RFP - Adult Learner Strategy and Organizational Design Consulting Services

RFP #SNOC26271024

Issued October 12, 2026

Section 1 - General Information Section 2 - College Background and Environment Section 3 - General Overview Section 4 - Decisions the Engagement Support.

Section 5 - Scope of Work Section 6 - Required Deliverables Section 7 - Engagement Requirements Section 8 - Work the College Doesn’t Seek Section 9 - College’s Responsibilities Section 10 - Proposal Requirements Section 11 - Presentation / Interview Section 12 - Pricing / Cost Section 13 - Contact Information Section 14 - Proposal Evaluation Appendix’s

I. GENERAL INFORMATION

A. Proposal Response Outline. Proposals must be concise and in outline format.

Pertinent supplemental information should be referenced and included as attachments. All proposals must be organized and tabbed to comply with the following sections:

1. LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL. The letter of transmittal should include an introduction to the supplier’s company, the name, address, telephone number and fax number of the person to be contacted, along with others who are authorized to represent the company in dealing with this bid. Any other information not appropriately contained in the proposal itself should also be included in the letter.

2. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY. An executive summary will briefly describe the supplier’s approach and clearly indicate any options or alternatives being proposed. It should also indicate any major requirements that cannot be met by the supplier.

3. DETAILED DISCUSSION. This section should constitute the major portion of the proposal and must contain a specific response in outline form to each section in this RFP. Outline numbers should correspond, in order, to the section numbers contained in the RFP. Failure to provide written response to items indicated in this bid will be interpreted by the Snow College (hereafter referred to as “Snow” or “College”) as an inability, by the supplier, to provide the requested product, service or function.

4. COST PROPOSAL. The supplier must describe all costs to the College associated with the proposal, in order for the College to determine the full financial impact of the proposal. The College will bear no responsibility for payment of any costs not disclosed in the proposal. It must be submitted as a separate file from any other responses to this RFP, to be accepted. If any costs are given in any part of the response(s) in the RFP, except in the separately submitted document for costs, the RFP will be eliminated from further consideration.

5. Additional information and attachments, if any.

B. Administrative Guidance. The information provided herein is intended to assist suppliers in the preparation of proposals necessary to properly respond to this proposal. The bid is designed to provide interested suppliers with sufficient basic information to submit proposals meeting minimum requirements, but is not intended to limit a proposal’s content or to exclude any relevant or essential data therefrom. Suppliers are at liberty and are encouraged to expand upon the specifications to evidence service capability under any proposal.

C. Issuing office and bid Reference Number. The Purchasing Department of the College is the issuing office for this document and all subsequent addenda relating to it. The reference number for the transaction is Bid/RFP #SNOC26271024.

This number must be referred to on all proposals, correspondence, and documentation relating to the bid.

D. Response Date. One (1) digital file copy for each (RFP Response and a separate file for the Cost Proposal) that will be submitted in the bidding portal (U3P - Utah Public, Procurement Place) including, samples, marketing brochures and other material must be received by 5:00 p.m. MT/MDT on Friday, Nov. 6th, 2026.

Proposals received after this deadline will be late and ineligible for consideration.

Please give yourself enough time to ensure your response is received on-time.

Please reach out to U3Padmin@utah.gov for limited technical support.

E. Inquiries. Questions arising subsequently to the issuance of the bid, which could have a significant impact on the responses to the bid, should be submitted through the bidding portal (U3P). All such questions should be received by Friday, Oct. 23rd, 2026, at 12:00 p.m. MT/MDT (noon).

NOTE: Suppliers are not to contact or otherwise communicate with any College trustee, officer, and faculty or staff member regarding this RFP without prior written consent from the Snow College Director of Purchasing.

Contacts without prior written authorization may result in disqualification for any award made hereunder.

F. Important Dates. The following dates are significant for this bid.

RFP Dated and Issued Oct. 12, 2026 Questions Deadline Oct. 23, 2026 - (See E above) Proposal Response Date Nov. 06, 2026 - (See D above) Presentation Date(s) Nov. 17, 2026 - (See Section XI)

G. Proposal Validity Time. Proposals containing less than ninety (90) calendar day’s acceptance time will not be considered.

H. Consideration of Proposals. The College may award a contract based on initial proposals received without discussion of such proposals. Accordingly, each initial proposal should be submitted with the most favorable price and service.

available.

mailto:U3Padmin@utah.gov

I. Oral Presentation. An oral presentation, by a vendor, to supplement a proposal may be required. These presentations will be scheduled, if required, by the College Procurement Services subsequent to the receipt of proposals and prior to the award of the contract.

