21-RFP-2025-014 CRC Correctional Staff Mental Health Services (REISSUE).docx

DEPARTMENT OF ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES

Procurement Division

RFP-2025-014: CRC Correctional Staff Mental Health Services Issued: July 7, 2025 Closes: August 15, 2025

MILWAUKEE COUNTY

Department of Administrative Services

Request for Proposal RFP-2025-014 CRC Correctional Staff Mental Health Services

Access to RFP and all related documents can be found:

On the County’s website at: https://county.milwaukee.gov/EN/Admin-Services/Bids-and-RFPs

Through the County’s Bonfire Portal at: https://countymilwaukee.bonfirehub.com

Table of Contents

Table of Figures

Information Summary Sheet

represented by The Department of Administrative Services Procurement Division

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Department of Administrative Services, Procurement Division 633 W. Wisconsin Avenue, Suite 901

Phone: 414-278-4129 (office) | 414-373-9936 (cell) Email: Lael.MacLellan@milwaukeecountywi.gov

Introduction Introduction to Milwaukee County Milwaukee County was formed in 1835 when it was part of the Michigan Territory. Before that, different Native American tribes lived there, and French priests and traders explored the area starting in 1674. The name “Milwaukee” is thought to come from a Native American word that means “good land.”

Today, about 952,000 people live in Milwaukee County. It is the most populated county in Wisconsin and the 47th largest in the United States. The County is on the shores of Lake Michigan and covers 241 square miles. It has cities, suburbs, and rural areas. 19 municipalities make up Milwaukee County, from the City of Milwaukee with 595,047 people to small villages like River Hills with 1,597 people.

Milwaukee County has three parts of government: the executive branch, the legislative branch, and the judicial branch. The County Executive is the County’s chief executive officer. The County Board of Supervisors makes laws and decisions about how to spend the County’s money. The Chief Judge represents the judicial branch. Other important elected officials at the County include the Comptroller, Clerk of Courts, County Clerk, District Attorney, Register of Deeds, Sheriff, Treasurer, and municipal judges.

Milwaukee County collects property taxes, builds and fixes highways, plans land use, and takes care of parks and recreation areas. It also follows certain state laws, like keeping court records, managing elections, keeping birth and death records, marriage licenses, and property deeds, and enforcing state criminal laws. The County also runs state programs like health and human services, child support services, and court-related programming.

The County’s Vision is “By achieving racial equity, Milwaukee will be the healthiest County in Wisconsin.” This means the County wants to make sure that race does not affect health outcomes and that everyone’s outcomes get better. To achieve the Vision, Milwaukee County is dismantling institutional racism in County government by establishing policies, practices, and a culture that creates intentional inclusion, reduces inequities, and invests in equity and equitable policies going forward.

The County’s mission is “to provide high-quality, responsive services that enhance self-sufficiency, personal safety, economic opportunity, and quality of life for its entire people.”

Milwaukee County is a Midwestern hub for business, travel, industry, recreation, and culture. The County’s strong sense of community makes it a great place to live, work, and raise a family.

Introduction to the Administering Departments Procurement Division – DAS (DAS-Procurement) The Procurement Division of the Department of Administrative Services (“Procurement”) sources and contracts for supplies, materials, equipment, and services that County Departments and Divisions need. Procurement creates standards, writes specifications, signs contracts and purchase orders, handles Requests for Proposals (“RFPs”) and Invitations to Bid (“ITBs”), and helps the Facilities Management Division, Architecture, Engineering, and Environmental Services Section sell old or extra supplies and equipment.

In Milwaukee County, the County Executive has the power to make purchases and sign contracts for all County property that is not zoned as park land. The County Executive currently administratively enforces the rules for public purchasing in Chapter 32, Subchapter II (Procurement Division) and Chapter 56.30 (Professional Services) of the Milwaukee Code of Ordinances where possible. The County may deviate from these rules where needed to make sure the public procurement process is fair, open, transparent, equitable, and aligns with best practices. The County Executive retains the authority to make these changes under the law. The Procurement Division works under the County Executive to help County Departments and Divisions follow the rules in Chapter 32, Subchapter II, and Chapter 56.30.

