22Q0015_DRAFT_PWS_011822.pdf

PERFORMANCE WORK STATEMENT

Department of Defense Education Activity 4800 Mark Center Drive

Alexandria, VA 22350

09 Nov 21 1

Career and Technical Education (CTE) Industry Credentialing Support and Testing

1. General Information and Scope of Work

1.1 Agency

1.1.1 For school year (SY) 2021-22, the Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) will provide PK-12 instruction to approximately 67,000 dependents of military and civilian employees.

Student enrollment is based primarily on deployment of military troops worldwide. In the Americas, DoDEA operates 50 schools located in seven states, Puerto Rico, and Cuba. In Europe and the Middle East, DoDEA operates 64 schools located in Germany, England, Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Turkey, Bahrain and Italy. In the Pacific, DoDEA operates 45 schools located in Korea, Japan (mainland and Okinawa), and Guam. DoDEA's curriculum, resources and student achievement scores on standardized assessments compare favorably to those of high-performing US public school systems. DoDEA also operates a full time K-12 virtual school option with teaching hubs in each DoDEA region: Americas, Europe, and Pacific. Within that context, the virtual high school is fully accredited.

1.1.2 Based on SY21-22 enrollment figures, DoDEA has approximately 12,650 students in grades 9-12 enrolled in 40 brick-and-mortar schools. Many are dual enrolled in DoDEA’s Virtual High School.

1.1.3 Military-connected students experience high mobility rates across the nation and throughout the world. Consequently, DoDEA makes a concerted effort to establish a worldwide systemic education network, mitigating the transitional barriers to military-connected students’ success.

1.1.4 DoDEA has adopted College and Career Ready Standards (CCRS) in mathematics, literacy, the arts, social studies, and science, which are rigorous, research-based, and reflect the knowledge, skills and dispositions needed for success in college and/or careers and are aligned with the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), National Core Art Standards (NCAS), Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), College, Career, and Civic Life (C3) Framework for Social Studies State Standards, and Society for Health and Physical Education Standards (SHAPE AMERICA). DoDEA has also adopted the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) Standards for Students.

1.2 Background

In SY21-22, all 41 high schools offer Career and Technical Education (CTE) courses. The high school CTE program’s 14 career pathways provide students invaluable opportunities to explore and engage in college and career readiness with an emphasis on career and technical education courses and experiences. Incorporating hands-on learning experiences lends flexibility to the career and technical education classroom by giving students an opportunity to experience real work life situations while in the classroom. DoDEA has never awarded a contract for industry credentials to support any of the courses listed in Task 1 (below).

1.3 Scope of Work

DoDEA requires industry credentialing opportunities, related resources, and support for the CTE high school courses listed in the table shown in Task 1. The estimated enrollment and number of teachers in the table are based on SY20-21 enrollment and teacher numbers. The course descriptions may be found at the following URL: https://www.dodea.edu/Curriculum/CareerTechEd/index.cfm. DoDEA expects to award multiple Firm-Fixed -rice (FFP), Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract, for a base year and four option years.

2 Requirements (Objectives)

2.1 (Objective 1) Industry Credential Opportunities: The Contractor shall provide national industry credentialing opportunities for students enrolled in the courses outlined in Task 1 (below). The Contractor’s solution shall include digital materials to assist both teachers and students to prepare for the credentialing opportunity and provide a nationally recognized credential for students who pass the required assessment. Product training

09 Nov 21 2 shall provide teachers an overview of the resources and the ability to navigate through the lessons/resources.

The tasks below are to help the Contractor gain a better understanding of the requirements to successfully meet the objective. The tasks are not all inclusive. The Contractor is expected to develop the total solution to meet all the requirements in accordance with a performance-based approach.

Supporting Tasks (Objective 1)

Task 1, Student Materials: The Contractor shall provide a nationally recognized industry credential and/or college credit opportunities for the 15 courses listed below. In addition, for each course the Contractor shall provide instructional resources to support the course competencies students need to meet or exceed to earn industry certification. For each course, the following shall be provided:

1) Web-based opportunities to gain industry recognized credentials and/or college credit opportunities.