J. Award of the Contract/Agreement. The Procurement Services Department of the College is the only department authorized to award a contract hereunder. Any award, hereunder, will be subject to any existing College contractual obligations.

This RFP and the Suppliers responses and all clarifications, and communications will become part of the purchasing agreement with the selected vendor/supplier.

The contract will be reviewed by Snow College’s legal counsel and must contain acceptable FERPA, GRAMA (Utah Government Records Access and Management Act 63G-2-101), and Governing Law clauses.

K. Contract Period and Effective Date. Is the time frame specified in the bid.

L. News Releases. News releases pertaining to the Bid or the proposal contract will be made only by the College.

M. Protected Information. The Government Records Access and Management Act, Section 63-1-101 et seq., Utah Code Annotated, ("GRAMA") provides that information in the proposal(s) submitted may be open for public inspection. If a supplier desires to have certain information contained in its proposal(s) protected from such disclosure, the supplier may request such treatment by providing a "written claim of business confidentiality and a concise statement of reasons supporting the claim of business confidentiality" with the proposal (GRAMA, Section 63-2-308). Pricing elements of any proposal will not be considered protected. All material contained in and/or submitted with the proposal becomes the property of the College and may be returned only at the College’s option.

N. Process for Requesting Non-Disclosure: Any Bidder requesting that a record be protected shall include with the bid a Claim of Business Confidentiality. To protect information under a Claim of Business Confidentiality, the Bidder must complete the Claim of Business Confidentiality form with the following information:

1. Provide a written Claim of Business Confidentiality at the time the information (bid) is provided to the state, and

a. Include a concise statement of reasons supporting the claim of business confidentiality (Subsection 63G-2-309(1)).

b. Submit an electronic “redacted” (excluding protected information) copy of the proposal. Copy must clearly be marked “Redacted Version.”

2. An entire bid cannot be identified as “PROTECTED”, “CONFIDENTIAL” or “PROPRIETARY” and shall be considered non-responsive unless the Bidder removes the designation.

3. Redacted Copy: If a Bidder submits a bid that contains information claimed to be business confidential or protected information, the Bidder MUST submit two separate proposals: one redacted version for public release, with all protected business confidential information either blacked-out or removed, clearly marked as "Redacted Version"; and one non-redacted version for evaluation purposes clearly marked as "Protected Business Confidential."

O. EQUAL OPPORTUNITY AND TITLE IX: The Contractor agrees to abide by the provisions of Title VI and VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42USC 2000e) which prohibits discrimination against any employee or applicant for employment or any applicant or recipient of services, on the basis of race, religion, color, or national origin; and further agrees to abide by Executive Order No. 11246, as amended, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex; 45 CFR 90 which prohibits discrimination on the basis of age; and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973; or the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 which prohibits discrimination on the basis of disabilities. Also, the Contractor agrees to abide by Utah's Executive Order, dated March 17, 1993, which prohibits sexual harassment in the workplace. Contractor agrees that while interacting with Snow College employees, volunteers, and students it will comply with Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (20 USC 1681) which prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in any federally funded education program or activity. Contractor must include this provision in every subcontract or purchase order relating to purchases by Snow College to ensure that the subcontractors and vendors are bound by this provision. Contractor additionally agrees that it will cooperate with any investigation by Snow College of a claimed violation of the above, to abide by any interim measures imposed during the course of an investigation and/or final measures imposed as a result of an investigation, and that its contract may be terminated without further recourse in the event of a finding of a violation by Contractor or its employees, subcontractors and related parties.

P. Notices. The supplier must specify the name, title, and address of the person to whom all correspondence, regarding any contract awarded as a result of this bid, should be directed (including amendments to the contract). All amendments must be in writing and signed by both parties.

Q. Incurring Costs. The College will not be liable for any cost which suppliers may incur in the preparation or presentation of their proposal(s). Proposals should be concise, straightforward and prepared simply and economically. Expensive displays, bindings or promotional materials are neither desired nor required.

However, there is no intent made here to limit a proposal’s content or to exclude any relevant or essential data therefrom.

R. Addendums to Bid. In the event that it becomes necessary to revise this bid in whole, or in part, an addendum will be provided to all suppliers through the bidding portal (U3P).

S. Alternative Proposals. A supplier may submit more than one proposal, each of which must follow the Proposal Response Outline and satisfy the requirements of the bid. The supplier’s prime proposal must be complete and comply with all instructions. The alternative proposals may be in abbreviated form, following the bid response outline, but providing complete information only for sections which differ in any way from those contained in the prime proposal. If alternative proposals are submitted, the reasons for the alternative(s) and its comparative benefits must be explained. Each proposal submitted will be evaluated on its own merits.