The staff of the Procurement Division follow the NIGP and UPPCC Code of Ethics for public procurement. They are members of the National Institute of Government Procurement and the Wisconsin Association of Public Procurement.

Procurement strives to empower the County’s divisions and departments through a fair, equitable, ethical, and transparent procurement process for goods and services purchased by Milwaukee County and seek to uphold the public trust in everything we do.

Office of Economic Inclusion Milwaukee County’s Office of Economic Inclusion (“OEI”) is a partner to minority-owned, women-owned, and small businesses. OEI provides Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (“DBE”) and Targeted Business Enterprise (“TBE”) companies information about upcoming contracts in different business sectors and about procurement opportunities in the County. OEI’s goal is to make sure DBE and TBE companies are given an equitable opportunity to participate in County contracts and win County business. OEI advocates for DBE and TBE participation in as many County contracts as possible and works to improve opportunities for equitable contracting.

For more information on the Office of Economic Inclusion and Targeted Business Enterprise requirements in County contracting and for this solicitation, please see PROC-1: The County’s Vision of Achieving Racial Equity – Information for County Suppliers and Vendors.

Risk Management Division The Risk Management Division is part of Milwaukee County's Department of Administrative Services. The Risk Management team oversees all lines of liability claim administration, self-insurance functions, excess insurance procurement, safety and loss prevention and ensures proper risk transfer techniques for all the County's contractual obligations. Risk Management establishes the insurance requirements for each public procurement based on the goods or services the County plans to buy and assists Procurement in assessing potential risks throughout the solicitation process as needed.

Introduction to the Issuing Department This RFP is issued by the Milwaukee County Community Reintegration Center (“CRC”), an honorable organization of committed officers with the integrity to adapt, overcome, and achieve. Its mission is to maintain and ensure a safe and secure environment and to provide correctional programs designed to help rehabilitate County citizens experiencing incarceration and re-introduce them into our community. The CRC is located at 8885 S. 68th Street in Franklin, Wisconsin, its home since 1903.

The CRC is dedicated to providing quality programs to its Residents. It offers a variety of high-quality programs focused on education and treatment, including the Resident Job Center, Fatherhood Initiative, Financial Literacy, group therapy and treatment programs, and more.

The CRC is led by a Superintendent appointed by the Milwaukee County Executive. The CRC is currently under the command of Superintendent Chantell Jewell, who was appointed by County Executive David Crowley on November 16, 2020, and confirmed by the Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors on December 17, 2020.

Superintendent Jewell is supported by:

Assistant Superintendent Anthony Dodd: Promoted to his current position in 2020, A.S. Dodd has over 25 years of experience at the CRC. He began his career as a correctional officer and advanced through the ranks to lieutenant, captain, and now Assistant Superintendent.

Assistant Superintendent Shayla Fenceroy: A.S. Fenceroy has over 20 years of experience in corrections in various roles, including serving as the Public Safety Supervisor for the Milwaukee County Sheriff’s Office, where she oversaw security operations at the Courthouse Complex and the Vel Phillips Juvenile Justice Center. She returned to the CRC in July 2024 as an Assistant Superintendent.

Acting Security Director Lance Tardiff: Appointed as Acting Security Director in August 2024, Director Tardiff has 15 years of experience at the CRC. He began his career as a correctional officer and advanced through the ranks to lieutenant, captain, and now Acting Security Director.

CRC Mission: Promote successful community reintegration by providing programming and resources, that comprehensively meet the needs of residents in our care, which support opportunities for positive change.

CRC Vision: We enhance public safety and quality of life through the successful reintegration of residents in our care.

Operations & Background Information Accuracy & Purpose This section provides Offerors with current and historical operational information about the CRC and the mental health needs of its Correctional staff.

This information is provided to help Offerors understand the County’s operational expectations and service history and develop informed, responsive Proposals. The information reflects the best available data at the time of issuance but should not be considered exhaustive or final. Any information presented in this section is provided to support the development of responsive and responsible Proposals but is not a substitute for the Offeror's own due diligence. Offerors should perform their own discovery and ask questions during the RFP process to ensure they have a full and accurate understanding of current and future service needs.

