27RFQTALAB1 - Attachment A - Final.doc

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Attachment A

Alternate ID #: 27RFQTALAB1 COMMBUYS Bid #:BD-27-1026-DOE02-DOE01-131100 Newcomer and SLIFE Curriculum Support

This RFQ is open to the following vendors awarded under 25MASSSMS1 in the below categories with areas of expertise (must meet all):

Category: Strategic Planning

Areas of expertise:

· English learners

· Professional learning, inclusive of professional development, coaching, and collaborative learning time Category: Consulting / Targeted Assistance

Areas of expertise:

· ELA/Literacy

· English Learners Category: Professional Learning Systems

Areas of expertise:

· ELA/Literacy

· English Learners

· Math Category: Curriculum selection & implementation

Areas of expertise:

· ELA/Literacy

· English learners

· Math Category: Program evaluation

Area of expertise:

· English learners

· Education NorthWest

· RESEARCH FOUNDATION OF THE CITY UNV OF NY - Bridges to Academic Success/CUNY

Background:

The Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) is committed to ensuring that multilingual learners, including newcomer students and Students with Limited or Interrupted Formal Education (SLIFE), have equitable access to high-quality instructional materials, effective instruction, and educational opportunities that support their academic and linguistic development.

Over the past several years, DESE has invested in developing and implementing tools and resources, including curriculum resources, specifically designed to support newcomer students and SLIFE. DESE convened a SLIFE Community of Practice that met over three years and provided input into an updated SLIFE definition and guidance, qualitative research on SLIFE in Massachusetts, and the development of a Massachusetts SLIFE Toolkit. Additionally, members of the Community of Practice identified a significant gap in high-quality instructional materials to support adolescent newcomers and SLIFE.

To address this gap, DESE partnered with a vendor to pilot a newcomer and SLIFE English Language Arts/English Language Development (ELA/ELD) curriculum materials and foundational mathematics units designed to address unfinished learning and support access to grade-level content. The vendor ran a cohort for up to eight district teams during the 2024-25 and 2025-26 school years to support them as they implemented the curricular materials in their settings. The cohorts included synchronous and asynchronous professional learning, targeted support through office hours, and options for coaching and site visits. Feedback from educators on the curriculum was overwhelmingly positive, and students demonstrated significant progress from pre- to post-assessments.

DESE seeks a vendor to provide implementation support for districts currently using these curriculum materials, develop additional math curriculum resources for SLIFE, conduct research to inform future literacy curriculum development, and collaborate closely with DESE to ensure high-quality implementation and continuous improvement.

The selected vendor will provide the services described below during Fiscal Year 2027 (SY2026–2027). DESE may elect to renew the contract for up to two additional one-year periods, subject to programmatic need and availability of funding.

Scope of Service:

Year 1: (SY26-SY27) – Fiscal Year 2027

Service 1: Curriculum Implementation Support for Newcomers and SLIFE ELA/ELD Curriculum The vendor will provide implementation support to districts currently implementing DESE-developed newcomer and SLIFE ELA/ELD curriculum materials in the following ways:

Office Hours and Technical Assistance

The vendor shall:

· Provide up to fifteen (15) virtual office hour sessions during the contract period;

· Offer individualized technical assistance, consultation, and feedback to participating district and school teams;

· Support educators and leaders in addressing implementation challenges and strengthening instructional practice.

Site-Based Coaching and Support

The vendor shall:

· Conduct beginning-of-year and end-of-year two-day site visits for up to three (3) participating districts;

· Facilitate classroom observations, educator coaching, leadership team meetings, and implementation planning discussions;

· Identify strengths, challenges, and opportunities for improvement related to curriculum implementation.

Individual Educator Coaching

The vendor shall:

· Provide remote coaching support for up to two (2) educators;

· Work with educators to establish implementation goals;

· Review classroom video recordings submitted by educators;

· Provide individualized feedback and coaching conversations to support continuous improvement.

Reporting

The vendor shall provide a written end-of-year report that includes:

· Summary of district participation and engagement;

· Key lessons learned through coaching, technical assistance, and site visits;

· Recommendations for future implementation support;

· Summary and analysis of available student outcomes data.

The report must be provided in a format that meets all accessibility requirements for DESE.

