23Q0022_draftPWS_040623.pdf

PERFORMANCE WORK STATEMENT

Department of Defense Education Activity 4800 Mark Center Drive

Alexandria, VA 22350

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PERFORMANCE WORK STATEMENT

Membership in a Comprehensive English

Language Proficiency Assessment Consortium

1. General Information and Scope of Work

1.1 Agency: For school year 2022-23, the Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) will provide PK-12 instruction to over 67,000 dependents of active-duty military and civilian employees. 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, Italy, Turkey, and Bahrain. In the Pacific, DoDEA operates 45 schools located in Korea, Japan (mainland and Okinawa), and Guam. DoDEA also operates a full time K-12 virtual school option with teaching hubs in each DoDEA region: Americas, Europe, and Pacific. DoDEA's curriculum, resources and student achievement scores on standardized assessments compare favorably to those of high-performing US public school systems.

1.2 Standards: DoDEA has adopted the College and Career Ready Standards (CCRS) in mathematics, English language arts/literacy, the arts, social studies, and science, which are rigorous, research-based, and reflect the knowledge, skills and dispositions students need for success in college and/or careers and are aligned with the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). Regarding this requirement, DoDEA requires assessments for K-12 English language arts/literacy, mathematics, social studies, and science.

1.3 Background

1.3.1 The English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) student or English Learner (EL) is defined as one …identified as being in the process of acquiring English as an additional language. The student may not speak English at all or, at least does not speak, understand, and write English with the same facility as his peers due to an additional language influence. DoDEA Regulation 2440.1, English as a Second Language Programs, March 2007, delineates the procedures for the provision of ESOL services in DoDEA schools. The students identified as limited English speaking require direct instruction in listening, speaking, comprehension, reading and writing skills, and cultural orientation so their academic performance is equivalent to native English-speaking students of the same age and grade level.

1.3.2 DoDEA adopted the WIDA English Language Development (ELD) Standards Framework beginning school year 2019-20. The WIDA ELD Standards Framework provides a foundation for curriculum, instruction, and assessment for multilingual learners in kindergarten through grade 12. The WIDA ELD Standards Framework is centered on equity and fosters the assets, contributions, and potentials of multilingual learners. More information about the WIDA ELD Standards Framework can be found at https://wida.wisc.edu/teach/standards/eld.

1.3.3 DoDEA awarded a contract for this requirement in 2018, which expires in fiscal year 2022. Since a need for the consortium and assessment services (described below) still exists, DoDEA must re-compete the requirement.

1.3 Scope of Work

DoDEA requires a membership in a Comprehensive English Language Proficiency Assessment Consortium that includes member participation in policy decisions for ELs. DoDEA requires the membership to do the following:

1.3.1 Provide a comprehensive and authentic assessment that (1) measures English language proficiency aligned with the expectations of the DoDEA CCRS and corollary products and services and (2) aligns with DoDEA’s following needs: (1) assessment content aligned with WIDA ELD Standards; (2) assessment delivery system; (3) assessment scoring and reporting services; (4) professional learning; (5) support services; and (6) communication resources.

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1.3.2 Provide K-12 English Language Proficiency assessments in (1) online and paper/pencil and (2) alternate assessment versions. Determination of print or online will be made in consultation with the Contractor annually. In the base and option years, the table below shows the estimated number of assessments by type that will be required:

Assessments Base Option 1 Option 2 Option 3 Option 4 Total Online Summative 6,100 6,100 6,100 6,100 6,100 30,500

Print Summative 850 850 850 850 850 4,250 Alternate 27 27 27 27 27 135

Print Screener 10 10 10 10 10 50 Online Screener 600 620 640 660 680 3,200

Progress Monitor/ Formative (Online) 0 0 6,100 6,100 6,100 18,300

Progress Monitor/ Formative (Print) 0 0 850 850 850 2,550

2 Requirements

2.1 Consortium Membership and ELP Assessments: The Contractor shall provide the consortium membership and associated privileges and the required online, print, and alternate assessments.

The tasks below are provided to help the Contractor gain a better understanding of the requirements.