The current and historical information provided in this section is for information only and is separate from the Scope of Work requested by this RFP. This section does not describe new or expanded Services requested by the County. For a description of the future Services requested, please review the Scope of Work. The Scope of Work may be found in Section 6.

Background & Need Program Background In 2024, the Community Reintegration Center (“CRC”) entered into its first contract to provide mental wellness support and training for CRC Correctional Staff. The current program was considered a “pilot” or test program and was developed by the incumbent vendor. The pilot contract was for a single year of services running from January 1, 2024, to December 31, 2024, for a total of $60,000.00 and was recently amended and extended to add one-on-one counseling services for staff.

Please note that programmatic information and documents may be the intellectual property of the incumbent vendor and should not be considered resources available to any future vendor.

The current provider is Knox Behavioral Health Solutions (“KBHS”) through Dr. Lia Knox, a Licensed Professional Counselor (“LPC”) with a doctoral degree in Counseling Psychology, a master’s degree in education & counseling, and nearly three decades of experience in counseling, education, training, facilitation, clinical supervision, and consultation in the field of mental health and psychology.

Today, KBHS partners with the CRC to empower Correctional Staff with the knowledge they need to care for their mental health and works together with the CRC and Correctional Staff to create a culture of mental wellness. KBHS’ lead facilitator actively facilitates professional, customized, and interactive mental wellness trainings from a culturally intentional lens focused on stress management, emotional resilience, and conflict resolution. Over the past twelve (12) months, KBHS provided fifteen (15) training sessions to the following training series groups: captains, lieutenants, sergeants, 1st shift officers and support staff, 2nd shift officers and support staff, and 3rd shift officers and support staff.

The services KBHS provides include:

4.1 4.2 4.2.1 1.

2.

3.

4.

4.1.

4.2.

4.2.1.

Tools, strategies, and techniques staff can use to assist them in effectively managing their emotions and behavior on an ongoing basis.

Accessible, affordable, and readily available online and community resources that help equip staff with the skills needed for self-care, enabling them to recognize early signs of distress and manage difficulties more effectively.

Conducting baseline mental wellness assessments for each assigned staff member.

Designing and implementing a post-training survey to gather feedback from staff who complete the mental wellness training series as well as an evaluation of the training(s) including analysis of staff data, outcomes, and demand for mental wellness training to uncover actionable insights from the data to inform strategies to reduce costs and risks.

Phone and e-mail availability to provide staff support after each training session.

Establishing and meeting regularly with a steering committee representative of the staff population trained to:

Set direction and prioritize the mental wellness needs of the CRC.

Discuss policies and procedures for mental wellness training groups.

Preparing and disseminating outreach/marketing materials for the training sessions.

The expected outcomes and results of the services include[footnoteRef:2]: [2: The current contract acknowledges that results and outcomes may vary based upon individuals and organizational culture.]

Staff awareness that the County genuinely cares about their well-being through the introduction of regularly scheduled mental wellness trainings.

Acquired psychoeducation concerning both risk of and protective factors for possible mental health difficulties.

A reduction of stigma around mental wellness within the CRC, an increased awareness of tools and practices to improve and protect mental health, and a reduction of workplace conflict, which:

Creates a healthier work environment.

Empowers employees with the skills to manage their mental health day-to-day so they can remain productive and engaged.

Decreases absences and tardiness due to depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation, burnout, and other mental health challenges.

An overall increase in:

Staff awareness of specific mental health challenges that characterize specific subsets of correctional staff.

Staff’s ability to identify mental health signs and symptoms as early as possible and intervene before they become resistant to change.

Staff’s use of preventative tools to maintain their well-being through identifying and managing root stressors that impact job performance.

Knowledge of and access to mental wellness resources within the organization and throughout the community.

Staff authenticity at work, which leads to higher levels of engagement and lower levels of burnout, which are vital culture metrics.

