Questions and Responses for WWC PESTO.docx

1. On page one of the Instructions to Offerors, the government indicates that "While no prime contractor may submit more than one bid for this requirement, the same firm may appear as a prime contractor on one bid and as a subcontractor on other bids." Can a firm bid on the BPA alone or are firms required to bid on both the BPA and Task Order? If all responses must be for the BPA and Task Order, organizations that wish to submit more than one bid (as a prime and as a sub) will be required to compete against their own bids and those of their partners.

Government’s Response: The Government is willing to allow offerors to submit proposals to be on the WWC-PESTO BPA and at the same time decline to bid on WWC-PESTO Task Order 1. The three relevant evaluation criteria for being on the BPA are, in decreasing order of importance, Criterion A: Technical Qualifications of Proposed Staff, Criterion E: Related Corporate Experience, and Criterion F: Past Performance. The additional technical evaluation criteria for awarding Task Order 1 are Criterion B: Soundness of Technical Approach, Criterion C: Management of Tasks, and Criterion D: Substantive Small Business Participation. Up to 20 pages of the technical proposal should address Criteria A, E, and F: introducing the offeror and its approach to the BPA; discussing the qualifications of proposed key personnel to work on PESTO task orders on topics in preschool, elementary, secondary, and postsecondary education as well as on the topic selected for Task Order 1; and describing related corporate experience for the BPA and relevant contracts demonstrating the offeror’s successful past performance. For offerors bidding on Task Order 1, up to 30 additional pages of the technical proposal should address Criteria B and C, describing the offeror’s technical approach—including the selection of the panel chair and panelists for this task order--and management plan for this specific task order. All offerors should include resumes for key personnel in Appendix 1, and letters of commitment for any proposed subcontractors, consultants, and other key personnel who are not the vendor’s employees in Appendix 2. If bidding on Task Order 1 and addressing Criterion C, offerors should report with their management plan the proposed labor hours for key personnel and the time commitments of these personnel to other projects. A separate section of the technical proposal is not needed to address Criterion D, as the Department will assess substantive small business participation from the offeror’s small business status and the extent to which personnel who are, or work for, small businesses, are qualified to serve in their proposed roles based on their documented expertise and their time commitments. Offerors not bidding on Task Order 1 do not need to submit budgets or payment schedules for Task Order 1 in their business proposals but should include the other business information specified in the RFP, including labor categories and loaded labor rates for proposed key personnel for each of the first two years of the BPA, a conflict-of-interest plan, and, for large business offerors, a small business subcontracting plan.

2. On page one of the Instructions to Offerors, the government indicates that "Proposals will be used both to award WWC-PESTO Task Order 01 and to award Blanket Purchase Agreements to prime contractors on subsequent WWC-PESTO task orders." Will the government consider awarding the BPA to subcontractors as well? Because there is only one Task Order to bid on in this RFP, small businesses will be limited in their ability to bid as a prime in partnership with large businesses, which will disadvantage small businesses in the competition for any future work issued under this BPA.

Government’s Response: A subcontractor on a bid for Task Order 1 interested in serving as prime contractor on a future task order of the BPA, but not as the prime contractor for Task Order 1, should submit a separate proposal as specified in the response to Question 1.

3. Within Attachment 2- Instructions to Offerors (Instructions)- Please confirm instructions for submitting subcontractor sealed bids are the same as for prime offerors.

Government’s Response: This is correct.

4. Within Attachment 2- Instructions to Offerors (Instructions)- The instructions state that resumes include in Appendix 1 follow the same formatting restrictions as the technical quote (double-spaced, 12-point font text). Would the Department consider allowing resumes to be singled-spaced?

Government’s Response: Both resumes and letters of commitment may be single-spaced.

5. Within Attachment 2- Instructions to Offerors (Instructions)- Page 2 of the instructions for Appendix 2 requires letters of commitment for key personnel not currently employed by the vendor, whereas page 3 of the proposed personnel instructions adds, “all key personnel.” Please confirm that letters of commitment are required for both "all key personnel" as well as "personnel not yet employed by the contractor".

Government’s Response: Resumes are only required for key personnel, both those employed by the contractor and those not so employed, such as subcontractor personnel and consultants.