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

2.1.1 Task 1, Membership: The Contractor shall provide a membership in a comprehensive assessment consortium for English language development that includes member participation in policy decisions. The consortium shall include the majority of states that DoDEA students, that is dependents of military families, attend over the course of their PK-12 schooling. The membership shall provide the following:

1) Ongoing and regular discussions with member states/territories that cover a wide gamut of mutual interests regarding the development and revision of policies and principles of the members that inform collective decision-making.

2) Work groups and advisory groups that provide actionable data for assessment policy and practices for longitudinal planning that will positively impact student learning.

3) Common assessment security, administration, interpretation, and reporting policies and practices agreed upon and implemented by all members.

4) Established process to address concerns by members, so input (questions/comments/recommendations) are applied in the products, services, policy, and operations of the membership.

5) Provide national comparisons of ELs’ performance in language proficiency and academic mastery utilizing the same metrics and assessment tool.

2.1.2 Task 2, ELP Assessments: The Contractor shall provide via the consortium membership a comprehensive assessment system that assesses language development through CCRS in English Language Arts/ literacy, mathematics, social studies, and science for ELs in grades K-12. The assessment system shall include a screener, progress monitor or formative assessment, annual assessment, and alternate assessment for ELs with disabilities and shall accomplish the following tasks:

1) Serve as a screening assessment that will be given most often prior to or at the beginning of the school.

The screening assessment shall be provided in online and print versions, be available for use throughout the year, and provide data to assist DoDEA in determining students’ eligibility for ESOL services.

2) Serve as an end-of-year growth assessment for each EL.

3) Include online and print versions of the assessment.

4) Assess language development for K-12 ELs through DoDEA’s CCRS and aligned with WIDA English

Language Development (ELD) Standards.

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5) Help measure English language proficiency to place ELs in the correct class, including the level they need to participate successfully in the classroom with or without program support.

6) Provide resources to help stakeholders, including parents/sponsors, understand their child’s current level of English language development.

7) Provide teachers and administrators information and strategies to provide strategies to develop EL instruction and learning/ achievement.

8) Provide English language proficiency and academic data to help assess the effectiveness of the ESOL program at the school, district, region, and system levels.

9) Provide an option to administer progress monitor or formative assessment beginning in Option Year 2.

Provide technical support, rollout training, professional learning focused on effective use of the data and program. Note: Although DoDEA intends to implement this component, availability of funds or other considerations may delay implementation or, in the worst case, preclude implementation entirely.

2.1.3 Alternate ELP Assessment System—The Contractor shall provide an alternate assessment for ELs with significant cognitive disabilities who are unable to meaningfully participate in the online or print versions of the assessment. It shall utilize accommodations that allow these students to access assessment content.

2.1.4 Assessment Scoring—The Contractor shall via the consortium membership assessment provide scoring services that include the following:

1) Score all summative and non-summative items, where applicable, and provide results to inform instruction, remediation, intervention, and placement.

2) Provide evidence of interrater reliability.

3) Provide evidence of the comparability of scores obtained from the online and print assessments.

4) Provide a plan for review of preliminary summative results prior to final release that allows DoDEA to review and correct results prior to being finalized.

2.1.5 Assessment Reporting—The Contractor shall provide via the consortium membership the following data:

1) Individual student online reports of assessment results that include summary results as well as item analysis summaries.

2) Aggregate online reports of assessment results that include but are not limited to reports by student, classroom, school, district, region, and DoDEA, which can be disaggregated by content area, grade level and standard sub-reporting categories (including but not limited to ethnicity/race, gender, students with disabilities).

3) Individual and aggregate online reports that contain numeric, verbal, and graphic presentations of assessment results.

4) Assessment results that are available in a variety of formats to include but not limited to pdf and csv.

5) Electronic student data file and file layout that corresponds to student, school, district, and region, and

DoDEA (school system) for reports.

6) Two printed copies each of individual student reports of assessment results, or the ability for the reports to be printed at the school site.

2.1.6 Resources—The Contractor shall provide via the consortium membership the following resources:

1) Dedicated website for DoDEA stakeholders (e.g., students, parents, teachers, test administrators) to login to obtain updates, resources, and specific information regarding the assessment system.

2) Communication tools that can be used by DoDEA to inform parents, staff, policymakers, and agency senior officials about the assessment system and results.