Please Note: The program currently in place is considered a “pilot” or test program and was developed entirely by the incumbent vendor (Knox Behavioral Health Solutions). Other than general information and program metrics regarding County staff, the program and programmatic data are the property of KBHS and may be subject to intellectual property protections. Any future vendor is expected to provide its own program and resources without relying on existing program information. Intellectual property of the incumbent vendor will not be provided to any future provider(s).

Challenges of the Correctional Workplace United States municipal law enforcement and correctional agencies and their staff face many challenges in the modern social and political environment. The CRC is dedicated to ensuring our Residents and their loved ones are treated with dignity, fairness, and respect and that they are provided with high-quality programs by culturally competent and trauma-informed Correctional Staff and Contractors. Our Correctional Staff are vital to achieving the CRC’s vision of “enhancing public safety and quality of life through the successful reintegration of Residents in our care.”

Today, the nationwide staffing crisis in law enforcement and correctional agencies shows how stressful the job can be for Correctional Staff and how much of an impact Corrections work can have on their physical and mental health and well-being. Correctional Staff are regularly exposed to physical danger, shift-based schedules that can be physically draining and isolating, societal disapproval of or stigma against the Corrections career path, a historically adversarial mentality between individuals experiencing incarceration and security staff, and a workplace culture that demands that staff do not show “weakness” and can discourage or stigmatize seeking or receiving mental health care and support. According to a University of California, Berkeley study in 2018, COs face depression, anxiety, PTSD, and risks of suicide. Approximately half the respondents in the study reported not feeling safe at work. Stress, mandatory overtime, and burnout can affect how well Correctional Staff do their jobs, which impacts the Residents in our care and their loved ones.

These factors also deeply impact Correctional Staff and have reaching impacts on their health and wellbeing. According to the DoJ, on average COs live only 59 years. The average life expectancy of an average American is 79 years. This means that Correctional Officers’ lives are almost two decades shorter than their peers in other working environments.

To achieve both the CRC and County-wide visions, the CRC must provide the necessary mental health support to Correctional Staff and promote and maintain a positive work environment. We know how important Correctional Staff mental health and wellbeing is and how it impacts our ability to improve the lives of the Residents in our care. The CRC wants to provide mental health services to Correctional Staff that will help reduce or mitigate the impacts of job stress and burnout so that our staff members stay healthy and perform their jobs to the best of their ability.

The CRC also seeks to ensure Correctional Staff have work-life balance and a positive working environment. We know that Correctional Staff frequently encounter high-stress or high-stakes situations that can impact their job performance and mental health. In addition to training and preparing our Correctional Staff to deal with these situations in a calm, compassionate, and capable way, we must also provide adequate support, resources, and services for their mental health and wellness needs. Making sure our Correctional Staff’s mental health is maintained can also reduce bad events and decision-making errors that can have devastating impacts on our Residents and the community.

Correctional Operations at Milwaukee County The Milwaukee County Community Reintegration Center (“CRC”) is an approximately 451,328 square foot facility located at 8885 S. 68th Street, Franklin, Wisconsin 53132. This facility houses male and female residents, both pretrial and sentenced, in an open dormitory setting with a work-release population. The CRC has a total of approximately 1,800 beds. Of these, approximately 345 beds are assigned to special units, such as work-release, segregation, and the mental health unit. The CRC estimates it has approximately 1,500 beds in general population. In addition, the CRC may have a lower population capacity than it has beds available. Dorms may be closed due to lack of staffing or use.

The Milwaukee County Jail (“MCJ”) is a 460,081 square foot facility located at 949 N. 9th Street, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53233. This facility houses intake and pretrial residents, male and female, with a population capacity of 960. The MCJ is under the command and control of the elected Milwaukee County Sheriff and the Sheriff’s Office (“MSCO”). The MCJ and MCSO staff are not part of this RFP request. Information about the MCJ is provided for background and context only.

Both facilities experienced reductions in population during the COVID-19 pandemic, with the CRC seeing a more substantial reduction due to court closures that have delayed or reduced sentencing and a shift to sentencing eligible individuals to electronic monitoring programs rather than incarceration. As of mid-year 2024, the CRC’s population has risen to pre-COVID levels and is expected to stay at these levels in the future.

