47HAA018F0227_FAR_8.405-6_Limited_Sources_Justification_Redacted.pdf

LIMITED SOURCES JUSTIFICATION FOR MULTIPLE AWARD SCHEDULE (MAS) ORDERS

FAR 8.405-6(b)

1. Identification of the agency and the contracting activity and specific identification of the document as a limited source justification.

This requirement is in support of GSA, Office of Customer Experience (OCE) and Federal Acquisition Service (FAS) at 1800 F Street, NW Washington, D.C. 20005.

The contracting activity is Office of Internal Acquisition (OIA), 1800 F Street NW, Washington, DC 20405.

2. Nature and/or description of the action being approved.

GSA is establishing a new Firm-Fixed-Price schedule task order for a 12-month base period with one 12-month option period for GSA Civic Digital Fellowship Program intern recruitment and selection services. This program is administered by The Washington Center for Internships and Academic Seminars (The Washington Center) on behalf of Coding It Forward, a student-led 501(c)(3) nonprofit. The Washington Center holds GSA Schedule 738X Contract GS-02F- 0078P, SIN 595-21. The services to be provided are recruitment and selection based on matching the skill sets of undergraduate student applicants to assist with projects within GSA that focus on emerging areas such as data science, software engineering, product management, design, and data journalism, including data management and application development, along with support for both the Government and the students throughout the task order period.

3. A complete description of the supplies and/or services required to meet the agency’s needs.

The Civic Digital Fellowship is a cross-agency initiative to attract undergraduate and graduate students to roles in the federal government. Based on market research, this is a unique program that directly links up college students with an educational background in IT and interest in public service with agencies. GSA requires the vendor to collect information from undergraduate students with an educational background in IT from nationwide top tiered schools, determine student interest in public service work, screen student applications, interview students to match the skill-sets needed for GSA’s expected projects, provide coordination of interviews between students and project managers, and arrange for selected students to be within the DC metro area during the contracted period of performance.

In addition, provide education and training to GSA managers on using students effectively and assigning a dedicated program advisor to each student. These tasks will ultimately lead to the services of eight (8) undergraduate students to assist and participate in new initiatives to include, but not limited to, Prototyping GSA Data Science Knowledge Hub, Enabling D2D Deployment Self Service, D2D Mobile Application Prototype, and Integration of budget, contract and architecture data.

4. The authority and supporting rationale (see FAR Part 8.405-6(a)(1)(i) and (b)(1)) and, if applicable, a demonstration of the proposed contractor’s unique qualifications to provide the required supply or service.

Please check one:

FAR 8.405-6(a) Justifications for Limiting Sources (for brand name requirements, please see the following table) (A signed copy of this justification document must be posted to www.fedbizopps.gov for 30 days within 14 days from the date of award) The authority under which this LSJ is made is pursuant to FAR 8.405-6.

X FAR 8.405-6(a)(1)(i)(B) Only one source is capable of providing the supplies or services required at the level of quality required because the supplies or services are unique or highly specialized

GSA has determined that this procurement requires a sole source procurement in order to satisfy the Agency’s need. GSA is a highly graded organization and as such, we have been focusing on building our pipeline of entry level talent. We are currently utilizing Pathways Emerging Leaders program and Pathways Summer and School Year Internship program.

To further this goal, we plan to utilize an outside program for our strategy. The Civic Digital Fellowship is a cross-agency initiative to attract undergraduate and graduate students to roles in the federal government. Coding It Forward is a student-led 501(c)(3) nonprofit empowering computer science, data science, and design students to create social good by breaking down the barriers to entry in social impact spaces within the Government. This program is administered by The Washington Center. It is very difficult to get well qualified, highly motivated candidates for entry level positions because private sector offers more than the Federal Government typically can which is where this unique program will fill our current needs.

The Washington Center adds great value to federal agency internship programs public and private institutions with the specific IT focus areas of engineers, designers, and data scientists. The other vendors do not have this specialization.

The Washington Center works with over 500 colleges and universities across the country (including Minority Serving Institutions) to get their applicants, while there are 170 diverse colleges and universities that have signed on to cooperate with Minority Access, Inc. and the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities performs site-visits to more than 200 colleges and universities (HACU members and other MSIs).

Qualifications

Washington Center for

Internships (Reseller for

Coding It Forward)

Minority Access, Inc.

Hispanic Association Colleges and Universiti

GSA Schedule # GS-02F-0078P GS-02F-136AA GS-02F-0110Y Number of colleges vendor works with and source of this information 500 200 170

GSA Schedule contract price for 10-week summer internship

Registered in SAM.gov? Yes Yes Yes

Capture undergraduate students with an educational background in IT from nationwide top tiered schools

Yes No No

# of Partnerships with Universities and Colleges 500 200 170

Capture intern candidates interested in public service work Yes No No

Offer internships with specialization in IT-related disciplines Yes No No

Screen student applications Yes Yes Yes

Provide coordination of interviews between students and project managers

Yes Yes Yes

Arrange for selected students to be within the DC metro area during the contracted period of performance

Yes Yes Yes

Assign a dedicated Yes No No program advisor to each student

Provide education and training to agency mentors on how to make the most of working with an intern

Yes No No

Qualifications Coding It Forward

Minority Access, Inc.

Hispanic Association o Colleges and Universities

Open Market 10-Week Summer Internship Price

Inquiries were made on April 6, 2018 via email and phone but

Minority Access, Inc did not provide a response

Inquiries were made on April 6, 2018 via email and phone but Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities did not provide a response

Number of colleges vendor works with and source of this information 500 200 170

Registered in SAM.gov? No Yes Yes Capture undergraduate students with an educational background in

IT from nationwide top tiered schools

Yes No No

# of Partnerships with Universities and Colleges 500 200 170

Capture intern candidates interested in public service work Yes No No

Offer internships with specialization in IT-related disciplines Yes No No

Screen student applications Yes Yes Yes

Provide coordination of interviews between students and project managers

Yes Yes Yes

Arrange for selected students to be within the DC metro area during the contracted period of performance

Yes Yes Yes

Assign a dedicated program advisor to each student

Provide education and training to agency mentors on how to make the most of working with an intern

Under the Civic Digital Fellowship, education and training to agency mentors on how to make the most of working with an intern is offered and ongoing support is given throughout the entire session. The other vendors offer program handbooks to the Government managers. This additional service ensures that the 10 week semester is worthwhile for both the students and GSA and is vital since GSA has little experience with this type of outside program.

7. Any other facts supporting the limited sources justification.

The Civic Digital Fellowship is a unique program that directly links up college students with an educational background in IT and interest in public service with agencies. OPM continues to encourage federal agencies to outline a practical framework to help guide agencies in the area of the strategic management of human capital. According to OPM, this framework includes establishing "an ongoing presence with professional organizations, colleges/universities, veteran organizations, and minority and community groups." OPM also names internships (presidential management interns, career interns, and other internships) as important instruments agencies should utilize as a means to develop deep and fertile pools of talent.

OPM's recommendation for agencies to use internship programs as recruitment tools is supported by the National Association of Colleges and Universities' (NACE) study on the effectiveness of internship programs which reported that internships provide the best return on investment for recruiting new talent into an organization, regardless of the number of new hires by the individual employer. The NACE report also found that intern recruits tend to stay with their employers longer, minimizing the impact of turnover in the organization.

Using the Civic Digital Fellowship with the requested vendor will allow GSA to gain valuable resources, move forward with our staffing goals, and stay within OPM’s guidance.

8. A statement of the actions, if any, the agency may take to remove or overcome any barriers that led to restricted consideration before any subsequent acquisition for supplies or services is made.