3) Communication tools to help parents and other stakeholders understand the assessment system and results in multiple languages to include at a minimum English, Spanish, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Tagalog, and Arabic.

4) Digital Test Coordinator’s Manual and a Test Administrator Manual which includes notes and scripts for the provision of accommodations that is updated within 30 business days of changes.

5) Digital Technical Manual that documents all technical components of each assessment, including but not limited to scaling & equating procedures, reliability & validity of individual & group scores, reliability of classification categories & year-to-year changes in performance, and a glossary of terms.

6) Digital on-demand resources for DoDEA staff on the use of formative assessments to inform instruction.

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2.1.7 Professional Learning—The Contractor shall provide via the consortium membership professional learning that includes resources and virtual training that can accessed by DoDEA educators via the Contractor’s website. The professional learning shall include but not necessarily be limited to the following:

1) School Test Coordinator and Test Administrator training modules that can be accessed on demand that address assessment security, standardized administration, and provision of accommodations in the ELP assessment.

2) DoDEA HQ staff, IT staff, above-school level subject-matter experts, and school-level ESOL teachers a minimum of three live webinars, per each group, on topics to be determined post-award. Each webinar shall be presented three times during normal school hours based on the time zone of the DoDEA schools—US, Europe, and Pacific. The Contractor will record to be placed on DoDEA’s learning management system (currently Schoology) for later use by DoDEA staff.

3) Live webinars to school-level ESOL teachers, School Test Coordinators, and Test Administrator on the use of the assessment delivery platform at mutually agreed upon times. The live webinars shall last at least 60 minutes each and be delivered during normal school hours based on the time zone of the DoDEA schools— US, Europe, and Pacific, which the Contractor will record to be placed on DoDEA’s learning management system (currently Schoology) for later use by DoDEA staff.

4) Minimum of five research-based professional learning workshops or modules designed to support use of the WIDA ELD Standards Framework and Assessment System including test administration, interpretation of scores, and standards-based instructional practices.

2.1.8 General

2.1.8.1 Meetings: The Contractor shall provide the medium through which each meeting occurs, record each meeting’s minutes. Submit the draft minutes to the COR within two business days of the event.

Finalize the minutes two business days after receipt of written feedback from the COR.

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

4) Project Meetings: Meet with DoDEA project team on the agreed upon frequency to address logistical preparedness, technology preparedness, communication, and other matters associated with successful testing implementation.

2.1.8.2 Delivery of Print and Digital Resources—The Contractor shall:

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

2) Ship all print materials and manipulatives to the Americas by commercial carrier or USPS and to

Europe and the Pacific only by commercial carrier. Note: Delivery orders will include door-to-door addresses.

3) 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 tracking number of shipment Estimated date of arrival of shipment and, if applicable, shipping slip

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

2.1.8.4 Third-Party Programs, Software, and Applications: The Contractor shall ensure its and its subcontractors’ (third-party) programs, software, and applications meet at a minimum the same technical requirements as the Contractor must meet, such as single sign on (SSO) and Federal Risk and Authorization

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Management Program (FedRAMP) Level 2, etc. For additional information, see www.fedramp.gov/ and Technical Exhibit #1, 1.1.7.

2.2 Performance Standard and Acceptable Quality Level (AQL)

2.2.1 Performance Standard: Tasks shall be completed per the AQL (below).

2.2.2 AQL: All tasks shall be completed by the required completion 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:

3.2.1 Provide a liaison and alternate 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 on all contract matters relating to the daily operation of this contract. Each of them shall have at least one year of experience working in a similar role.

3.2.2 Notify the COR in writing regarding any change in either liaison’s role ten business days in advance of the change. If the liaison 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

3.3.1 The liaison or alternate 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.

3.3.2 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 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.

3.6 Privacy—The Contractor shall:

3.1.1 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.

3.6.2 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 IAW the relevant requirements of the Privacy Act, 5 U.S.C, per http://www.archives.gov/about/laws/privacy-act- 1974.html.

3.6.3 Privacy Training: 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/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.