Service 2: Development of Additional SLIFE Mathematics Units

The vendor will develop two (2) additional mathematics units for middle and high school Students with Limited or Interrupted Formal Education (SLIFE). The specific mathematical concepts, standards, and topics for the units will be identified collaboratively by DESE and educator stakeholders.

The units shall:

· Build upon the design and instructional approach used in the existing DESE SLIFE mathematics unit focused on adding and subtracting fractions;

· Integrate the Massachusetts Mathematics Curriculum Frameworks and WIDA English Language Development Standards Framework;

· Support simultaneous development of mathematical understanding and academic language;

· Be appropriate for adolescent learners with limited or interrupted formal education;

· Serve as intervention and foundational support alongside grade-level mathematics instruction;

· Be designed for flexible implementation across a variety of instructional settings, schedules, and program models.

Deliverables shall include:

· Comprehensive unit plans;

· Teacher-facing instructional materials;

· Student-facing instructional materials;

· Assessments and progress-monitoring tools, as appropriate;

· Implementation guidance and supporting resources.

The vendor shall meet regularly with DESE throughout the development process to gather input and feedback from mathematics specialists, multilingual education specialists, and other stakeholders. Materials shall be revised based on DESE feedback and delivered in formats that meet DESE accessibility requirements and are suitable for statewide dissemination.

Ownership and Use of Math Curriculum Materials All math curriculum units, lesson plans, assessments, instructional resources, teacher-facing materials, student-facing materials, graphics, templates, and related products developed under this service shall become the property of DESE. DESE shall retain all rights to reproduce, modify, publish, disseminate, translate, adapt, and distribute these materials statewide or otherwise use them for educational purposes. The vendor shall provide all source files and editable versions of materials upon completion of the project and shall secure any necessary permissions to ensure that materials may be publicly distributed by DESE without restriction.

Service 3: Research and Recommendations for Foundational Literacy Curriculum Development

The vendor will conduct research and stakeholder engagement activities to inform the future development of foundational literacy curriculum resources for adolescent SLIFE.

Stakeholder Engagement

The vendor shall:

· Conduct educator focus groups, surveys, interviews, or a combination of methods during Spring 2027;

· Engage educators with expertise in newcomer education, SLIFE instruction, literacy intervention, and multilingual education;

· Gather information regarding instructional challenges, resource gaps, and priority needs.

Research and Analysis

The vendor shall:

· Review relevant research and promising practices related to adolescent foundational literacy development for multilingual learners and SLIFE;

· Analyze stakeholder feedback and identify key themes and recommendations.

Recommendations and Planning

The vendor shall develop a final report that includes:

· Summary of stakeholder engagement findings;

· Review of relevant research and promising practices;

· Recommendations regarding curriculum priorities and instructional approaches;

· Proposed scope and sequence for future curriculum development;

· High-level outline of a foundational literacy curriculum;

· Recommendations regarding implementation considerations and professional learning needs.

Service 4: Project Management and Collaboration

The vendor shall provide ongoing project management and coordination across all services.

Project Planning and Coordination

The vendor shall:

· Develop and maintain a project timeline that includes major activities, milestones, and deliverables;

· Coordinate project activities to ensure timely completion of all deliverables;

· Adjust project plans and timelines as necessary in consultation with DESE.

Collaboration with DESE

The vendor shall:

· Participate in regular virtual meetings with DESE staff throughout the duration of the project;

· Provide updates on project activities, progress toward deliverables, and emerging findings;

· Gather and incorporate feedback from DESE staff and relevant stakeholders;

· Collaborate with DESE to refine project activities and deliverables as needed.

Communication and Reporting

The vendor shall:

· Respond to DESE requests and feedback in a timely manner;

· Provide periodic progress updates, as requested by DESE;

· Ensure that deliverables are completed according to agreed-upon timelines and quality expectations.

Renewal Options

Year 2 Renewal: Fiscal Year 2028 (SY2027–2028)

Subject to available funding and DESE approval, the contract may be renewed for one additional year.

Activities may include:

Curriculum Implementation Support

· Professional learning and implementation support for districts implementing newcomer and SLIFE curriculum materials;

· Coaching, technical assistance, office hours, and site-based support;

· Development of implementation tools and resources;

· Collection and analysis of implementation data.

Foundational Literacy Curriculum Development

Building upon the research completed during Fiscal Year 2027, the vendor may:

· Develop a foundational literacy curriculum for adolescent SLIFE;

· Create a curriculum framework, scope and sequence, teacher-facing materials, student-facing materials, assessments, and implementation guidance;

· Integrate literacy standards, WIDA English Language Development Standards, and evidence-based instructional practices;

· Revise materials based on educator and DESE feedback.

