ELA_Math_Q_As_0001.pdf

ELA and Math Q&A’s RFP posted to SAM.gov on May 8, 2025 Proposals are Due June 9, 2025

1. I would like to confirm if the project mentioned above is considered as a potential new requirement or is there an incumbent contract currently performing these services?

NCS Pearson, Inc, currently carrying out services.

2. If there are incumbent vendor(s), would you be able to provide the contract details (such as:

Vendor Name, Contract Number, Award and end dates, total contract value)?

NCS Pearson, 140A2320C0020, 7/21/2020 ends 9/30/2025, $18,164,491.59.

3. Is this work currently performed by NCS PEARSON, INC. (Contract #: 140A2320C0020) and is set to expire on September 30, 2025?

See questions 2.

4. Am I missing any other incumbent contract(s)?

No.

5. If yes, may I ask for the contract numbers please?

N/A

6. Lastly, is an estimated value available for this potential requirement?

This information is considered confidential during the competition phase of the procurement.

7. Is there an incumbent?

See question 2.

8. We understand the government wants a COTS platform and training. The government points out that BIE tailoring would be necessary with the 15 training courses, which would exclude COTS. We suggest the government changes COTS language to allow for vendors to submit if they have adequate past performance and/or development/training background.

No change will be made, requirement will remain as outlined in the PWS.

Scope & Technical Clarification

9. Student Count: Can the government provide the estimated or actual student count across the

183 BIE-funded schools, broken down by grade bands (e.g., K–2, 3–5, etc.)?

For this current school year, there are approximately 38,000 students across the K-12 grade levels. Students participate in the BIE assessments per the BIE’s Agency Plan (state plan).

10. Standards Alignment: Will BIE provide access to their official ELA and Math academic content standards to ensure proper alignment with COTS or customized assessments? Is there an advisory committee that will approve the assessments for the chosen grades?

The BIE has adopted the Common Core standards and are housed on the BIE website. See URLS below: ADA-Compliant-ELA-Standards.pdf

11. Customization Requirements: For the Option Years, does BIE anticipate complete development of a new assessment system, or enhancement of an existing COTS solution?

The BIE anticipates enhancement of an existing COTS.

12. Are there specific customization criteria (e.g., culturally responsive content, adaptive testing)?

The BIE expects customization as it relates to assessment items being salient to the priorities of families, communities, and American Indian tribes.

13. Item Ownership: For test items developed during the Option Years, will BIE retain exclusive intellectual property rights, and are there licensing limitations for contractors post-contract?

The BIE will retain intellectual property rights for test items developed during the option years.

Technology Integration & Infrastructure

14. SIS Integration Details: Can BIE provide technical documentation or interface specifications for the NASIS 2.0 system to inform planning for API integration?

Information will be provided at the time of award.

15. Hosting Requirements: Does BIE require the assessment and registration platform to be hosted in a FedRAMP-authorized environment, or is FedRAMP compliance “preferred but not mandatory”?

Refer to PWS, DOI IT Baseline Compliance Requirements, page 27.

16. Browser & Device Support: Are there required minimum technical specifications or browser/device compatibility expectations for online test delivery (e.g., Chromebooks, tablets)?

*Please note the bandwidth within the BIE schools is limited so test formats must take this into account.

17. BIE Provided Equipment: Is there a standard or baseline computer type that the schools will provide for the administration of the assessments (i.e., minimum of 50 MB available space, Windows 10/11, minimum internet download 1.0 Mbps, minimum internet upload 1.0 Mbps, other)?

The Gov’t will provide GFE.

https://www.bie.edu/sites/default/files/documents/ADA-Compliant-ELA-Standards.pdf

Assessment Delivery & Formats

18. Language and Accessibility Needs: Will assessments need to be translated or supported in

Native languages, and should accommodations be designed for ELL and students with IEPs beyond standard 508 accessibility?

Native language translation of the assessments are not needed. Standard English Learner accommodations are to be included. Students who have an IEP are to be provided accommodations based on their individual plans.

19. Test Delivery Infrastructure: Will schools administer online assessments via a centralized cloud platform, or will contractors be expected to support localized server-based delivery (offline mode)?

The contractor is expected to support the testing platform for all assessments inclusive of formative, interim, and summative.

20. Paper-Based Assessments: What percentage of schools are expected to require paper-based assessments versus online? Will this remain consistent over the contract term?

Schools will be expected to administer online assessments inclusive of formative, interim, and summative tests. However, there may be instances where bandwidth is not able to lift online assessments which will require schools to implement paper-based assessments.

21. Testing Schedule: Are there specific times in the school year that have been scheduled for the summative, formative, and interim testing?

The BIE has an assessment schedule for ELA and Mathematics formative (scheduled based on school pacing guides), interim (three times a year), and summative (March-April) testing.

Reporting & Analytics

22. Data Reporting Format: What SIS file formats (e.g., .csv, .xml) are currently supported for assessment data ingestion, and are there templates that contractors can review?

The SIS file format is to include CSV and Excel file formats. The assessment vendor is expected to work with the BIE’s SIS file format during the years of implementation.

23. Dashboard Expectations: Can BIE elaborate on the expected functionality of the interactive dashboard (e.g., real-time filtering, longitudinal views, student-level drill-down)?

