4-Grant Consultant RFP Specifications.pdf

1. Background and Purpose

Boulder County Public Health (BCPH) is seeking proposals from qualified consultants to support the agency’s public health funding strategy by identifying grant opportunities and developing high-quality, competitive grant applications. The selected consultant will work with the Grants Manager and program managers to strengthen proposal narratives, improve competitiveness, and support successful funding outcomes.

BCPH seeks a consultant with demonstrated success in grant writing and proposal development, particularly within public health, government, or nonprofit sectors. Services may include funding opportunity research, proposal development, application review, grant tracking, and development of reusable grant-development tools and resources.

2. Anticipated Contract Term, Level of Effort, and Budget

Anticipated Contract Term: Six (6) months from the effective date, with an option to extend by mutual written amendment, subject to available funding, satisfactory performance, and applicable procurement requirements.

Anticipated Level of Effort: Up to 55 hours per month, as needed for County-authorized assignments.

Maximum Budget: Up to $50,000 for the initial six-month term.

Work Arrangement: The selected consultant will be required to work on-site one (1) day per week, with the remainder of the work performed remotely. Additional in-person attendance may be required based on project needs.

3. Scope of Services

• Identify and evaluate federal, state, local, and private grant opportunities aligned with agency priorities. For recommended opportunities, provide an assessment identifying the funding source, available funding, eligibility requirements, application deadline, required match or cost sharing, significant reporting obligations, and alignment with County priorities.

• Lead and/or significantly contribute to the development of grant proposals, including narrative drafting, editing, and final submission preparation. Proposal development will be performed for opportunities authorized by the County’s designated Project Manager and in accordance with established application requirements and agreed-upon timelines.

• Collaborate with program managers to translate program goals, outcomes, and data into compelling, fundable proposals.

• Review and enhance existing applications to improve clarity, alignment with funder priorities, and overall competitiveness.

• Ensure assigned application packages meet eligibility, compliance, and formatting requirements;

review for completeness and consistency with applicable funder instructions; and identify deficiencies or missing information before submission deadlines.

• Coordinate proposal development timelines and manage multiple concurrent deadlines, including internal milestones for draft preparation, County review, revisions, and final application preparation.

• Assist in assembling complete application packages, including required attachments and supporting documentation, and coordinate with designated County personnel to obtain required information and documentation.

• Provide strategic input on positioning proposals to maximize competitiveness and alignment with funder priorities.

• Develop or refine templates, boilerplate language, and proposal tools to improve efficiency and consistency. Provide completed materials in editable formats that can be maintained and reused by the County.

• Maintain a tracking mechanism for grant opportunities, submissions, and outcomes in coordination with the Grants Manager. The tracking mechanism should identify relevant funding opportunities, application deadlines, assigned responsibilities, submission status, anticipated award notifications, and known outcomes.

4. Anticipated Deliverables and Performance Expectations

During the initial six-month engagement, BCPH anticipates the following deliverables:

• Funding Opportunity Assessments: Written assessments of funding opportunities identified as relevant to County priorities, including eligibility, funding availability, application requirements, deadlines, and other material considerations.

• Grant Application Development: Development and/or substantial support of multiple grant applications. The actual number and complexity of applications will depend on available funding opportunities, County priorities, and authorized assignments. For each assigned application, the consultant will provide agreed-upon proposal materials in accordance with the approved development schedule and applicable funder requirements.

• The Finance Manager and Grants Manager will establish performance targets for the Contractor, including the expected number of grant awards and minimum total funding amounts to be secured through grant applications submitted on behalf of the Agency.

• Proposal Quality: Proposal materials that are complete, professionally written, responsive to applicable funder requirements, and suitable for County review and approval.

• Timely Draft Review and Revision: Draft reviews, revisions, and other assigned activities completed in accordance with project-specific timelines established in coordination with the County’s designated Project Manager.

• Grant Development Tools: Completed or updated templates, standard organizational narratives, checklists, or other grant development resources agreed upon with the County’s designated Project Manager.

• Initial Work Plan: Within ten (10) business days of contract commencement, an initial work plan identifying anticipated activities, priorities, milestones, and deliverables for County review.

• Grant Opportunity Tracker: A shared tracking mechanism for identified funding opportunities, assigned applications, submission deadlines, and known outcomes, updated at least biweekly.