T. Authorized Supplier Representatives. The proposal will list the name, title, office address, telephone number, and fax number of the person(s) authorized to represent the supplier regarding this bid. The College reserves the right to negotiate a change in the individual assigned to represent the firm awarded this contract, if the assigned representative is not supplying the needs of the College appropriately. The right will carry forward through the response period and during the term of the contract.

U. Award of Subcontracts. For each subcontract, if any, which the supplier proposes to award, the supplier must specify, in writing, the proposed subcontractor’s name and address, and the purpose of the contract. Any supplier proposing subcontracts as a part of a proposal must explicitly state so in the proposal, and must include the above-stated information for each subcontract. Approval by the College Purchasing Department is required prior to the awarding of any subcontracts. Any Subcontractor will be required to provide evidence to the College of the same indemnification or insurance provisions described herein. A payment bond is required if subcontractor(s) are used.

V. Assignment. Supplier will not assign the order, subcontract it or sublet it, as a whole, without the prior written consent of the College. Assignment, subcontracting, or subletting such consent, will in no way, relieve the supplier of any of its obligations under this order. Supplier is responsible for all payments to any assigned subcontract or sublet.

W. Remedies. The laws of the State of Utah will apply in all disputes arising out of the bid or any award made hereunder.

X. Compliance. The supplier hereby agrees to abide by all applicable federal, state, county, and city laws and regulations, and to be responsible for obtaining and/or processing any and all permits and licenses that may be required.

Y. Service/Cancellation. Inadequate delivery, poor service, or failure to adhere to the covenants of any offering may be cause for cancellation of the contract. Contract may be terminated with 90 (ninety) day written notification.

Z. Acceptance of Services Rendered. The College, through its designated agents and representatives, will be the sole determining judge of whether services rendered under the contract satisfy the requirements as identified in the contract order.

AA. State and Local Taxes. The College is exempt from sales and excise taxes.

Exemption certification information appears on all purchase orders issued by the College. Such taxes will not be included in quoted prices. However, if the supplier believes any taxes apply, they will be shown separately. If not so shown, they will be considered an expense of the supplier.

BB. Anti-Collusion. The submittal of a proposal constitutes agreement that the offeror has not divulged his proposal to offerors, nor has colluded with any other offerors or parties to a proposal whatsoever.

CC. Indemnification. The supplier will indemnify and hold harmless, the College, the State of Utah, its officers, employees, and agents from and against any and all claims, demands, causes of action, orders, decrees, or judgments for injury, death, or damage to person or property, loss damage, and liability (including all costs and reasonable attorney’s fees incurred in defending any claim, demand or cause of action) occasioned by, growing out of, or arising or resulting from (a) the performance of any services required herein to be performed by supplier, or (b) any act, error, or omission on the part of the supplier, or its agents, employees, or subcontractors.

DD. Insurance. Supplier will maintain Comprehensive General, Contractual, and Automobile Liability Insurance, with a minimum limit of $2,000,000 per occurrence for bodily injury (including death) and property damage liability, as required by Federal, State and local laws, statutes and ordinances governing the transportation services herein described. Supplier will maintain all employee related insurances, in the statutory amounts, such as unemployment compensation, worker’s compensation, and employer’s liability, for its employees involved in performing services pursuant to this agreement.

The College and the State of Utah will be named as additional insured on the Comprehensive General, Contractual, and Automobile Liability policies provided for herein and certificates of insurance, signed by the insurer, will be provided prior to the College awarding the bid. These certificates will contain a provision which indicates that the College will be given thirty (30) days written notice of cancellation or any material change to these insurance policies. The insurance company(s) chosen by the supplier, will be licensed to do business in the states in which it operates, and will be approved by the College prior to the award of the bid.

EE. Restrictions. All proposals must clearly set forth any restrictions or provisions deemed necessary by the supplier to effectively service the proposed contract.

FF. Payment. College will pay for the project once completed to the College’s satisfaction, approved by the project manager, and any and all damages are taken care of.

GG. Bond(s). The College requires a payment if subcontractors are used and performance bond for the amount of the bid, if vendor requires any type or form of prepayment terms, (if it is over $5,000), or the amount of the project is over $50,000. The purchase of the bond is the vendor’s responsibility. Bond(s) must be issued by a B+ or better rated company, by AM Best rated Surety Company, and/or listed on the treasury listing.

HH. Right to Reject. The College reserves the right to reject any or all proposals and to waive any informality or technicality, in any proposal, in the interest of the College.

II. Licenses. The contractor, by responding to the bid, signifies that they have all the current licenses to operate a business and perform this type of work within the State of Utah.

JJ. Software Licensing Fees. No licensing fees shall be due until the Subscriptions or Software have been configured, implemented and are running to College’s reasonable satisfaction.