6. Within Attachment 2- Instructions to Offerors (Instructions)- Page 4 of the instructions reference FAR 52.219-14(c)(1) requiring that “At least 50 percent of the cost of contract performance incurred for personnel shall be expended for employees of the concern.” Please clarify the purpose of including this requirement, as it is understood that this is an unrestricted solicitation, and this requirement would not be applicable to Large Businesses.

Government’s Response: This clause only applies to future task orders that may be set aside for small business concerns or 8(a) participants. The clause does not apply to Task Order 1, for which the Department encourages both small businesses and large businesses to submit proposals.

7. Within Attachment 2- Instructions to Offerors (Instructions, Pricing)- Page 5 states: Where a percentage rate is applied (e.g., “Technology Fee” at x%), it should be clearly disclosed what the rate is being applied against (e.g., against total labor costs). Vendors are encouraged to justify any indirect rate by explaining what its purpose is and providing evidence of its reasonableness. Since the solicitation requires a price build up and not a cost build up, in regard to providing fully loaded labor rates, do we need to provide the specific indirect rate percentages that are used to construct the proposed fully loaded labor rates? Or is the requirement to provide the percentage rate and description of the application of those rates, in circumstances where and if a rate is being applied in addition to the proposed fully loaded labor rates?

Government’s Response: In addition to tabulating loaded hourly rates for proposed PESTO personnel by labor category, offerors bidding on Task Order 1 should provide, explain, and justify any percentages applied to loaded labor costs and included in the budgets for the tasks of Task Order 1.

8. Within Attachment 2- Instructions to Offerors (Instructions)- Are technical references included in 50-page limit? Would the Department consider excluding technical reference pages from the technical volume 50-page limit, or be permitted as an appendix?

Government’s Response: Offerors should report technical references on the offeror’s relevant past performance within the pages allowed for the technical proposal, together with the corresponding contract names and contract numbers. This information should be in a section on related corporate experience and past performance following the section on proposed personnel. Note that tables in proposal may be single-spaced.

9. Within the RFP (Section L. 4, 52.215-1 I Instructions to Offerors-Competitive Acquisition(c)(2)(i))- According to the FAR section 52.215-1 Instructions to Offerors, the proposal must include the items listed in section(c)(2)(i) referred to as the first page. Is this first page and its contents included in the 50-page limit for the technical volume?

Government’s Response: The page limit applies to the technical volume beginning with the introduction, but not including the cover page, table of contents, or appendices.

10. Within Attachment 2- Instructions to Offerors (Instructions, Key Personnel)- Page 16 of the RFP indicates that labor categories for key personnel are To Be Determined. However, the instructions to offerors require offerors to include resumes, letters and time commitments for key personnel. Please confirm the labor categories for which offerors shall provide the required key personnel information and documents.

Government’s Response: Key personnel include proposed project directors and deputy directors, principal investigators, task leaders, project managers, consultants, and any other named staff critical for the successful performance of PESTO task orders. Offerors should not include any nominations for the panel chair and other members of the practice guide panel with key personnel but should describe these nominations under their proposed technical approach for Task Order 1.

11. Within RFP Section I Contract Clauses- Section I includes FAR 52.219-9 II SMALL BUSINESS SUBCONTRACTING PLAN (JUN 2020) --ALTERNATE II (JUN 2020). Please confirm if a Small Business Plan is required with the proposal, or if a plan will be requested from potential awardees during negotiations?

Government’s Response: Offerors that are not themselves small businesses should include a small business subcontracting plan in their business proposal.

12. Within Attachment 2- Instructions to Offerors (Instructions)- Can bidders exclude the reference list from the page limit?

Government’s Response: See the response to Question 8.

13. Within Attachment 2- Instructions to Offerors (Instructions)- The instructions to offerors do not describe the requirements for past performance. Can ED provide information about the number of past performance projects that should be included, any requirements for eligible past performance projects, and whether ED will pull CPARS for the projects listed for past performance in the proposal or if references from those projects are needed?

Government’s Response: In their technical proposals, offerors should discuss past performance after describing proposed personnel and related corporate experience. Offerors may use single-spaced tables to list names, contract numbers, and names and contact information for references, such as email addresses. The Department will also rely on CPARS to assess past performance.

14. Within Attachment 2- Instructions to Offerors (Instructions)- We want to confirm that bidders selected for the BPA will be able to add new subcontractors and consultants on future task order requests, as necessary, once the focus of those task orders has been determined.