• Monthly Progress Reports: A monthly written summary of services performed, completed deliverables, active assignments, upcoming deadlines, and issues requiring County attention.

• Final Engagement Report: Before the end of the engagement, a final report summarizing completed activities, grant applications developed or supported, identified funding opportunities, outstanding assignments, and recommendations for future grant development activities.

Performance will be assessed based on the quality, completeness, and timeliness of deliverables;

adherence to applicable application requirements; and fulfillment of authorized assignments. Grant award decisions are made by external funding entities and are not guaranteed.

5. County Responsibilities and Resources

• Designate a Project Manager to coordinate assignments, establish priorities, review work products, and serve as the primary point of contact.

• Provide available program information, organizational data, budget information, and other materials reasonably necessary to support authorized assignments.

• In coordination with the Directors Team (DT), determine which funding opportunities to pursue and retain responsibility for approving programmatic and financial commitments and authorizing final grant submissions.

• Coordinate access to relevant program, finance, and other County staff as needed for proposal development.

6. Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience in Public Health, Public Administration, Communications, or a related field.

• Minimum of 2–3 years of grant writing and proposal development experience.

• Demonstrated track record of contributing to successful grant awards.

• Strong writing, editing, and storytelling skills, with the ability to tailor content to specific funders.

• Experience working with government, public health, or nonprofit funding sources.

• Ability to work independently, manage priorities, and meet deadlines with minimal supervision.

• Strong organizational and communication skills.

7. Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with public health funding agencies, including state health departments, federal agencies, or foundations.

• Familiarity with compliance considerations for government grants.

• Experience collaborating with cross-functional teams, including program and finance staff.

• Experience with grant tracking tools.

• Experience developing competitive federal and state grant applications, including complex application packages involving multiple programmatic and financial contributors.

• Experience developing reusable proposal templates, organizational narratives, and grant development tools to improve internal processes.

8. Proposal Response Requirements

Respondents should provide sufficient information for BCPH to evaluate their qualifications, proposed approach, capacity, and cost. Proposals should include:

• Consultant/Firm Information: Name, business address, primary contact information, and a brief description of the consultant or firm. Copy of Colorado Secretary of State Good Standings certificate.

• Qualifications and Experience: Description of relevant grant writing and proposal development experience, including experience with government, public health, or nonprofit funding sources.

• Comparable Experience: Examples of comparable grant development projects, identifying the funding source, the respondent’s specific role and responsibilities, and award outcomes when known.

• Proposed Personnel: Identification of the individual or individuals who would perform the services, including resumes or summaries of relevant qualifications and experience.

• Approach and Methodology: Description of the proposed approach to identifying funding opportunities, coordinating with County staff, developing and reviewing proposals, managing concurrent deadlines, and maintaining grant-development tracking.

• Capacity and Availability: Description of the respondent’s availability and ability to support the anticipated level of effort and multiple concurrent grant-development assignments during the contract term.

• Writing Samples: Representative grant proposal writing samples or comparable work products.

Respondents may redact confidential or proprietary information.

• References: Professional references for comparable work.

• Cost Proposal: Proposed fully burdened hourly rate(s), anticipated level of effort, and estimated total cost for the services. Proposed costs must fit within the County’s maximum budget of $50,000 for the initial term.

9. Evaluation Considerations

Proposals will be evaluated in accordance with the evaluation criteria and process established in the County’s RFP. Relevant considerations should include the respondent’s qualifications and experience, demonstrated grant-development experience, proposed approach and methodology, qualifications of proposed personnel, capacity and availability, quality of submitted work samples, and cost proposal.

Any final scoring weights, interview process, reference checks, and other evaluation procedures should be stated in the County’s RFP instructions and applied consistently to all responsive proposals.

10. Additional RFP Information

• The selected consultant will perform services as an independent contractor and not as a County employee.

• The selected consultant will coordinate on-site attendance and project activities with the County’s designated Project Manager.

• Respondents should disclose any actual or potential conflicts of interest that could affect performance of the proposed services.

• The selected consultant will be expected to protect confidential and nonpublic County information and comply with applicable County information-security requirements.

• Nonpublic County information may not be entered into publicly accessible generative artificial intelligence tools or other unauthorized third-party systems without prior written County approval.

• The resulting agreement will establish applicable contractual terms, including invoicing and payment, ownership of work product, confidentiality, insurance and risk requirements, and other County standard terms and conditions.