2) Digital pretests to assess student content knowledge and enable teachers to identify gaps.

3) Digital resources for mastery of learning goals such as introductory activities, knowledge checks, assessments, etc.

4) Recommendations for blended learning opportunities if remote learning becomes necessary.

Task 2, Teacher Materials and Alignment to Standards—The Contractor shall:

1) Provide teacher materials in a digital format to include such things as lesson plans, instructor resources, assessments, and implementation strategies.

2) Provide a digital document detailing the alignment between DoDEA’s adopted course description and course competencies to the proposed industry credential.

Task 3, Professional Learning: The Contractor shall:

1. Product Training:

a. CTE Teachers and Support Personnel: Provide at least (2) 90-minute asynchronous professional learning sessions to address the following topics:

i. Learning Management System: Teachers and any support personnel will be provided training on how to navigate the learning management system to include: ordering pre-tests, digital study guides, and post-tests. Teachers and support personnel should also be provided resources on how to navigate the software. This training can be delivered via webinars, digital modules, videos, and/or tutorial files.

# DoDEA Course Name Enrollment* SY22-23 (Est.)

Teachers** (Est.)

1 Video Communications II 325 30 2 Marketing/Entrepreneurship 625 25 3 Digital Publishing 550 25 4 Education II 25 10 5 Education III 25 10 6 Health Science II 75 5 7 Biotechnology 25 5 8 Career Practicum 700 25 9 Spreadsheet/Database 300 20

10 Management Foundations 275 20 11 Web Design 125 30 12 Green Technology 25 5 13 Principles of Engineering 550 25 14 Engineering Drawing CAD 125 10 15 Business & Personal Finance 950 30

16 JROTC*** 300 35

* In the SY21-22 portion of the base year, teachers will become familiar with the resources. Student credentialling opportunities will begin in SY22-23.

** The number of teachers equals the number of schools offering the course.

*** JROTC program will be launched in Option Year 1.

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ii. Instructional Practices: Teachers and any support personnel will be provided training on the requirements of test administration of pre and post-tests. Teachers should be provided instructional best practices to incorporate course material into classroom.

b. Support Personnel: Provide at least (1) 90-minute asynchronous webinar and/or digital module for school-level administrators, education technologists, and any other identified support personnel providing an overview of course materials and instructional best practices. Note: DoDEA administrators need to understand the program and gain insight into evaluating teacher and program effectiveness. Education technologists need to understand how to support the CTE teachers in program delivery and instructional best practices.

2. On-going Instructional Support: Provide at least (1) 90-minute asynchronous training sessions in years 2-5 of the contract to cover topics such as: product/digital updates, troubleshooting, instructional practices, and any additional topics to be determined by the COR in collaboration with the vendor.

Task 4, Delivery of Digital Resources: The Contractor shall:

1. Deliver web-based materials (such as access codes) three days after receipt of delivery order.

2. Provide, upon shipment of materials, a digital shipment notification that includes the following:

Contract number and delivery order number Contract line item number indicating materials and quantities shipped Destination and date of shipment Shipping carrier name and shipment tracking number(s) Estimated date of arrival of shipment and, if applicable, shipping slip(s), and proof of delivery

Note: DoDEA prefers—but does not require—integration that allows the Contractor’s content delivery system to interface with DoDEA’s Learning Management System (LMS, Schoology) to automate student rosters.

Task 5, Meetings: The Contractor shall (1) attend virtual meetings at no additional cost to the Government and

(2) provide the medium through which each meeting occurs, record each meeting’s minutes. The Contractor shall submit the draft minutes to the COR within two business days of the event and finalize the minutes two business days after receipt of written feedback from the COR. Note: Costs associated with attendance at face-to-face meetings, if any, shall be handled/paid for as stated in the contract.

1) Post-Award Conference: Participate in a video- or teleconference with the COR five business days after award IAW FAR Subpart 42.5.

2) IT Meeting: Convene a video- or teleconference with DoDEA Information Technology staff ten business days after award, per Technical Exhibit #1.