There is a current Consent Decree (Christensen 2001) that addresses the resident population in the MCJ and oversees medical care and operations at both facilities. A court monitor is appointed to conduct audits and semi-annual inspections. The Consent Decree caps the MCJ population at 960. Any overflow of capacity requires that the CRC receive and house individuals who would otherwise reside at the MCJ. This relationship can create additional job stressors or mental health impacts for staff.

Understanding the CRC’s Workforce This section includes a brief overview of the different roles within the CRC. Job descriptions for the roles referenced in this section and an organizational chart for the CRC are attached as Appendix D.

4.2.2.

4.2.3.

4.2.4.

Correctional Officers oversee the sentenced population at the CRC. They are responsible for monitoring and safeguarding Residents in their assigned direct-supervision housing unit. Today, there is a single CO assigned to each direct-supervision housing unit, and each unit typically houses 60 Residents. COs manage routines, supervise meals, conduct searches, and evaluate Resident behavior. They are responsible for managing their assigned unit through instruction and direction of Residents and handling disruptive or violent behavior. COs may need to interact with medical staff, programming staff, food service staff, and others to ensure that services are provided in a timely manner to Residents in their care. While COs do not provide these services directly, they may need to request services on a Resident’s behalf or assist the Resident in making a request for services.

Correctional Officer Sergeants serve as floor supervisors and first responders to routine calls for assistance throughout the facility. They are also tasked with mentoring new staff members.

Correctional Officer Lieutenants are administrative positions. They are responsible for scheduling, overtime mitigation, policy development and enforcement, and ensuring their assigned areas are running efficiently. Typical areas of assignment are kitchens, booking, health center, segregation units, etc. Some CO Lieutenants are assigned to specialty posts such as IA, backgrounds, or training. They conduct monthly meetings with COs and CO Sergeants and conduct annual performance evaluations of staff.

Correctional Officer Captains are shift commanders and are ultimately responsible for the entire campus during their assigned shift. CO Captains develop and enforce policy and ensure their direct reports are performing to expectations. Each CO Captain has a specific area of oversight, such as classification, courts/visiting, criminal investigations, IA, programming, etc.

Command Staff roles include the Assistant Superintendents, Security Director, and Superintendent. These staff members provide agency-level oversight and management and are ultimately responsible for the smooth operation of the entire CRC facility and its staff.

The CRC’s staff are responsible for the health and safety of Residents sentenced to the CRC facility, and their positions must be staffed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. Staff are commonly required to work mandatory overtime, which can contribute to physical and mental health concerns. The CRC currently restricts the longest shift any Correctional Staff member can work to a double (8 hours standard shift, 8 hours overtime), or a total of 16 hours at a time.

Understanding that Correctional staff operate in a high-stress, high-demand environment where the pressures of ensuring safety, security, and order within the facility are constant. These demands are compounded by mandatory overtime requirements, which often lead to extended shifts, disrupted work-life balance, and physical and emotional fatigue and that understanding these contributing factors is essential to creating programming to help staff cope with stress and the effects of burnout.

Racial Equity as a Vision & the County’s Strategic Plan In 2019, Milwaukee County was the first local government in the United States to declare racism a public health crisis. In 2020, the County established a strategic goal of achieving racial equity to make Milwaukee County the healthiest county in Wisconsin, with the mission of enhancing the quality of life of our constituents through great public service.

The Services requested by this RFP will meaningfully contribute to our strategic goal of achieving racial and health equity by providing mental health support to our Correctional Staff. By increasing Correctional Staff’s resilience, ability to cope with stress, and overall mental health, we hope to not only improve staff’s quality of life, but also better serve our Residents experiencing incarceration, improve their physical and mental health, and reduce the chances of recidivism through culturally competent and trauma-informed care and treatment, programming, and re-entry services that will help our Residents succeed when they return to the community.

One of the first observations many people make when they are first introduced to the County’s strategic plan is “this does not look like the kind of strategic plan I’ve seen before.” That’s true – and for good reason!