Government’s Response: Bidders selected for the BPA will be free to add new subcontractors and consultants as needed to meet the requirements of each task order, even if these subcontractors and consultants were partners on their initial proposals.

15. Within Attachment 2- Instructions to Offerors (Instructions, Proposed Personnel)- The evaluation criteria for Technical Qualifications of Proposed Staff includes expertise in content areas beyond the focus of Task Order 1 (early childhood and postsecondary education). Where should bidders include information about staff qualifications that are relevant for the BPA but are beyond the focus of the task order?

Government’s Response: Offerors should discuss under the proposed personnel section the key staff with relevant expertise, not only for Task Order 1, but also for future PESTO task orders that may cover topics such as early childhood education, postsecondary education, literacy, or STEM education. Tables presenting staff names and qualifications may be single-spaced. Offerors should discuss nominations for the panel chair and panelists under the technical approach for Task Order 1, not the personnel section for the BPA as a whole, as the panelists qualified to work on subsequent task orders will likely have different content expertise.

16. Within Attachment 2- Instructions to Offerors (Instructions, Proposed Personnel)- Where in the technical proposal should bidders address the following instructions? “In the main body of the technical proposal (not an appendix) describe any sub-contractual arrangements including work to be done, responsibilities for tasks, reporting arrangements, and any other terms of the contract pertinent to the technical proposal. Justifications must be provided for the use of subcontractors or consultants on this project, and the offeror shall state that such entities or individuals are free of conflicts of interest that might bias their approach to this study.” Should this be in the proposed personnel section?

Government’s Response: While offerors should discuss the qualifications of proposed subcontract personnel and consultants under proposed personnel, offerors should discuss divisions of responsibility, lines of communication, and coordination of subcontractors and consultants as part of their management plan. A conflict-of-interest plan is required as part of the offeror’s business proposal, and offerors may also discuss the avoidance or mitigation of conflicts of interest as part of their technical approach to accomplishing the tasks of Task Order 1.

17. Within Attachment 2- Instructions to Offerors (Instructions)- Where in the technical proposal should bidders include information on related corporate experience, past performance, and small business participation? Can these be included as separate sections, or should these be incorporated into another section of the technical proposal?

Government’s Response: Offerors should discuss related corporate experience and past performance in a separate section following the discussion of proposed personnel. Discussion of key personnel should note the affiliation of each, to allow the Government to identify proposed personnel who count as small businesses or are employees of small businesses identified on the cover page of the technical proposal.

18. Within Attachment 2- Instructions to Offerors (Instructions, Budget)- RFP requirements request that bidders use GSA schedule rates to prepare the budget. Since bidders traditionally slot subcontractors into their labor category rates when using GSA schedules, can you please confirm it is acceptable to identify subcontractor staff, hours, and cost within the main budget presentation rather than show a separate price buildup for subcontractors that might not match their costs in the budget?

Government’s Response: In their business proposals, offerors may include subcontractor staff, hours, and costs either within the main budget by staff name or category and hours, or as other direct costs involving the purchase of services from subcontractors. However, for offerors bidding on Task Order 1, hours budgeted to be worked by key personnel and by categories of unnamed personnel on each task need to be reported by task and project staff name or category in the management plan section of the technical proposal, regardless of whether the personnel are employed by the prime contractor, a subcontractor, or as a consultant.

19. Within Attachment 2- Instructions to Offerors (Instructions, Budget)- Please clarify that the cost reimbursable tasks will be reimbursed based upon the contractor’s proposed fully loaded GSA rates, similar to a T&M arrangement.

Government’s Response: The Instructions to Offerors state, “The Department encourages discounts from the vendor’s GSA Schedule Rates to improve the competitiveness of the quote.” Cost reimbursement tasks are not the same as time and materials tasks since they need to reflect actual, allowable, and allocable costs incurred for performance of the task, plus any negotiated fee. Consequently, the fully loaded labor rates in the business proposal should correspond with the actual costs per hour for named staff, while for unnamed staff they may correspond with estimated costs, which may be based on rates for specific unnamed staff, GSA schedule rates, or discounts from GSA schedule rates, whichever best reflects a realistic estimate of the costs of the completing those tasks.

20. Within Evaluation Criteria- Will small business participation be scored, in part, based on the percentage of subcontracted funds for small businesses? The evaluation criterion for small business participation does not mention this as part of the criterion.