3.6.4 Privacy Verification: Provide the COR written verification of compliance to the Privacy requirements (listed above) 120 calendar days prior to the expiration of each year’s contract option period or annually, as required. Note: After reviewing the Contractor’s verification, DoDEA reserves the right to ask for further verification data in order for DoDEA to comply with DoD’s evolving privacy mandates.

3.8 Section 508 Compliance— The Contractor shall:

3.9.1 Background: Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act, as amended by the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (P.L. 105-220) requires Federal agencies that develop, procure, maintain, or use information

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Federal employees and members of the public who have disabilities must have access to and use of information/data that is comparable to people without disabilities.

3.9.2 Requirement: Ensure that products, platforms, and services delivered as part of this work statement that are ICT or contain ICT conform to the Revised 508 Standards, which are located at 36 C.F.R.

§ 1194.1 & Apps. A, C & D at the following URL: https://www.access-board.gov/guidelines-and-standards/communications-and-it/about-the-ict-refresh/final-rule/text-of-the-standards-and-guidelines.

3.9.3 ARS: See the attached ICT Accessibility Requirements Statement (ARS). All functional performance criteria apply when using an alternative design or technology that achieves substantially equivalent or greater accessibility and usability by individuals with disabilities, than would be provided by conformance to one or more of the requirements in Chapters 4-6 of the Revised 508 Standards or when Chapters 4-6 do not address one or more functions of ICT. Note the guidance in the table below:

Applicable Requirements Directions

Software Features and Components

Applies to all WCAG Level AA Success Criteria, 502 Interoperability with Assistive Technology, and 503 Applications.

Hardware Features and Components All requirements apply.

Support Services and Documentation All requirements apply.

Outputs/Deliverables Ensures that outputs/deliverables do not adversely affect accessibility features of the existing EIT technologies.

3.7 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:

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

3.8 Data: All data developed as a result of any work awarded under this contract is and shall remain the property of the Government.

3.9 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 Information / Resources

4.1 The Government will work with the Contractor to provide the dates and times for professional learning webinars.

5 Contract Deliverables

Milestone/Deliverable Print Copies

Digital Copies

Task /

PWS

Planned Frequency

Membership Yes Yes 2.1.1 Ongoing after receipt of delivery order

ELP Assessments Yes Yes 2.1.2

After receipt of written delivery order:

Online version in three business days Print version 30 business days for US sites and

45 business days for overseas sites

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Milestone/Deliverable Print Copies

Digital Copies

Task /

PWS

Planned Frequency

Alternate Assessments Yes Yes 2.1.3 After receipt of written delivery order:

30 business days for US sites 45 business days for overseas sites

Assessment Scoring Yes Yes 2.1.4

After receipt of a written delivery order:

Scoring for online assessments in one business day of receipt Scoring for print version five business days of receipt Scoring for alternate assessment five business days of receipt

Assessment Reporting Yes Yes 2.1.5

Reports provided to the COR 30 business days after scoring is complete.

Printed individual student reports provided three business days to the school destination after scoring is complete.

Resources Yes Yes 2.1.6 Ongoing availability upon renewal of consortium membership

Professional Learning Yes Yes 2.1.7 Scheduled post-award

Privacy Training Yes Yes 3.6.3 Copies of certificates sent digitally upon written request from the COR

Privacy Verification Yes Yes 3.6.4 120 days before the end of each contract year

6 Acronyms and Definitions

CCRS College and Career Ready Standards DoD/DOD Department of Defense PA/PII Privacy Act/Personally Identifiable Information QASP Quality Assessment Surveillance Plan

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.

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) and Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan (QASP)

7.1 Performance Requirement Summary (PRS)

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Performance

Objective Performance

Standard AQL Inspection Method

Membership 100% compliance with the PWS

All rights and privileges given to states given to DoDEA COR inspection

ESOL Assessments 100% compliance with the PWS

Same assessments provided to states provided to DoDEA

COR inspection and stakeholder feedback

Alternate Assessments

100% compliance with the PWS

Same assessments provided to states provided to DoDEA

COR inspection and stakeholder feedback

Assessment Scoring 100% compliance with the PWS

Same quality of scoring provided to states provided to DoDEA

COR inspection and stakeholder feedback

Assessment Reporting

100% compliance with the PWS

Same quality of reports provided to states provided to DoDEA

COR inspection and stakeholder feedback

Resources 100% compliance with the PWS

Same quality/amount of resources provided to states provided to DoDEA

COR inspection and stakeholder feedback

Professional Learning

100% compliance with the PWS

No more than one scheduled session cancelled due to Contractor’s issues

COR inspection and stakeholder feedback

Meetings 100% compliance with the PWS

No more than one meeting per year will need to be rescheduled due to Contractor issues

COR inspection

Technical Support 100% compliance with the PWS

Acknowledge inquiries within ten minutes of receipt. Resolve 90% of issues within one business day and the remaining 10% within five business days.