KK. Accounting. Supplier must keep accurate accounting records of all operations covered by this document and is to establish and maintain a system of bookkeeping and accounting satisfactory to the College. The supplier should be able to summarize and concisely report information, in a timely manner, through the duration of any contract resulting from this bid. The records must be available for audits by the College during the duration of this contract.

LL. Anti-Boycott Actions. In accordance with Utah Code 63G-27-102, Contractor certifies that it is not currently engaged in an “economic boycott” nor a “boycott of the State of Israel” as those terms are defined in that Code section. Contractor also agrees not to engage in either boycott for the duration of this contract. If Contractor does engage in such a boycott, it shall immediately provide written notification to the public entity party to this contract.

MM. Participating Entities – Cooperative Purchasing. All USHE USHE member institutions may, at their option, purchase off of the resulting contract by either signing a Participating Addendum to the resulting contract/agreement or entering into a separate, direct contract with the awarded offeror: Snow College, Salt Lake Community College, Utah State University, Weber State University, University of Utah, Utah Valley University, Southern Utah University, Utah Tech University, Bridgerland Technical College, Davis Technical College, Ogden-Weber Technical College, Southwest Technical College, Uintah Basin Technical College, Dixie Technical College, Mountainland Technical College, Tooele Technical College, and any other institution of higher education that the State of Utah may form in the future. After reviewing the awarded proposal and contract, each institution may choose not to proceed with a procurement or enter into any agreement.

II. COLLEGE BACKGROUND AND ENVIRONMENT

A. College Background

1. Snow College is a two-year public college, and in January of 2020 The Chronicle of Higher Educations has ranked Snow College #1 in the nation for student success of two-year colleges. Located in the heart of Utah, at the foot of the Wasatch Mountains, Snow College is the one of the oldest comprehensive two-year college in the Western United States.

The College was established in 1888; excellence continues to be the hallmark of all our work and activities. We are the preferred choice of approximately 5,000+ students who want a small College experience filled with a variety of many different activities, events and performances. With campuses located in Ephraim, Richfield, and online, students’ complete degrees in Associate of Arts, Science or Applied Science with numerous specialized, short-term vocational training certificates and diplomas including a few Bachelor’s degrees.

Besides serving the student population, the programs also serve the larger counties and high school activities, as well.

2. Snow College is a public institution serving students from its campuses in Ephraim and Richfield, Utah, and through additional delivery approaches.

Its rural setting, broad access mission, workforce and transfer roles, and relationships with employers and communities shape the adult learner opportunity. Snow is both the degree-granting institution and the technical college responsible for serving six rural counties in central Utah.

Snow is also planning within a higher education region that includes Mountainland Technical College and Utah Valley University. The engagement should consider Snow's distinct role as well as opportunities for alignment, referral, articulation, and partnership across the region.

Recommendations must remain realistic for a small rural college and should recognize geographic, transportation, scheduling, technology, family, employment, and affordability barriers that adults may face.

For this project, adult learners generally means individuals age 25 or older, while recognizing that age alone does not define the populations Snow may serve. The analysis should distinguish among meaningful segments, including adults with some college and no credential, former Snow students, students who stopped out elsewhere, first-time adult students, working adults seeking advancement, career changers, and adults seeking short-term credentials or pathways to bachelor's degrees.

III. GENERAL OVERVIEW

A. Snow College seeks a consultant with demonstrated expertise in adult and returning learners, community colleges or regional public institutions, rural or geographically dispersed populations, and institutional design. The consultant will help the College decide whom it can serve well, what must change, how responsibility should be distributed, and what permanent staffing model will make the work sustainable.

The College is intentionally conducting this work before filling a permanent adult learner leadership position. Snow has developed preliminary ideas about such a position, but the consultant must test those ideas rather than assume they are correct.

Snow College invites qualified consultants or consulting teams to propose a focused engagement that will define the College's adult learner opportunity, assess its readiness to serve adult students, recommend the highest-priority institutional changes, and design the organizational structure and permanent position or team needed to sustain the work.

The selected consultant will produce a practical decision framework and implementation plan. Snow seeks findings grounded in its rural and regional context, direct input from adults, institutional data, and the College's realistic capacity to act.

Snow College invites interested parties to submit a proposal to provide the college with these services.

This document constitutes a Request for Proposal (RFP), via competitive sealed proposals, from qualified individuals or organizations, to perform the Scope of Work set forth herein. This request may result in an acceptance of the proposal by Snow College, in accordance with the terms and conditions of this RFP, the services and/or products proposed by the successful firm. Vendors are strongly encouraged to carefully read the entire request for proposal.