Government’s Response: No. The Department will assess substantive small business participation based on whether the proposed prime contractor is a small business, and if it is not, on whether proposed key personnel are small businesses or employees of small businesses and are qualified to perform their proposed roles in the hours proposed for them. To help the Government in making this assessment, offerors should clearly indicate the small business status of all contract partners on the cover page of the technical proposal, and, in the personnel section, the small business affiliations of proposed key personnel. The management plan should also report the proposed hours and other time commitments of all key staff, which can help the Government identify the extent and realism of the proposed time commitments to the project of key personnel representing small businesses.

21. Within Performance Work Statement (Task Descriptions)- Does ED expect to have additional tasks in option period 1 to form a new panel and develop a new review protocol focused on the second practice guide?

Government’s Response: The Department expects the initial topic area review protocol to be sufficiently broad in scope to identify research relevant for both the first and second practice guide, although certain studies will be prioritized for review under the initial practice guide. Substitutions of new panelists for previous panelists may be approved by the Department, if justified given a different focus to the second practice guide than the first practice guide or by attrition of panelists. Offerors should focus their nominations of candidates for the practice guide panel on persons who can contribute to the first practice guide and inform the consideration of evidence for a possible second guide, including these nominations in their discussion of their proposed technical approach.

22. Within Instructions to Offerors (SF1449)- On p. 5 of the Instructions to Offerors, it requests a signed copy of the entire solicitation. Can you confirm the entire doc is needed or JUST the completed SF1449 and signed amendments?

Government’s Response: Offerors should submit the entire PDF of the solicitation, excluding the attachments, with the required sections filled in and signatures added.

23. Within Instructions to Offerors (Small Business Sub Plan)- Does the business volume require a small business subcontracting plan?

Government’s Response: A small business subcontracting plan is a required part of the business proposal if the offeror is a large business but is not required if the offeror is a small business.

24. Within Instructions to Offerors/Evaluation Criteria (Related Corps/Past Performance)- The Evaluation Criteria indicates ratings for Related Corporate Experience and Past Performance, but the instructions to offerors does not include information about where to include these areas. Please clarify if these sections should be included, and if so where they should be included and the areas of focus for Related Corporate Experience and format of the information provided in the Past Performance section.

Government’s Response: See the responses to Question 8, 13, and 17.

25. Within RFQ (Attachments)- On page 22 of the RFQ, it indicates:" J.1 309-1a List of Attachments". Are there additional attachments forthcoming?

Government’s Response: No.

26. Within RFP and Instructions to Offerors (Contractual)- On page 2 of the RFP, the period of performance for the Base Period starts on 8/31/2021. However, on page 1 of the instructions to offerors, the Department asked bidders to assume 9/1/2021 as the award date. Please confirm that bidders should assume a contract start date of 9/1/2021.

Government’s Response: Offerors should assume a start date of 9/1/2021.

27. Within Instructions to Offerors (Business Proposal)- Please confirm that bidders need to submit a separate business proposal spreadsheet (EXCEL) for each budget period resulting in a total of three EXCEL files.

Government’s Response: This is correct.

28. Within Instructions to Offerors (Business Proposal)- What is the period of performance for the Blanket Purchase Agreement (BPA)?

Government’s Response: Offerors should assume an ordering period for the BPA running from 9/1/2021 through 8/31/2026.

29. Within Instructions to Offerors (Business Proposal)- Would the Department like bidders to submit the proposed payment schedule for each budget period in a separate Excel file resulting in a total of three Excel files?

Government’s Response: Yes.

30. Within Instructions to Offerors (Business Proposal)- Although the Department encourages discounts from bidders' GSA Schedule rates, are bidders allowed to develop their own BPA rates?

Government’s Response: Consistent with the cost reimbursement type of Tasks 4 and 9 of Task Order 1, offerors should report fully loaded labor rates that are realistic estimates of costs per hour of labor for each labor category. Invoicing for these tasks will need to be for actual, allowable, and allocable costs incurred for performance of the task, plus any negotiated fee, not for actual hours multiplied by BPA-specific labor rates different from actual costs. Offerors may base their labor rate assumptions on actual rates for proposed personnel or on GSA Schedule rates, but should aim for realistic budgets.

31. Within RFP (Contractual)- What contract type does the Department anticipate to award for future task orders?

Government’s Response: The Department expects future PESTO task orders to be similar in contract type and task structure to Task Order 1, including both fixed price and cost reimbursement tasks.