A typical strategic plan is a comprehensive, organized document that outlines an organization’s long-term goals, objectives, strategies, and action plans. It serves as a roadmap to guide the organization’s decisions and activities over a defined period – most commonly 3-10 years. Usually, the strategic planning process is used to set clear direction, allocate resources efficiently, and achieve desired outcomes. But when an organization acting as an industry disruptor develops and implements a strategic plan to meet long-term goals and objectives of significantly altering the way a traditional industry (here, local government) operates and introducing new methods that challenge operational norms and practices, that plan needs more flexibility. That’s what Milwaukee County is doing for municipal government today and has been doing since 2019: working to revolutionize the way people view local government by attacking root causes of disparities at their source. That source includes racism and racist institutions, policies, and practices.

In order to address the root causes that are contributing to inequities in the community and make sustainable, transformational change to the way our government does business, the County decided to use an iterative approach to our strategic planning process. An iterative approach means we engage in a repeating series of steps or cycles, using each one to build on the insights and improvements we’ve gained and made in the previous one. We make incremental refinements and adjustments as we go, which allows us to be flexible in response to the community’s needs, opens us to continuous learning, and gives us the ability to adapt to changing circumstances.

All of these activities are vital in building culturally competent government practices and combating racism! New challenges arise every day in the form of new legislation, opposition, and unsuccessful tactics, and new learning opportunities and chances to be educated by the lived experience and voices of our BIPoC community members increase as those community members gain confidence in our vision and we establish ourselves as credible and trustworthy in our goals.

Our collaboration with public health experts at the University of Wisconsin’s Population Health Institute led us to develop and embrace a holistic approach to defining and addressing public health in Milwaukee County. This strategic goal includes three strategic focus areas and nine strategic objectives, pictured in Figure 4‑1: Milwaukee County Strategic Focus Areas. Figure 4‑1: Milwaukee County Strategic Focus Areas

The County’s goal is to use its strategic plan and objectives to shift power within the County from institutions, businesses, and the most privileged community members to historically marginalized community members to create a more equitable balance of power and improve health outcomes for all County citizens. This plan is further explained in Figure 4‑2: Health & Equity Framework.

The latest information about the enterprise-wide plan and our progress toward achieving it can be found online here: https://county.milwaukee.gov/EN/Vision. The CRC-specific plan can be found online here: CRC-Strategic-Plan-Summary.pdf.

Because our strategic plan is iterative, there is not a single document that sets out a static set of annual goals over a defined time period. Instead, County departments are developing department-level strategic plans that nest in the larger iterative strategy. The County Executive and cabinet encourage and empower these Departments to meaningfully engage in the strategic plan by connecting their department-level strategic plans to the three strategic focus areas and nine strategy objectives in ways that best serve those Departments’ constituents.Figure 4‑2: Health & Equity Framework

All additional information about the County’s strategy is located on the website. The County also regularly updates its Strategy Dashboard in order to display our progress toward advancing the strategy. The Strategy dashboard is located here: https://county.milwaukee.gov/EN/Vision/Strategy-Dashboard Service Inventory & Strategic Alignment It is important the Awardee understands the environment of racial and health equity at the County and the role Correctional Staff play in advancing equity through the CRC’s services. The Awardee’s services to our Corrections Staff will impact our constituents experiencing incarceration and their friends and families. The Awardee will be a critical health and health equity partner to the County. To understand how services align with and impact the County’s strategic goals, we have provided the 2019 Milwaukee County Service Inventory as an appendix to this RFP (Appendix E).

A Service Inventory Workgroup created the Milwaukee County Service Inventory in 2019. It reviews the County’s existing services, including what services are offered, why they are offered, to whom they are offered, and what is invested in each.

Each item on this comprehensive list of services was then given a County health ranking to which the service was best aligned:

Figure 4‑3: County Health Rankings

In addition, each service was assigned a category of the Health and Equity Framework to which the service was best aligned.

Figure 4‑4: Service Categories

If applicable, services were aligned to one of the following categories of prevention:

Figure 4‑5: Service Alignment

Intent: Reduce or eliminate causative risk factors.

Example: Encourage exercise to prevent obesity. Not specific to individuals; target communities; pre-disease/risk factors

Intent: Early detections through screening and treatment.