B. Contract max budget constraint is $75,000.

IV. Decisions the Engagement Must Support

A. At the end of the engagement, Snow College must be prepared to make and implement the following decisions. The consultant's work must answer the questions identified within each area.

1. Priority Adult Populations and Markets

a. Identify the adult populations and geographic markets Snow can serve most effectively.

b. The analysis must address:

(1) Who are Snow's most promising adult learner populations, and where are they located?

(2) What educational goals, program interests, delivery preferences, and barriers characterize each priority population?

(3) Which opportunities are supported by sufficient evidence of student need, interest, and enrollment potential?

2. Adult Learner Readiness and Student Experience

a. Determine what Snow must change to help adult learners choose, enroll at, persist at, and complete at the College.

b. The analysis must address:

(1) Where does Snow's current adult student journey work well?

(2) Where do policies, processes, schedules, services, communications, or systems create avoidable friction?

(3) Which changes are likely to provide the greatest value to adult learners and the College?

3. Programs Credentials and Student Services

a. Determine which existing offerings can serve adults successfully, which require modification, and which new opportunities merit further development.

b. The analysis must address:

(1) Which existing academic and technical programs, credentials, and pathways can serve adults effectively now?

(2) Which offerings require changes in design, scheduling, modality, sequencing, support, or delivery?

(3) Which student services are most essential to adult learner enrollment, persistence, and completion, and how should Snow modify the existing design, availability, delivery, or coordination of those services to meet adult learners' needs?

(4) Where might a new credential, pathway, program, or student service be justified?

(5) What criteria should Snow use to evaluate proposed new programs, credentials, pathways, or student services, including student and workforce demand, institutional mission, regional need, cost, capacity, sustainability, partnership opportunities, and expected student outcomes?

4. Organizational Responsibility and Accountability

a. Determine how adult learner work should be organized across the College and how responsibility should be distributed.

b. The analysis must address:

(1) What work should a permanent adult learner leader or team own and perform directly?

(2) What work should the adult learner leader coordinate across existing units?

(3) What institutional changes should the adult learner leader influence without owning?

(4) Which existing unit remains accountable when adult learner work crosses organizational lines?

(5) What decision rights, handoffs, and accountability mechanisms are needed?

5. Permanent Leadership and Staffing Model

a. Define the permanent leadership and staffing structure needed to sustain Snow's adult learner work.

b. The analysis must address:

(1) What position, team, or staffing model does Snow need?

(2) Where should the position or team report?

(3) What authority, competencies, institutional support, and budget should accompany the role?

(4) What should the leader's first-year priorities, goals, and performance measures be?

6. Priorities and Implementation

a. Establish a realistic and sequenced 24-month implementation roadmap.

b. The analysis must address:

(1) Which changes should Snow make first, considering likely impact, effort, cost, dependencies, and institutional capacity?

(2) Who should own each action?

(3) What resources, milestones, targets, and measures of progress are needed?

(4) Which actions can begin before Snow hires a permanent adult learner leader?

V. SCOPE of WORK

A. Proposers should recommend a methodology that produces the required outcomes.

The following work components define the expected substance but do not prescribe every task or technique.

1. Project Initiation and Data Plan

a. Conduct a kickoff with executive leadership and the project team to confirm decisions, scope, stakeholders, definitions, and success measures.

b. Provide a concise data and document request that distinguishes information Snow will supply from research the consultant will conduct.

c. Confirm the work plan, campus visits, adult engagement plan, and decision points.

2. Adult Learner Market and Opportunity Analysis - Critical Work

a. Size and segment the realistic adult learner opportunity in Snow's immediate service area and assigned region, using available institutional, public, workforce, demographic, and market data.

b. Distinguish former Snow students and other adults with some college and no credential from adults with no prior college experience and from adults seeking workforce advancement or career change.

c. Assess program interest (using data), credential level, delivery preferences, location, enrollment intent, and barriers to the extent supported by available data and original research.

d. Identify limits in the evidence and avoid treating all adults as one market.

e. Identify priority regional employer skill needs and documented workforce gaps, and assess where Snow's existing or potential adult-focused programs and credentials could help address them.

3. Adult Learner Readiness and Student Journey Audit

a. Review the experience from initial awareness through completion and transition. The audit should examine, at minimum:

Area Illustrative questions

Awareness and inquiry Does Snow's public information speak clearly to adults and make next steps easy to understand?

Admissions and onboarding

Can adults complete admissions, placement, orientation, and registration efficiently?

Cost and financial aid Are cost, aid, payment, and basic-needs information timely and understandable?

Credit for prior learning Are policies and processes clear, accessible, consistent, and appropriately used?

Programs and pathways Can adults see a direct path from entry to a credential and further education or employment?