32. Within Instructions to Offerors (Business Proposal)- Do bidders need to price their proposal using proposed labor categories and loaded labor rates requested on page 4 on Task Order 1 and all future task orders?

Government’s Response: The table on page 4 of Attachment 2 is an illustration only. Contractors should describe their proposed labor categories and fully loaded labor rates for Task Order 1. The Department will provide business proposal instructions for future task orders with those solicitations.

33. Within Instructions to Offerors (Technical Proposal)- Do we need to include resumes for all staff or just key personnel.

Government’s Response: See the response to Question 5.

34. Within Instructions to Offerors (Technical Proposal)- If we include a cover letter, does it count toward the page count?

Government’s Response: No.

35. Within Performance Work Statement, VIII. Schedule of Deliverables and Instructions to Offerors (Technical Proposal)- The PWS mentions that the contractor shall develop a proposed deliverables schedule. The Instructions to Offerors states the offeror shall present a proposed timeline. Should we prepare both a timeline and schedule of deliverables table or can we incorporate both into one exhibit?

Government’s Response: Offerors may include the deliverable schedule within a proposed timeline in their management plan but should also include key milestones that are not deliverables.

36. Within Performance Work Statement, 1.2. Monthly Conference Calls (Technical Proposal)- How far in advance should the contractor’s project director electronically submit monthly abbreviated notes to the COR prior to each monthly conference call?

Government’s Response: Contractors should plan to submit monthly notes on the contract at least two business days prior to the monthly conference call.

37. Within Performance Work Statement, mentioned throughout (Technical Proposal)- Is it correct that the first practice guide developed during the base year and option period 1 focuses on elementary grades and the second practice guide developed during option period 1 and option period 2 focuses on secondary grades? Or will the exact specifications of the second practice guide be determined later?

Government’s Response: The first practice guide will focus on assisting students struggling with behavior in the elementary grades, including grades K-5. While the second practice guide may focus on students struggling with behavior in grades 6-12, its exact focus will be a topic of discussion during the first, second, and fifth panel meetings, and will depend on the scope of the topic area review protocol used for both practice guides, as well as the WWC ratings and findings of reviewed studies.

38. Within Performance Work Statement, Task 6 and Task 8 (Technical Proposal)- Developing a summary of the practice guide and its recommendations is mentioned in Task 6 and also again in Task 8. Is it correct that this summary should be developed under Task 8 (not Task 6) after the practice guide is accepted by the SRO?

Government’s Response: While mentioned under Task 6, the 15-page summary of each practice guide is a Task 8 product and deliverable, based on the SRO-approved text of the full practice guide.

39. Within Instructions to Offerors, p. 1 & Evaluation Criteria, p. 2 (Instructions)- In Attachment 3: Evaluation Criteria, Criterion F is on past performance. However, Attachment 2: Instructions to Offerors does not provide details on how to submit the past performance information. Can the Department please clarify if we need to submit any past performance forms?

Government’s Response: Offerors should discuss past performance on relevant contracts within the related corporate experience section, following the section on proposed personnel, and should also provide contract names, contract numbers, and technical references for these contracts. See also the responses to questions 8, 13, and 17.

40. Within Instructions to Offerors, p. 1 & Evaluation Criteria, p. 2 (Instructions)- In Attachment 3: Evaluation Criteria, Criterion E is on corporate experience. Please confirm that the technical proposal does not require a separate section detailing Corporate Experience.

Government’s Response: This is incorrect. Offerors should discuss related corporate experience and past performance in a section of the technical proposal following the section on proposed personnel. See also the responses to questions 8, 13, 17, and 39.

41. Within Instructions to Offerors, p. 1 & Evaluation Criteria, p. 2 (Instructions)- In Attachment 3: Evaluation Criteria, Criterion D is on substantive small business participation. Please confirm that the technical proposal does not require a separate section detailing Small Business Participation.

Government’s Response: The technical proposal does not require a separate section on substantive small business participation. The Department will assess this criterion based on whether the prime contractor is a small business and based on the technical qualifications and proposed time commitments of key personnel who are identified, as or employed by, small businesses.