Example: Check body mass index at every check-up to identify individuals who are obese. Programs are specific to individuals; target communities; pre-disease/risk factors

Intent: Prevent bad things from getting worse.

Example: Help obese individuals lose weight to prevent progression to more severe consequences

Departments then selected how each service aligned to the following community impact measure the County is tracking to access population health for Milwaukee County:

Figure 4‑6: Service Community Impact Measures

Request This request helps Suppliers understand what goods and services the County wants to obtain using the RFP process. It has a summary of what is needed and a list of minimum requirements that interested Suppliers must meet.

This RFP document gives Suppliers the basic information they need to submit a Proposal. The County wants Suppliers to share their experience and ideas in their responses. They should provide creative and forward-thinking solutions to the issues mentioned. Suppliers must use this RFP document, its attachments, and any updates as a guide when writing their Proposals.

Make sure your organization can provide all the services according to the requirements in the Scope of Work. If a Supplier cannot provide all the services as specified, their Proposal will not pass the first check and will be considered non-responsive. Non-responsive Proposals are not scored.

1.

Request Summary Milwaukee County, through its Community Reintegration Center (“CRC”) seeks vendors qualified to provide comprehensive mental health services to the CRC’s Correctional Staff.

The County’s goal is to contract with the most qualified vendor interested in providing mental health services to support Correctional Staff with managing work-related stress, prevent burnout, and promote overall well-being. Interested Offerors should propose their own behavioral health program, using the Scope of Work provided in Section 6 as a guide. Please note that current programmatic information and documents may be the intellectual property of the incumbent vendor and should not be considered resources available to any future vendor.

The County intends to award a three (3) year contract with up to two (2) optional one (1) year renewals (a total contract term of five (5) years) to the Offeror who submits the winning proposal under this solicitation (the “Awardee”).

The County has an estimated budget of $60,000 to $100,000 annually (a total of $500,000 for the full five-year term of the future contract) for these services but may consider higher amounts based on an Offeror’s qualifications and service offerings. Offerors should keep in mind that the County’s budget is finite, and it prefers Offerors and Vendors who are cost-conscious and whose services are cost-effective.

Offeror Minimum Qualifications & Responsibilities Minimum Qualifications To be considered for this opportunity, Offerors must:

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5.1.

5.2.

5.2.1.

Demonstrate that the Offeror can provide the requested Services through appropriately licensed/certified mental health clinicians legally permitted to provide these Services to clients in the state of Wisconsin. Please provide proof of licensure for each clinician who will provide Services to the County.

Demonstrate the Offeror and its clinicians have a minimum of three (3) years of experience providing mental health support services to municipal law enforcement agencies, municipal jails or detention centers, state or federal prisons, and/or similar entities[footnoteRef:3]. [3: The Offeror’s experience should be in providing services to the agency’s staff through a relationship, such as a contract, with the agency. Offerors should not use one-on-one therapy or support provided individuals working in these professions as examples of the experience required.]

Demonstrate the ability to retain permanent records for a minimum of seven (7) years and in a manner that complies with all relevant regulations, including, but not limited to, HIPAA.

Provide a minimum of three (3) references from municipal law enforcement agencies, municipal jails or detention centers, state or federal prisons, and/or similar entities to which the Offeror provided similar Services in the last five (5) years[footnoteRef:4]. [4: Offerors must provide professional business references. Please do not provide individual patients as references. ]

Certify that the proposing entity has not been disqualified or debarred by any other state, local, or federal government entity from participating in the entity’s competitive solicitations, or from working with that entity for reasons of contract breach or non-compliance.

Agree to enter into a Contract with the County and comply with all terms and conditions required by state or local law, regulation, or ordinance, should the Offeror be determined the winner of the solicitation.

Non-Responsibility & Non-Responsiveness The County considers any of the following to be proof of non-responsibility or non-responsiveness:

5.2.2.

Submission of incomplete Proposals.

Submission of Alternative Proposals.

Submission of any Proposal that requires the County to contract directly with a third party other than the Offeror.

Disqualification or disbarment from participating in competitive solicitation by any other state, local, or federal government entity.

Failure to meet the minimum qualifications identified in Section 5.2.1, above.