Scheduling and modality Do course sequence, frequency, term length, time of day, location, and modality support working adults?

Advising and support Can adults obtain coordinated, timely assistance outside traditional business hours when needed?

Policies and technology Which requirements or systems create unnecessary stops, handoffs, or repeated steps?

Persistence and completion

How are adult progress, risk, reengagement, completion, and transition monitored?

4. Adult Voice and Partner Input

a. The work must include direct input from adults and relevant partners. The proposer should recommend a feasible mix of interviews, focus groups, surveys (including methodology), journey testing, or other methods involving current adult students, former

Snow students and stop-outs, prospective adults, employers, community partners, and College employees. Proposals must explain recruitment, participation goals, privacy protections, and how the consultant will avoid hearing only from adults already comfortable with college.

5. Program and Credential Opportunity Analysis

a. Assess existing programs and credentials for adult relevance, demand, accessibility, time to completion, scheduling, modality, and connection to employment or further education.

b. Identify modifications that may make existing offerings more usable for adults.

c. Identify a limited number of potential new or repackaged credentials or pathways only where evidence supports further consideration.

d. Note academic, accreditation, capacity, partnership, technology, and financial dependencies.

6. Organizational and Staffing Design

a. The consultant must recommend how Snow should organize adult learner work before the College finalizes a permanent hire. The analysis must address reporting, authority, decision rights, staffing, budget, governance, cross-unit coordination, and accountability.

b. The required responsibility framework must assign major functions using the following definitions:

Category Required meaning

Own and do The adult learner leader directly performs the work and is accountable for the result.

Coordinate An existing unit owns the function; the adult learner leader convenes, connects, monitors, or advances work across units.

Influence The adult learner leader identifies needs and advocates for change but does not control the final decision or execution.

Support The adult learner leader or another unit supplies data, expertise, communication, or operational assistance.

c. For every major function, the framework must identify the accountable existing unit, the adult learner leader's role, needed authority, handoffs, decision rights, and measures. A general recommendation to hire a director who collaborates across campus will not satisfy this requirement.

7. Priorities and Implementation Planning

a. Recommend approximately 8 to 12 high-priority actions for the next 24 months.

b. Sequence actions by phase and identify owners, dependencies, estimated cost or resource level, likely effort, expected value, and measures.

c. Separate near-term operational improvements from decisions requiring policy, curriculum, system, staffing, or budget changes.

d. Recommend adult learner enrollment, persistence, completion, service, and implementation measures with practical data definitions and review cadence.

VI. REQUIRED DELIVERABLES

A.

Deliverable Minimum content

1 Adult Learner Market and Opportunity Profile

Priority segments and geographies; available market size and demand evidence; program interests; barriers; implications; data limitations.

2 Adult Learner Readiness and Student Journey Audit

Findings across inquiry, enrollment, financial aid, advising, scheduling, modality, credit for prior learning, support, policies, technology, persistence, and completion; strengths and specific friction points.

3 Priority Recommendations Approximately 8 to 12 Snow-specific recommendations ranked and sequenced by value, effort, cost, dependency, and readiness;

clear rationale and evidence for each.

4 Organizational Responsibility and Staffing Model

Recommended structure, reporting, authority, governance, staffing, budget implications, and a function-level Own and Do, Coordinate, Influence, and Support matrix; revised position description or team design; first-year goals and measures.

5 Twenty-four Month Implementation Roadmap

Phases, milestones, owners, dependencies, resource estimates, enrollment and student-success targets, measures, review cadence, risks, and early actions that can begin before a permanent hire.

6 Executive Decision Session and Final Materials

On-campus or agreed live presentation to executive leadership;

concise decision deck; editable final files; working data tables and instruments that Snow is permitted to reuse.

B. Draft deliverables must be submitted early enough for Snow to verify factual accuracy and provide consolidated feedback. Final materials must show how feedback was resolved and must be provided in accessible, editable formats, including Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint as applicable, plus PDF versions.

VII. ENGAGEMENT REQUIREMENTS

A. Complete the core engagement within approximately three to five months after notice to proceed.

B. Include at least two on-campus visits, with one early discovery visit and one decision or implementation session. Proposers may recommend a different arrangement if it produces equal or greater value and explain why.

C. Identify the actual individuals assigned to the project, their roles, estimated effort, and which meetings and deliverables the principal consultant will lead.

D. Meet regularly with the Snow project team and provide brief progress, decision, risk, and data-gap updates.

E. Use accessible and ethical research practices, obtain appropriate consent, protect personally identifiable information, and comply with applicable College requirements before contacting students or using student-level data.

F. Transfer to Snow the agreed work products, research instruments, responsibility matrices, and implementation tools needed to continue the work.