COR inspection and stakeholder feedback

Privacy Training 100% compliance with the PWS

Provided within ten business days of receipt of written request COR inspection

Privacy Verification 100% compliance with the PWS

Provided in the timeframe defined in the PWS. COR inspection

7.2 Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan (QASP): The Government will utilize a QASP to monitor the contractor’s performance on the contract. The QASP is a living document and can change at any time during the life of the contract. As such, the Government reserves the right to unilaterally edit the QASP at the Government’s discretion.

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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:

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: 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 Be able to meet Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP) Level 2 standards for all proposed software/digital resources and ensure that any third-party resources that are part of its proposed solution also meet the FedRAMP Level 2 standard. For more information on FedRAMP, see the following URL: www.fedramp.gov. Participate, if required, 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 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 Ensure, 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 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 Ensure all software 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

1.2.4 Ensure software is completely functional on a standard DoDEA desktop without the need / 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.

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1.2.6 Ensure, if applicable, that software packages support unattended installation methods used by enterprise software packaging and deployment systems. Notes: DoDEA currently distributes software packages via Microsoft 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 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, which may be found at https://www.esd.whs.mil/Portals/54/Documents/DD/issuances/dodi/850001_2014.pdf.

DoD Security Technical Implementation Guidance (STIG), which may be 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, Pub.L. 106-554, § 1(a)(4) [Div. B, Title XVII, § 1701], Dec. 21, 2000, 114 Stat. 2763, 2763A-335.

1.5.4 Ensure its solution is 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.

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1.6 Program and System Integration

1.6.1 Single Sign-On (SSO) Capabilities / Platform—The Contractor’s solution shall:

1) Integrate with an Industry Standard SSO login solution. (ClassLink, Google, Azure, etc.)

2) Support Oauth 2.0, Security Assertions Markup Language (SAML) for integration with Azure, or

Google.

3) Authenticate using Azure Active Directory (AD) or Google AD.

1.6.2 Data rostering standards—The Contractor’s solution shall support industry standard rostering via ClassLink and standard data formats such as OneRoster.

1.6.3 Data Storage, Handling, and Security:

1) Data shall be secured in data center located in the United States.

2) All Contractor personnel that have access or may potentially have access to DoDEA data in any form shall be US citizens, including any third-party penetration (PEN)/security testers.

3) All data transit shall be secured with Transport Layer Security (TLS) encryption.

4) All data at rest shall be secured with Advanced Encryption Standard (AES)-256 encryption.

1.6.4 Data Integration:

1) The automated industry standard form of data integration using Representational State Transfer

Application Program Interface (RESTful API), Learning Tools Interoperability (LTI), or Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP) data sets (ClassLink, OneRoster, etc.) shall be used.

2) Integration scheduling shall be flexible to meet DoDEA’s required timeframes. Provide fully automated data uploads per Agency schedule(s) and Agency requirements.

3) SFTP capabilities using a single set of login credentials shall be supported.

4) A single data set of DoDEA information shall be provided. Note: The Contractor’s solution shall support DoDEA at all levels: School, Community, District, Region, and HQ.

5) If an integration transmission results in errors on the Contractor’s side, the Contractor shall provide detailed feedback on what caused the errors.

1.6.5 System Features—The system shall:

1) Allow user accounts to be created automatically based on a file provided by DoDEA either nightly or on another pre-determined scheduled feed.

2) Allow DoDEA to be able to choose the format of user login identification, e.g., an email address, and be able to create manual accounts if needed.

3) Require the user—for manually created accounts—to reset the password on the user’s initial login or, upon request, a password reset.