Failure to provide evidence of financial solvency.

Targeted Business Enterprise Participation Bonus Points There is no Targeted Business Enterprise (TBE) goal assigned to this RFP. However, bonus points are available for the use of TBE-certified or diverse, non-certified firms.

Offerors who will utilize certified TBE partners and Offerors who are certified TBE firms are eligible to receive one hundred (100) bonus points.

To receive the bonus points, the Offeror must:

5.3.

clearly describe in its Proposal and any submitted TBE forms the commercially useful function the proposed TBE firm(s) will perform;

explain how the function fulfills a requirement of the Scope of Work or supports the Services proposed; and demonstrate that the function the TBE firm will perform will be required for the duration of the contract term (for this RFP, up to five years).

Offerors who will utilize diverse non-certified firms, or firms which are majority-owned, led, or substantially staffed by individuals from historically underrepresented or marginalized groups (e.g., women, people of color, LGBTQ+ individuals, people with disabilities, veterans) are eligible to receive fifty (50) bonus points for demonstrated commitment to equity, even if they do not have TBE certification.

To receive the bonus points, Offerors must:

Clearly document the ownership and leadership structure, including race/ethnicity/gender of key personnel.

Demonstrate how these characteristics influence the firm’s decision-making, staffing, and service delivery.

Describe how their diversity directly supports the equity and inclusion goals of Milwaukee County.

The Office of Economic Inclusion will evaluate and assign bonus points at its sole discretion, following the guidelines in this Section.

Scope of Work The Scope of Work (“SOW”) explains what the County expects for the goods or services it wants to buy. The County will use the SOW to check if an Offeror’s proposed solution is accurate and complete. Make sure your organization can provide all the services according to the specifications in the Scope of Work. If you cannot meet all the requirements, you will not pass Preliminary Evaluation, and your Proposal will be considered non-responsive. Non-responsive Proposals are not scored.

Carefully read the Scope of Work and ask questions if any part is unclear or confusing. You must make sure your Proposal shows that you understand the Scope of Work and have the experience needed to perform the work. If your Proposal does not clearly show you understand the Scope of Work and can perform the related tasks, you may receive lower scores or may be determined non-responsible and/or non-responsive.

The tasks and deliverables in this Scope of Work are the minimum standard the Awardee must meet. The RFP process is intended to encourage Offerors to provide creative solutions to the questions asked and needs presented by the CRC in the SOW. If your Proposal exceeds the minimum standards, it may receive higher scores based on your answers to the questions asked in Section 7.1: Technical Proposal Content.

The County can change or remove any task from the Scope of Work at any time during the RFP process.

Service Requirements The Awardee shall develop and implement a behavioral health program at the CRC that provides a range of mental health services to the CRC’s Correctional Staff. These services must be designed to meet the unique needs of employees of correctional facilities. The Awardee will be an operational partner with the CRC and is expected to assist in changing the climate and culture of the CRC to one that promotes, encourages, and supports Correctional Staff mental health, reduces barriers to treatment such as stigma associated with mental illness, empowering Correctional Staff to better serve the constituents of Milwaukee County by increasing Participant resilience and improving mental fitness, and promotes empathy while encountering and addressing the needs of CRC Residents, their families and friends, and the community by supporting and educating Participants as needed to improve their mental health and reduce the impact of job stress.

The services should include, but are not limited to:

Individual Counseling Sessions The Awardee shall provide confidential, one-on-one counseling sessions tailored to address the specific stressors and traumas associated with corrections work. Sessions shall focus on work-life balance, stress management, and coping strategies. The Awardee is required to maintain accurate and secure records of all counseling sessions in compliance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and all applicable federal, state, and local laws governing the confidentiality, storage, and retention of medical and mental health records. These records must be managed to ensure privacy and security, and the Awardee must implement safeguards to prevent unauthorized access, use, or disclosure. Additionally, the Awardee shall ensure that all record-keeping practices align with the required retention periods and reporting obligations as mandated by governing authorities.

Group Therapy Sessions The Awardee shall facilitate group therapy sessions that allow staff to share experiences and support…