VIII. WORK SNOW COLLEGE DOES NOT SEEK

A. Snow College is not seeking the following as the primary product of this engagement:

1. A traditional comprehensive strategic planning process or retreat-based plan.

2. A stand-alone marketing campaign, media plan, or recruitment communications package.

3. A report consisting primarily of national adult learner best practices without Snow-specific analysis.

4. A predetermined recommendation to create an adult learner center, hire a coordinator, purchase a product, or adopt the consultant's standard program.

5. A long list of unprioritized ideas without owners, costs, dependencies, measures, and sequencing.

6. Recommendations based only on current students or institutional perceptions without direct input from adults Snow does not currently serve.

IX. SNOW COLLEGE RESPONSIBILITIES

A. Snow expects to provide a cross-functional project team, coordinated access to stakeholders, and available institutional information. Subject to law and College policy, this may include enrollment and completion trends, age and geography, program and modality data, stop-out information, schedules, policies, organizational charts, job descriptions, prior research, and relevant student communications.

B. The selected consultant should use Snow personnel for efficient data extraction and factual context while reserving consulting time for analysis, inquiry, synthesis, facilitation, and design. Snow will review requests for student-level or personally identifiable data and determine the approved method of access, transfer, storage, use, and destruction.

X. PROPOSAL REQUIREMENTS

A. Proposals should be concise, specific, and organized in the order below.

Marketing brochures may be included as supplemental material but will not substitute for a complete response.

1. Executive summary and understanding of Snow's decision needs.

2. Proposed approach, methods, phases, campus visits, adult and partner engagement, and quality controls.

3. Work plan showing activities, deliverables, milestones, Snow responsibilities, dependencies, and decision points.

4. Project team, including names, roles, relevant experience, availability, and the work each person will perform. Identify the principal consultant and any subcontractors.

5. Comparable experience with adult learners, rural or dispersed populations, community colleges or regional public institutions, some college and no credential populations, and organizational or process redesign.

6. Two or three examples of comparable deliverables or work products, with confidential information removed as needed.

7. At least three client references for comparable engagements, including organization, contact, role, email, telephone, scope, dates, and assigned consultant.

8. Pricing - (Provide ONLY in the cost file proposal) using Section 12, including all professional fees, travel, research incentives, data or instrument fees, and other costs.

9. Assumptions, requested exceptions, potential conflicts of interest, and any proprietary method, data, or tool that would limit Snow's reuse of project outputs.

XI. PRESENTATION / INTERVIEW

A. The vendors that receive a total score over 270 points (out of 450 - 5 evaluators x

90/each) in the first evaluation stage, in scoring from only the section of Scope of

Work and Requirements, Customer Service/Support, Time Line / Implementation, Experience/ References will be asked to do an interview and discussion.

1. Those notified will receive an e-mail of a simple outline for the interview/discussion at that time.

2. Presentations can be in person (preferred), on-line, or both (web conference).

a. Length will be up to 45 minutes maximum, (30 minutes with 15 minutes for questions and answers.

b. Presenters should only include items outlined in the invitation email they will receive.

3. Presentations will be dynamic and interactive.

B. The presentations will be scheduled for Tuesday Nov. 17th, 2026. Please make appropriate scheduling in your calendar. We will let the vendors know the date and time they have been scheduled for on or before Wednesday, Nov. 11th, 2026.

XII. PRICING / COST

A. Provide (one copy) and submit a brief detailed description of each cost associated with your proposal with individual line item costs and a grand total for the whole project on a single page in a separately submitted file marked/labeled as “Cost

Proposal.”

*** MUST BE SUBMITTED IN A SEPARATE FILE – SEPARATE FROM

ALL OTHER RESPONSES TO THIS RFP TO BE ACCEPTED. ***

If any pricing information is found in the RFP proposal(s), other than in the separate file submitted as the cost proposal document, the proposal will be eliminated from any further consideration.

B. Snow requests a firm fixed price for the base scope and separate prices for optional services. If a proposer recommends a materially different scope, it should first price the requested base scope and then present the alternative as an option.

Price component Required response

Base engagement Firm fixed price for Sections 4 through 6 and all six required deliverables.

Travel and expenses State whether included. If excluded, provide a not-to-exceed amount and reimbursement assumptions.

Adult participation Identify incentives, recruitment, translation, accessibility, or other direct research costs.

Third-party data or instruments

Identify all licenses, assessments, survey tools, benchmarks, or data products and whether Snow may retain or reuse results.

Hourly rates Rates by named team member for approved out-of-scope work; no additional work without written authorization.