42. Within Instructions to Offerors, p. 2 (Instructions)- Appendix 1 instructions state that "Each resume is limited to two (2) pages, using the same formatting restrictions as the rest of the technical quote," while under the Appendix 2: Letters of commitment instructions it states that "Resumes may be single spaced." Can the Department please clarify if resumes should be double-spaced or single spaced?

Government’s Response: See the response to Question 4.

43. Within Instructions to Offerors, p. 3 (Instructions)- Given the detailed nature of the timeline requested, would the Department allow an additional appendix for the timeline?

Government’s Response: Offerors should include a timeline in the body of the technical proposal. Note that exhibits and tables may be single-spaced. Also see the response to Question 35.

44. Within Instructions to Offerors, p. 3 (Instructions)- Attachment 2: Instructions to Offerors specifies that in the technical proposal introduction offerors must demonstrate “familiarity with the issues relevant to designing and conducting random assignment impact evaluations in a school setting” (p. 3). Given that the What Works Clearinghouse also reviews rigorous research studies that do not use random assignment designs, can the Department please clarify whether offerors should also describe their familiarity with issues relevant to quasi-experimental, regression discontinuity, and single case research designs?

Government’s Response: The introduction should demonstrate familiarity with the issues relevant to designing and implementing all sorts of education impact studies eligible for WWC review, including randomized controlled trials, regression discontinuity designs, quasi-experimental designs, and single-case designs. Documenting in the key personnel section and corporate experience section the WWC reviewer certification of personnel employed by the contractor, proposed subcontractors, or as consultants would also demonstrate this knowledge at the personnel and corporate level.

45. Within Performance Work Statement, p.1 (Scope of Work)- The PWS explains Task Order 01 will focus on the topic of “Assisting Students Struggling with Behavior in Grades K-12” and that the Base Period will focus on developing a practice guide on “Assisting Students Struggling with Behavior in the Elementary Grades.” Can the Department confirm whether the second practice guide developed under Task Order 01 will focus on students in the secondary grades?

Government’s Response: See the response to Question 37.

46. Within Performance Work Statement, p. 9 (Scope of Work)- Task 4 states that reviews will be conducted under 4.1 group design standards. Does the Department anticipate that any reviews conducted in Option Periods 1 or 2 will be done under the Version 5.0 Standards under development?

Government’s Response: The Department expects all reviews of individual studies for Task Order 1 to occur under version 4.1 WWC standards, whether for group designs, single-case designs, or regression discontinuity designs. Version 5.0 standards may be used for future task orders under this BPA, and the PWS for each task order will specify the WWC standards version the Department expects to use.

47. Within RFP, p.19 and p. 13 (Contract)- Section I incorporates FAR 52.227-17 (Rights in Data – Special Works) which restricts publication absent express written approval from the COR, however, Section H.19 3452.227-70 encourages publication. Please clarify the Department’s requirements with regard to publishing data and results produced in performance of the resulting Contract.

Government’s Response: The Department allows members of the public, including contractors and consultants, to use data and results from WWC contracts once the Department has approved these data and results for public release.

48. Within Attach 2 - Instructions to Offerors; Page 2 (Instructions- Technical Volume)- Appendix 1 states "Each resume is limited to two (2) pages, using the same formatting restrictions as the rest of the technical quote"; however, Appendix 2 states "Resumes may be single spaced". Will the Government please clarify whether resumes should be double or single spaced?

Government’s Response: Resumes may be single-spaced.

49. Within Attach 2 - Instructions to Offerors; Page 5 Quote Price Buildup (Instructions- Business Volume)- Will the Government accept "TBD" for an unidentified named individual(s) in the price buildup for labor functions that serve in support roles (e.g., technical editor)?

Government’s Response: Yes. Offerors only need to identify by name their proposed key personnel. Loaded labor rates for personnel categories should be realistic estimates of expected labor costs.

50. Within Attach 1 - PWS; Page 16 Compliance with ED IT Security Policy (IT Security)- Is the Contractor required to obtain an ATO prior to starting on this Task Order?

Government’s Response: The Department does not expect contractors to need to have an ATO prior to starting work on Task Order 1.

51. Within Attach 3 - Evaluation Criteria (Instructions- Technical Volume)- Can the Government please clarify the instructions regarding Criterion E: Related Corporate Experience and Criterion F: Past Performance? Should Contractors address these criteria as part of the Technical Volume, and if so, in what section?

Government’s Response: See the responses to Questions 8, 13, 17, 39, and 40.