The interactive dashboard is to include real-time information, provide student-level reports by standards, and capture longitudinal data for the BIE’s assessment history.

24. EDFacts Compliance: Will the government provide prior EDFacts file specifications and mappings used in the current reporting process?

The EdFacts file specifications are standard and can be viewed using the hyperlink:

The EDFacts Initiative | U.S. Department of Education https://www.ed.gov/data/edfacts-initiative

Training & Support

25. Training Format Flexibility: Does BIE have a preferred Learning Management System

(LMS) or platform for hosting asynchronous training materials (e.g., SCORM, Canvas)?

Some schools utilize an eLMS but not all.

26. Training Deliverable: How many on-site trainings should the contractor budget for and are there specific locations that the BIA would like these trainings to occur?

See PWS for training schedule

27. Help Desk SLAs: Can BIE confirm service level expectations for Help Desk responsiveness beyond the 15-minute hold time (e.g., resolution time, multilingual support)?

See PWS for help-desk support. Should responses extend beyond the 15-minute hold, there is to be documentation for the delay and a follow-up email with a response sent to the school and BIE assessment program manager at the earliest convenience.

Logistics & Deliverables

28. Shipping Requirements for Paper Materials: Will BIE centrally coordinate shipment locations, or must contractors engage with each school individually for paper test distribution and returns?

It will be the contractor's responsibility to coordinate to and from shipments.

29. Kickoff Timeline: Is there a tentative anticipated award date or school year kickoff date to align onboarding, portal delivery, and test administration timelines?

The anticipated award date is in July, however, background checks will be completed before a notice to proceed is issued and services to begin Oct. 1, 2025. Sometime between July and the end of September a kickoff meeting will be held, and services will align with school year 2025-2026.

30. Budget: What is the anticipated budget for the contract?

This information is considered confidential during the competition phase of the procurement.

31. Pricing Schedule: Attachment 2-Pricing Schedule: Please confirm that the "Cost Item 19 Travel" dollars included are a not to exceed amount.

This amount on the pricing schedule is a plug number, since travel is considered time and material (T&M) it will be actual cost for reimbursement. See Section B.3 for pre and post approval procedures.

32. Pricing Schedule: Attachment 2-Pricing Schedule: Please confirm the contract is not to price cost items 16, 17, and 18 in the base year.

Correct, these lines will not be priced for the base year.

33. Pricing Schedule: Attachment 2-Pricing Schedule: Cost Items 16 and 17 have a quantity of 1 instead of the number of hours. Please confirm that the unit price will be the total cost for each item.

Per the PWS, item 16 is to cover the cost of the interactive dashboard, and item 17 is to cover the billable hours for test item development.

34. Pricing Schedule: Attachment 2-Pricing Schedule: When the Contractor needs to purchase license fees or software, where should this be included in the table?

Licenses are to be included in the base fees of item 1.

35. Please clarify if vendors must bid on all components (summative, interim, and formative assessments) in the RFP, or if vendors are permitted to bid only parts of the scope of work (e.g., summative only).

Vendors must bid on all components inclusive of formative, interim, and summative assessments.

36. Can BIE clarify what constitutes a small business, and confirm if the RFP is restricted to small businesses?

This solicitation is a Total Small Business set-aside, in accordance with FAR part 52.219-6.

37. The Student Registration Portal shall be dedicated to BIE use only and not shared with another State Education Agency (SEA).” Would an instance of the Student Registration Portal dedicated to BIE use meet this requirement?

The student registration portal must be dedicated to BIE and not shared with any other SEA.

38. Does the proposed QASP count toward the 15-page limit for Factor 3 – Management and Technical Approach?

No it does not.

39. Can BIE clarify if $110,000 is the maximum budget allocated for this procurement?

This information is considered confidential during the competition phase of the procurement.

40. What is the purpose of the interim assessment? Is it (a) intended to be a statistics-based predictive measure of how students will perform on the end-of-year summative assessment, or (b) are interims intended to function as more of an instructional benchmark that measures student mastery of the content taught to that point in the year?

The interim assessments are to be utilized to be a predictive measure of how BIE students will perform on the end of year summative tests with an opportunity for educators to analyze standards and skills with score reports.

41. Is there a preferred location for in-person training sessions? If so, what location(s)?

Trainings are to be regional with proposed training sites to include New Mexico, Arizona, South Dakota, and Minnesota.

42. Please clarify the intent around the timing for standard setting. Standard setting is identified for summer of 2027, in the second year of the assessment. Is the year 2 date to accommodate any customization BIE might request for the summative assessment? In year 1 are results “preliminary” because the vendor will just use their existing scale, not yet set for BIE?

The year two date for standards setting is to accommodate customization that the BIE requests.

43. What does the 42,000 Qty represent? What does BIE anticipate being included in the License Fee?

The BIE expects licenses for all its students to take formative, interim, and summative tests.

44. What does the Quantity on these lines represent?

The quantity within the lines represents the PWS component (i.e. licenses, materials, scoring, reporting, training).

45. What does the 3,377 Qty represent?

The 3377 quantity represents the billable hours for the test item development line item.