3) Other Post-Award Meetings: Meet with the Contracting Officer (KO), COR, and/or other Agency personnel, as appropriate, to review Contractor performance, as required by DoDEA. The KO may discuss the Agency’s view of Contractor performance, and the Contractor shall apprise the Agency of any problems being experienced. The Contractor shall take appropriate action to resolve any outstanding issues the Agency raises.

Task 6, Technical Support: The Contractor shall provide industry-standard technical support for its digital resources for the life of the contract via telephone or email within one business day from the initial contact to include but not limited to assisting with service problems, product setup, upgrades, and troubleshooting.

2.2 Performance Standards and Acceptable Quality Levels

2.2.1 Performance Standard: Tasks shall be completed by the required completion date.

2.2.2 Acceptable Quality Level: Ninety-five percent of tasks shall be completed by the required completion date. The remaining five percent shall be completed within ten business days of their due date.

3 Constraints

3.1 Place of Performance: Work shall be performed at the Contractor’s facilities.

3.2 Liaison and Alternate Liaison—The Contractor shall:

1) Provide a liaison and alternate liaison to be responsible for the performance of work. Their names shall be designated in writing to the Contracting Officer. They shall have full authority to act for the Contractor

09 Nov 21 4 on all contract matters relating to the daily operation of this contract. Each shall have at least one year of experience working in a similar role.

2) Notify the COR in writing regarding any change in either liaison’s role ten business days in advance of the change. If the liaison or liaison alternate is changed post-award, the replacement shall meet or exceed the qualifications and experience of the person assigned upon contract award.

3.3 Holidays and Hours of Operation

1) The liaison or alternate liaison shall be available during the hours of 9AM to 3PM Eastern Standard Time (EST), except for Federal holidays and Federal government closures/shutdowns. The following list shows recognized Federal holidays: New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King Jr.’s Birthday, Presidents Day, Memorial Day, Juneteenth National Independence Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day.

2) Although there are different time zones within Europe and the Pacific and different hours for specific schools throughout DoDEA, the normal business hours for the regions roughly correspond to the following: Americas, 0700-1500 EST; Europe, 1300-2100 EST; and Pacific, 2000-0400 EST.

3.4 Availability: The Contractor shall make all resources available for the life of the contract.

3.5 Copyright Dates: Provide the most recent copyright dated materials. The copyright preference applies only to student and teacher materials (for example, the student textbook, teacher’s editions, etc.). The copyright preference does not apply to material included as part of the Contractor’s collection (that is, articles, leveled readers, big books, assessments, pictures, problems included in a textbook or supplemental to the teacher or student text) but which was created by others.

3.6 Anti-Bias, Diversity, and Inclusion—The Contractor shall provide resources free of age, racial, color, national origin, disabling conditions, sexual, gender, religious, and ethnic bias and present balanced coverage of multi-cultural contributions and representation, where appropriate.

3.7 Privacy—The Contractor shall:

1) User Accounts: Require, wherever applicable, that individual accounts possess unique usernames and passwords that do not require personally identifiable information (PII) to access online content, i.e., first & last name and any other unique personal information.

2) Contractor Personnel: Ensure personnel assigned to this contract take proper precautions to protect information from disclosure. Collect and/or store all agency-owned or agency-controlled PII in accordance with the relevant requirements of the Privacy Act, 5 U.S.C, which may be found at the following URL: http://www.archives.gov/about/laws/privacy-act-1974.html.

3) Privacy Training: Ensure Contractor staff who have access to DoDEA’s student, teacher and/or staff personally identifiable information successfully complete the DoD Privacy Act/Personally Identifiable Information (PA/PII) training before gaining access to the data and yearly thereafter. Provide copies of the certificates of completion to the COR which can be audited at any time by the Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) or his/her designee.

3.8 Section 508 Compliance—Ensure Contractor resources, wherever applicable, meet the following requirements:

1) IT Requirement: Ensure all electronic hardware and software that is procured under this contract/ purchase order comply with Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, (29 U.S.C. 794d) and the Architectural & Transportation Barriers Compliance Board Electronic Information Technology (EIT) Accessibility Standards (36 CFR part 1194). See http://www.section508.gov for more information.