C. Separately Priced Options

1. Expanded quantitative market research or prospective-adult survey.

2. Additional interviews or focus groups beyond the proposed base sample.

3. Adult Learner 360 or another clearly identified diagnostic instrument.

4. An additional on-campus visit.

5. Six months of implementation coaching after acceptance of final deliverables.

6. Assistance recruiting or selecting the eventual adult learner leader after

Snow approves the organizational model.

D. Must include All other relevant costs for services to be provided for the length of this contract.

XIII. CONTACT INFORMATION

A. Please complete the following information:

Signature of Provider

Name of Provider

Submission Date

Company Name

Company Address

Contact E-mail Address

Contact Phone Number

XIV. PROPOSAL EVALUATION

A. Evaluation Process

1. All proposals, in response to this RFP, will be evaluated in a manner consistent with the Utah Procurement Code and all applicable rules and policies.

In the initial phase of the evaluation process, an evaluation committee will review all proposals received in a timely manner. The proposals will be opened so as to avoid disclosure of the contents to competing firms. All proposals will be held in strict confidence by those appointed to evaluate the proposals until the contract has been awarded.

The following procedures will be followed in the evaluation process:

a. Non-responsive proposals (those not conforming to the RFP requirements) will be eliminated first.

b. The remaining proposals will be carefully evaluated to eliminate those proposals which, in the judgment of the committee, fail to offer sufficient and substantive provisions to warrant further consideration.

c. At the conclusion of this initial evaluation phase, finalist vendor proposals will be selected for detailed review and evaluation and vendors may then be selected for demos if needed or specified.

2. The College reserves the right, as provided by Utah State law, to negotiate with the finalists and to call for best and final offers if needed. The award of the contract will be made based on the evaluation and recommendations of the committee after the study of the offers and demonstrations.

3. The contract will be awarded on the basis of a determination as to which offer will provide the optimum value to the College.

B. Evaluation Criteria

1. Proposals will be evaluated in accordance with the following criteria:

Criterion Points

Understanding of Snow's problem and decision needs 15

Quality and feasibility of the proposed methodology and work plan 20

Adult learner and “some college/no credential” expertise 15

Rural community college or comparable regional experience 15

Institutional organizational and process redesign experience 15

Qualifications and direct involvement of the assigned team 10

Presentation / Interview 25

Total cost/fee proposal.

Overall best value of product(s)/service(s):

Cost is scored by: (Total possible points x (2 - vendors proposed total costs / Lowest total costs proposed)).

Total 125

Appendix A - Proposal Response Checklist

Included Required item [ ] Executive summary and understanding of the project [ ] Methodology and adult engagement plan [ ] Work plan schedule and responsibilities [ ] Named project team and principal involvement [ ] Comparable experience and work samples [ ] Three references [ ] Base fixed price and complete cost assumptions [ ] Separately priced options [ ] Conflict exceptions and limits on reuse [ ] Required forms, certifications, and signatures from procurement

Appendix B - Required Organizational Responsibility Framework

The final deliverable must include a completed function-level matrix at least as specific as the model below. The examples illustrate the expected level of analysis and do not predetermine

Snow's final assignments.

Adult learner function

Adult leader role

Accountable unit

Decision rights and handoff Measure

Adult prospect outreach

Determine Determine State who designs outreach who approves messages and who follows up

Define

Former student re-engagement Determine Determine

State who builds lists contacts students resolves barriers and reports results

Define

Financial aid processing

Determine Determine State how cases are referred escalated and closed

Define

Adult friendly scheduling

Determine Determine State who identifies needs recommends changes and makes final schedule decisions

Define

Credit for prior learning

Determine Determine State who advises evaluates awards credit and monitors use

Define

Adult advising and navigation

Determine Determine State the service model caseload handoffs and after-hours expectations

Define

Program opportunity identification

Determine Determine State how evidence moves into academic review and approval

Define

Adult learner data and measures

Determine Determine State who defines produces reviews and acts on each measure

Define

For each function, the consultant should select one or more defined roles: Own and Do, Coordinate, Influence, or Support. The consultant should add functions necessary to make the operating model complete.

Appendix C - Snow College Data and Document Inventory

The selected consultant and Snow project team will finalize the inventory at kickoff. Snow anticipates making available, subject to law, policy, and capacity, the following existing information:

• Enrollment, persistence, completion, age, geography, program, and modality trends.

• Stop-out and some college/no credential data that Snow is authorized to use.

• Course schedules, program maps, credential requirements, calendars, and modality information.

• Admissions, financial aid, registration, advising, credit for prior learning, and related policies and communications.

• Organizational charts, relevant job descriptions, governance structures, and planning documents.

• Available existing workforce, employer, regional, demographic, and market information.

• Access to appropriate employees, students, partners, and facilities coordinated through the project team.