Year 3 Renewal: Fiscal Year 2029 (SY2028–2029)

Subject to available funding and DESE approval, the contract may be renewed for an additional year.

Activities may include:

Curriculum Implementation Support

· Continued implementation support for districts implementing newcomer and SLIFE curriculum materials;

· Professional learning, coaching, technical assistance, classroom observation, and implementation planning support.

Foundational Literacy Curriculum Pilot and Refinement

The vendor may:

· Recruit and support pilot sites;

· Provide professional learning and coaching for participating educators;

· Collect implementation and feedback data;

· Analyze educator and student outcomes;

· Refine curriculum materials based on pilot findings;

· Develop recommendations for statewide dissemination and implementation.

Project Management

· Ongoing coordination, reporting, stakeholder engagement, and collaboration with DESE.

Adjustments within the guidelines of the scope may occur due to the nature of this work and outcomes as the project moves forward.

Budget:

The budget for the WIDA 2020 ELD Standards Implementation for Core Academic Content SEI Classroom Workshops for year one only is $125,000. The budget for year 2 and 3 is subject to funding availability.

Service 1: Curriculum Implementation Support for Newcomer and SLIFE ELA/ELD Curriculum

· Office hours and technical assistance

· Site-based coaching and support

· Individual educator coaching (up to 2)

· End-of-year reporting

Service 2: Development of Additional SLIFE Math Units

· Unit 1

· Unit 2

Service 3: Research and Recommendations for Foundational Literacy Curriculum Development

Service 4: Project Management and Communication $35,000 $60,000

$20,000

$10,000 From approval – June 30, 2027

Renewal Periods For each of the following fiscal years, the anticipated funds are as follows, pending availability:

· FY28 (July 1, 2027-June 30, 2028): $175,000

· FY29 (July 1, 2028-June 30, 2029): $175,000 Requirements:

Vendors must meet the following qualifications:

· Expertise in multilingual learner education and newcomer and SLIFE instruction;

· Experience developing curriculum and instructional materials for multilingual learners and adolescent learners with interrupted or limited formal education;

· Familiarity with WIDA English Language Development Standards Framework;

· Capacity to manage complex, multi-year educational projects;

· Demonstrated commitment to educational equity, culturally responsive practices, and examining their work to improve practices and supports from a racial equity lens;

· Experience integrating language and content instruction;

· Experience providing instructional coaching and professional learning for educators.

· Ability to develop educational resources and digital materials that are compliant with Massachusetts Digital Accessibility Standards and in accordance with Vendor Digital Accessibility Contract policies.

Preferred:

· Familiarity with Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks;

· Experience supporting the implementation of high-quality instructional materials;

· Knowledge of current research related to multilingual learners, SLIFE, literacy, and mathematics intervention;

· Experience conducting qualitative research, stakeholder engagement, and report writing;

Submission Requirements:

Bidders must submit the following:

· A narrative of no more than ten (10) single-spaced pages describing the proposed approach, qualifications, staffing, and work plan;

· Resumes for key personnel, not to exceed two pages per individual;

· At least two samples of related work products demonstrating experience with curriculum development, professional learning, coaching, or multilingual learner education;

· An all-inclusive, detailed budget organized by service area and fiscal year;

· A one-page narrative describing the organization’s commitment to equity and actions taken to support equitable outcomes internally and externally.

· Attachment B – Contact information form (complete and upload with COMMBUYS submission Responses MUST be uploaded to COMMBUYS. Responses not posted to COMMBUYS will not be considered for evaluation. Do not Email and/or mail responses to the department.

To respond to this bid, please register on the COMMBUYS website. If you need assistance contact the OSD Help Desk at OSDHelpDesk@mass.gov or (8am - 5pm ET Monday – Friday) at 1-888-627-8283 or 617-720-3197.

PLEASE NOTE: All bid postings such as this one, that is $250,000 or less annually, will give preference to Small Business Program Plan (SBPP) registered bidders. Those that are registered SBPP bidders will be evaluated first and if able to meet all the needs of the procurement, will be awarded. Non-SBPP bidders are not reviewed if a SBPP bidder can be awarded. To learn more about the SBPP click here.