2) Deliverable Requirement: Ensure the following occur:

Outputs/deliverables do not adversely affect accessibility features of existing EIT technologies.

EIT related to the requirements of the contract are accessible to people with disabilities, per 29

U.S.C 794(d).

Outputs/deliverables including functional performance, information, documentation, and support requirements are considered. Standards from 36 CFR Part 1194 Subpart B, C and D apply to this acquisition.

3.9 Optical Character Resolution (OCR): The Contractor shall provide, upon request, two digital OCR copies of print materials in one or more of the following formats:

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Digital Accessible Information System/National Instructional Materials Accessibility Standard (NIMAS) with cascading style sheet HyperText Markup Language (HTML) Portable Document Format (PDF), (unlocked, embedded fonts, single page) Rich Text Format (RTF)/Word document

3.10 Upgrades: The Contractor shall (1) submit detailed information of system requirements for subsequent software upgrades for each option year to DoDEA HQ and (2) provide DoDEA HQ with complete copies of any upgrades for testing prior to dissemination to schools.

3.11 Organizational Conflict of Interest (OCI): The Contractor (including any subcontractor) personnel performing work under this contract may receive, have access to, or participate in the development of, proprietary or Privacy Act information (e.g., personal information, education, etc.) may create a current or subsequent OCI as defined in FAR Subpart 9.5. Whenever the Contractor becomes aware that such access or participation may result in actual or potential OCI, the Contractor shall (1) immediately notify the Contracting Officer (KO) in writing and (2) promptly submit a plan to the KO to avoid or mitigate any such OCI. Note:

The KO will unilaterally determine if the Contractor’s plan is acceptable. If the KO determines the plan cannot satisfactorily avoid or mitigate an OCI, s/he may implement other remedies to include prohibiting the Contractor’s further participation in contracted requirements.

4 Government-Furnished Resources

Product oversight by the COR to ensure scheduling, funding, and implementation.

5 Contract Deliverables

Milestone/Deliverable Word / Excel

Digital Copies

Task / PWS Planned Frequency

Student and Teacher Materials Yes Yes Tasks 1 & 2

Ongoing three days after receipt of initial delivery order

Alignment to Competencies Yes Yes Task 2 Digital copy provided ten business days after the post-award conference

Product Training Yes Yes Task 3 Ongoing three days after receipt of initial delivery order

Delivery of Digital Resources Yes Yes Task 4 Ongoing three days after receipt of initial delivery order

Meetings Yes Yes Task 5

Post-Award Conference: Five business days after award IT Meeting: Five business days after the post-award conference Other Meetings: As required in writing by the COR.

Technical Support Yes Yes Task 6 Ongoing after the post-award conference

6 Acronyms and Definitions

CCRS College and Career Ready Standards DoD/DOD Department of Defense DFARS Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement EIT Electronic Information Technology FAR Federal Acquisition Regulations PA/PII Privacy Act/Personally Identifiable Information

Contract Line Item Number (CLIN) – Basic structural element in a procurement instrument describing and organizing the required product or service for pricing, delivery, inspection, acceptance, invoicing, and payment.

The use of the term “line item” includes “subcontract line number”, (SLIN), as applicable.

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Contracting Officer (KO) – The only individual with expressed authority to obligate (bind) the Government by means of entering, administering, and terminating contracts within the limits of the authority delegated via a Contracting Officer’s warrant.

Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR) – Qualified and trained Government employee, nominated by the requiring activity (RA) and appointed in writing by a KO primarily to perform specific technical or administrative functions on a specific contract(s); serves as the ‘eyes and ears’ of a KO to assure the Government’s best interests are protected via the terms and conditions of the contract(s) appointed. COR’s do not have authority to obligate (i.e., bind) the Government.

Contractor - Supplier or vendor having a contract to provide specific supplies or service to the Government. The term used in this contract refers to the prime.

Deliverable – Usually physically delivered items but may include such items as digital documents/reports.

Performance Requirements Summary (PRS) – Tabular listing of performance objectives and standards that provides the basis for a meaningful QASP.

Performance Work Statement (PWS) - A statement of work for performance-based acquisitions describing the required results in clear, specific and objective terms with measurable outcomes.

