complete. Each of the three TACs are responsible for reviewing and submitting relevant content for inclusion.
- The RFP states (page 17) that we should include a work plan component outlining a plan for self-evaluation and progress reporting that reflects “valid and reliable methods.” Can you offer examples of methods that would be considered valid and reliable?
It is the responsibility of the bidder to determine appropriate methods for self-evaluation, and to propose and describe this plan. Validity refers to how well the selected method measures what it’s intended to measure. (E.g. Measuring attendance, pre- and post-session survey results, and longitudinal survey results could reasonably be expected to measure effectiveness of professional development; whereas measuring only one or two of these items would be far less effective.) Reliability refers to the method’s ability to produce consistent results. (E.g. Measuring individuals’ perception of student behavioral change over a period of time will provide far less consistent results due to its subjectivity, than would measuring the frequency of behavioral referrals over the same period of time.) The plan for self-evaluation of TAC activities must measure the effectiveness of each activity by establishing a baseline, or utilizing an appropriate existing baseline. Data used to establish baselines and collected to support evidence of change should measure the extent to which intended outcomes are achieved.
- What is the rationale for limiting the eligibility to conduct this important work to non-profit entities?
The New York State FY 2018 Enacted Budget language specifies “selection of nonprofit entities with expertise in community school programs and technical assistance to operate such centers…”
Subcontracting
- I hope to partner with a lead applicant as a subcontractor, and my firm is an M/WBE. I would also like to include a couple of partners on my team, which would be additional subcontractors under my firm. Question: Is there a maximum amount of funds allowed to be further subcontracted by a subcontractor?
There is no further limit than the established 40% subcontracting; however, any subcontractors to subcontractors must follow the same terms and conditions of the main subcontractor, as outlined in the RFP, including vendor responsibility and data security and privacy (Appendix R, S, and S-1).
M/WBE
- Does 30% of the overall budget, $120,000, have to be applied to M/WBE businesses?
The M/WBE goal of 30% should be applied to the total budget.
- We currently have an enterprise in mind submitting their M/WBE certification application this Friday. Do you know how long it takes to get certified?
It can take 6 months to over a year for an entity to become certified. We suggest that you select firms that are already certified M/WBEs in NYS. Businesses that are pending certification cannot be counted towards meeting the M/WBE goal and should not be considered part of Good Faith Efforts for waiver approval.
- If we have an enterprise that is not on the directory, but has submitted an application to be certified, can that satisfy a partial or complete waiver requirement?
It can take 6 months to over a year for an entity to become certified. We suggest that you select firms that are already certified M/WBEs in NYS. Businesses that are pending certification cannot be counted towards meeting the M/WBE goal and should not be considered part of Good Faith Efforts for waiver approval.
- I am writing in response to RFP 18-014. Can you please tell me if the MWBE requirement of 30 percent of the total contract cost ($400,000 x .30) is $120,000 or can you deduct certain budget line items (personnel and rent for example) to determine the allocation of funding that needs to go to a MWBE?
The M/WBE goal of 30% should be applied to the total budget. Deductions such as salaries and rent are not permissible.