52. Within Attachment 2 – Instructions to Offerors P.1 (Proposal Submission Instructions)- Please let us know the email address(es) to submit electronically for both the technical and business/cost proposals.

Government’s Response: Technical and business proposals should be submitted electronically to Carlina.Smith@ed.gov with a carbon copy to Joseph.Gibbs@ed.gov.

53. Within Attachment 2 – Instructions to Offerors & Attachment 3 - Evaluation Criteria (Proposal Submission Instructions)- The Instructions indicate to include related corporate experience and past-performance in the technical proposal. Because there is a limit for the technical quote to 50 double-spaced pages, could the Department provide more guidance on the specific details the offerors should provide? Is it possible to include this section without counting it toward the page limit?

Government’s Response: No. See the responses to Questions 8, 13, 17, 39, and 40.

54. Within Attachment 2 – Instructions to Offerors & Attachment 3 - Evaluation Criteria (Proposal Submission Instructions)- Is there a separate BPA proposal submission? If so, what are the instructions?

Government’s Response: See the response to Question 1.

55. Within Attachment 2 – Instructions to Offerors (Proposal Submission Instructions)- Is this task order associated with a specific GSA schedule?

Government’s Response: No. See the responses to questions 18, 19, 30, and 31.

56. Within Attachment 1 - PWS P10 (Budgeting)- Should tasks specifically related to preparation of the second practice guide be budgeted as Optional Period 1 activities if these activities occur during the overlapping time of BP/OP1?

Government’s Response: Activities specific to the preparation of the second practice guide should fall under Option Period 1 rather than under the Base Period.

57. Within Attachment 1 - PWS P12 & P13-14 (Proposal Submission Instructions)- Are the summaries mentioned on page 12 under Task 6. "The contractor shall also prepare a summary of the practice guide and its recommendations, not to exceed 15 pages in length, written specifically for a nontechnical audience. " the same summaries to be produced in Task 8? If so, do they follow the review guideline specified in Task 8 or Task 6?

Government’s Response: See the response to Question 38.

58. Within Attachment 1 - PWS P8 & P9 (Proposal Submission Instructions)- The PWS indicates that offerors should work with academic librarians and researchers. Do offerors need to work with external academic librarians and if so, do they need to be affiliated with an institution of higher education (e.g., university library)?

Government’s Response: Working with external academic librarians is not required if personnel with the same skills for literature searches are employees of the offeror or a subcontractor.

59. Within Attachment 2 – Instructions to Offerors & Attachment 3 - Evaluation Criteria (Small Business Participation)- Because having Substantive Small Business Participation is part of the Criteria to evaluate the Technical Quote, aside from showing the extent the qualified staff from small businesses play key leadership roles on the proposed project at the project or task level, what are the other areas the offeror can show Substantive Small Business Participation?

Government’s Response: See the responses to Questions 17, 20, and 41.

60. Within Attachment 2 – Instructions to Offerors (Proposal Submission Instructions)- On page 3 of the Instructions to Offerors it states [that offerors should include] "the names of the proposed project director and other key personnel and consultants, a narrative description of staff qualifications and how they will meet the requirements of the contract, and resumes for proposed project staff including dates of work and role in such work for all experience. Include detailed vitae for all proposed professional staff (in the resume appendix) and letters of commitment (in the letters of commitment appendix) from all key personnel, proposed subcontractors, consultants, and professional staff not currently employed by the offeror, or collaborators delineating the nature of their agreement." In addition to including staff specific to Task Order 01, how should offerors include information on other staff who may include on Task Orders 02 through 08?

Government’s Response: See the response to Question 15.

61. Within Attachment 2 – Instructions to Offerors (Proposal Submission Instructions)- On page 3 of the Instructions to Offerors it states, "Offerors are encouraged to suggest specific experts who might be appropriate for the Task Order 01 Practice Guide panel members or as related content experts." Should offerors include detailed vitae (in the resume appendix) and letters of commitment (in the letters of commitment appendix) for suggested panel members?

Government’s Response: Offerors may include in their technical approach section a table with the names, affiliations, and areas of expertise of proposed panelists and alternates for Task Order 1 and may discuss in their technical proposal their candidates for the chair of the panel. Resumes and, if applicable, letters of commitment are not required for proposed members of the practice guide panel but are required for all other key personnel proposed to work on the BPA, including task orders that may follow Task Order 1.