7 Performance Requirement Summary (PRS)

Performance Objective

Performance Standard AQL Inspection Method Incentives*

Student and Teacher Materials, Tasks, Delivery of Digital Resources 1, 2 & 4

100% compliance with the PWS

Continuous access to materials except for scheduled downtimes

COR review and stakeholder feedback N/A

Product Training, and Delivery of Digital Resources, Task 3 & 4

100% compliance with the PWS

Continuous access to materials except for scheduled downtimes

COR review and stakeholder feedback N/A

Meetings, Task 5 100% compliance with the PWS

No more than one meeting rescheduled per year due to Contractor’s inability to meet

COR review N/A

Technical Support, Task 6

100% compliance with the PWS

All inquiries acknowledged within one business day of receipt.

90% resolved in two business days;

the remaining 10% resolved in five business days

COR review and stakeholder feedback N/A

Technical Exhibit #1 - TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS

The Contractor shall comply with the applicable technical requirements detailed below.

1.1 Software and Cloud Security Requirements—The Contractor shall:

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1.1.1 Ensure all online resources, cloud-based services and instructional software meet the Department of Defense (DoD) and DoDEA Cybersecurity requirements as defined below. Note: Software, cloud services and associated websites are rigorously tested to ensure no security risks are posed to DoDEA infrastructure and its users.

1.1.2 Complete the Cloud Services questionnaire that was submitted as part of the proposal submission and provide copies of and/or access to any software listed in the proposed solution.

1.1.3 Ensure on-premises software support post-installation integration of the necessary Security Technical Implementation Guides (STIG) for applicable systems and applications, including Microsoft Windows 10, Microsoft Windows Server 2016, Windows Server 2019, Microsoft Windows IIS, Apache, Oracle databases, and Microsoft SQL Server databases. Note: The application to obtain the STIG Viewer is found at https://public.cyber.mil/stigs/srg-stig-tools/, and the STIGs themselves may be downloaded from https://public.cyber.mil/stigs/downloads/.

1.1.4 Ensure its content accessible from the web is compatible with the following browser platforms: Internet Explorer 11, Google Chrome and Edge. Ensure that any applicable STIGs are implemented.

1.1.5 Ensure on-premises software, which is subject to static and dynamic analysis testing, imposes no risk to DoDEA systems, users and/or data. Note: DoDEA assesses software products to ensure compatibility with existing system configurations and software, testing may also include reverse engineering analysis.

1.1.6 Provide a plan of actions and milestones (POA&M) to mitigate any cybersecurity findings resulting from non-compliant and/or vulnerable components within 30 calendar days of written notification from DoDEA.

1.1.7 Participate, as needed, in interviews and deep system architecture inspections. Note: Per DoD policy for cloud-based services, DoDEA conducts a supplemental series of validations, which closely mirror the Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP) Internet Cloud vetting processes.

Contractor participation/cooperation is normally required to complete this process.

1.2 System Requirements—The Contractor shall:

1.2.1 Provide, per Section 1.1 (above), any software installed and/or accessed in or by a DoDEA system, network whether stand-alone or web-based, is compatible with the standards cited herein.

1.2.2 Provide minimum desktop/server system technical specifications, available reference architectures, networking specifications and diagrams, and applicable systems configuration documentation for the proposed product solution.

1.2.3 Provide software that is compatible with the following minimum baseline:

Specifications Minimum Memory 4 GB

Hard Drive 100 GB

Processor Intel® Core™ i5-8365U Processor 8th Generation (up to 4.1GHz, 6MB cache) equivalent or better (Must show benchmark/passmark scores)

Video Graphics Integrated Intel HD Graphics 620 (1920x1080) equivalent or better Operating System Windows 10

Browser Environment Chrome; Edge; Edge Chromium, IE 11 or higher

1.2.4 Provide software that is completely functional on a standard DoDEA desktop without the need or requirement for administrative-level user rights and/or permissions or the requirement to use or insert external media to execute the software.

1.2.5 Provide software that does not require modifications to folder permissions while executing.

1.2.6 Provide, if applicable, software packages that support unattended installation methods used by enterprise software packaging and deployment systems. Note: DoDEA currently distributes software packages via Microsoft’s System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM). Older 16-bit software are automatically denied.

1.3 Data Management Requirements—The Contractor shall:

1.3.1 Provide a mechanism for batch administration and automation of routine data management tasks via flat file import, or representational state transfer (REST) based web service application programming interfaces (APIs). The mechanism shall provision and manage data objects within the Contractor’s

09 Nov 21 8 system, including but not limited to organizational structures, student accounts, staff accounts, courses, and class rosters.

1.3.2 Provide all necessary documentation and assets to facilitate batch administration and automation of routine data management tasks, including but not limited to roster template files (i.e., comma separated value templates); data element/field definitions documentation; data interchange formats and schemas (XML/JSON); and/or data dictionaries for the purpose of mapping organizational student information system (SIS) data to the Contractor’s required input formats.

1.3.3 Provide a single point of contact to support DoDEA in performing the required data integration activities within the Contractor’s system.

1.3.4 Configure DoDEA enterprise within its system and/or databases as the appropriate organizational entity (i.e., region, district, school) upon a request in writing from the contracting officer’s representative (COR). Note: DoDEA’s organization hierarchy consists of the following: one system, three regions, eight districts, 62 communities, and 160 schools, including the K-12 virtual school programs.

1.3.5 Participate in a technical meeting with DoDEA within ten business days after award for the purposes of preparing for onboarding of new services and initial configuration of administrator-level accounts.

1.3.6 Ensure the transfer of any Sensitive, Confidential data including but not limited to PII data be transferred in a secure means meeting any requirements set by DoDEA’s Chief Information Security Officer (CISO).

1.4 DoDEA Software License Keys: The Contractor shall provide (1) license keys and electronic downloads for software required under this Contract to the COR and (2) software directly to DoDEA schools, districts, or regions only if explicitly required to do so in the contract or in writing by the COR.

1.5 Cybersecurity Supporting Elements/Requirements and Scalability—The Contractor shall:

1.5.1 Comply with the same Federal law and DoD policies and guidance to which DoDEA is subject. These requirements include but are not limited to the cybersecurity requirements defined in the following documentation:

DoD Directive (DoDD) 8500.01E, Information Assurance, be found at the following URL:

https://www.esd.whs.mil/Portals/54/Documents/DD/issuances/dodi/850001_2014.pdf.

DoD Security Technical Implementation Guidance (STIG), found at the following URL:

https://public.cyber.mil/stigs/downloads/.

DoD Risk Management Framework (DODRMF) per DoD Instruction 8510.01 found at https://www.esd.whs.mil/Portals/54/Documents/DD/issuances/dodi/851001p.pdf?ver=2019-02- 26-101520-3004.5.2.

1.5.2 Provide security patches/upgrades to include third-party applications in response to public-released security vulnerabilities associated with its software solution. Provide a POA&M for any security vulnerabilities within five business days of discovery. Software upgrades/patches shall be included in the licensing cost and be performed at the least disruptive times as determined by DoDEA in writing.

Note: Any exception to this requirement must be approved in advance and in writing by DoDEA’s Chief Information Officer (CIO) or designated official.

1.5.3 Ensure any portion of its solution that involves Internet access by DoDEA students complies with the relevant requirements of the Children's Internet Protection Act, Public Law 106-554, § 1(a)(4) [Div. B, Title XVII, § 1701], Dec. 21, 2000, 114 Stat. 2763, 2763A-335.

1.5.4 Provide a solution robust enough to serve the needs of a large community of learners dispersed across the world using a variety of bandwidths and scalable to meet future growth, both in terms of instruction and the number of users.

1.5.5 Ensure Contractor staff who have access to DoDEA’s student, teacher and/or staff personally identifiable information take the DoD Privacy Act/Personally Identifiable Information (PA and PPI/PII) training before gaining access to the data and yearly thereafter. Provide copies of the certificates of completion to the COR which can be audited at any time by the CISO or his/her designee.

PERFORMANCE WORK STATEMENT