A04_-_Performance_Work_Statement_(PWS).pdf

PERFORMANCE WORK STATEMENT (PWS)

Collaborative Evaluation Design and Implementation for the SoCal Urban Wildlife Refuge Project

PART 1

GENERAL INFORMATION

1. GENERAL:

This is a non-personnel services contract to design and implement a Collaborative Evaluation tool for the SoCal Urban Wildlife Refuge Project. The Government shall not exercise any supervision or control over the contract service providers performing the services herein. Such contract service providers shall be accountable solely to the Contractor, who, in turn, is responsible to the Government.

1.1 Description of Services/Introduction:

The contractor shall provide all personnel, equipment, supplies, facilities, transportation, tools, materials, supervision, and other items and non-personal services necessary to design and implement a multi-year evaluation plan and metrics as defined in this Performance Work Statement, except for those items specified as government-furnished property and services. The contractor shall perform to the standards in this contract.

1.2 Background:

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), San Diego National Wildlife Refuge Complex (SDNWRC), manages the SoCal Urban Wildlife Refuge Project (Project). The Project is aligned with the USFWS Urban Wildlife Conservation Program. From Fiscal Years 2014 to 2025, the Project awarded over 10 million dollars to partner organizations to implement environmental education and interpretive programs, educator training, and volunteer engagement activities with the broad purpose of reaching and connecting urban communities with the outdoors and the National Wildlife Refuge System. The geographic spread of these partners and activities stretches from Los Angeles County to the San Diego National Wildlife Refuge Complex in Orange and San Diego County. Each partner is an independent and unique non-governmental organization, and the partners have utilized different implementation tactics to meet the objectives and outcomes as defined within the Standards of Excellence. The SDNWRC requires continued cross-project evaluation and reporting for the Project that will be used to measure the effectiveness of each partner and their program over time; allow for flexibility in assessing the performance of a wide variety of non-governmental organizations; to adapt funding and priorities to maximize success in reaching gateway communities; and to be able to share the outcomes with internal and external audiences.

1.3 Objectives:

The objectives of this work are to use a collaborative, participatory process to identify applicable metrics, establish a framework using existing data, and implement a multi-year cross-project evaluation plan to identify challenges and determine how successful the partners on the SoCal Urban Wildlife Refuge Project are in meeting defined outcomes. The contractor will develop and provide a summary capturing learning, priorities, and opportunities surfaced through the 10-year project and develop an inward-facing process describing the approach, design, and practical lessons for participatory and collaborative evaluation planning to be scaled within the agency.

1.4 Scope:

The contractor will lead an iterative, participatory evaluation design process that includes a landscape review, partner engagement, and multi-stage refinement of outcomes and indicators. Work will include reviewing existing metrics and outcomes, facilitating a two-day partner convening, conducting follow-up focus groups, and synthesizing all input into a multi-year evaluation framework. Deliverables include: (1) a finalized evaluation plan outlining prioritized outcomes, indicators, and data strategies; (2) a partner insights and learning summary; and (3) internal process documentation for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

1.5 Period of Performance:

The period of performance shall be for one (1) Year starting on the Date of Award.

1.6 General Information

1.6.1 Quality Control:

The contractor shall develop and maintain an effective quality control program to ensure services are performed in accordance with this PWS. The contractor shall develop and implement procedures to identify, prevent, and ensure non-recurrence of defective services. The contractor's quality control program is the means by which they assure themselves that their work complies with the requirement of the contract.

1.6.2 Quality Assurance:

The government shall evaluate the contractor's performance under this contract in accordance with the Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan. This plan is primarily focused on what the Government must do to ensure that the contractor has performed in accordance with the performance standards. It defines how the performance standards will be applied, the frequency of surveillance, and the minimum acceptable defect rate(s).

1.6.3 Recognized Holidays:

The Federal Government observes the following holidays. If work is to be performed on/in a government facility, please note that performance cannot occur on those days.

New Year's Day Labor Day Martin Luther King Jr.'s Birthday Columbus Day President's Day Veteran's Day Memorial Day Thanksgiving Day Independence Day Christmas Day Juneteenth

1.6.4 Hours of Operation:

The contractor is responsible for conducting business between the hours of 8:00am - 4:30pm Monday through Friday except Federal holidays or when the Government facility is closed due to local or national emergencies, administrative closings, or similar Government-directed facility closings. For contracts other than firm-fixed-price contracts, the contractor will not be reimbursed when the government facility is closed for the above reasons. The Contractor must at all times maintain an adequate workforce for the uninterrupted performance of all tasks defined within this PWS when the Government facility is not closed for the above reasons. When hiring personnel, the Contractor shall keep in mind that the stability and continuity of the workforce are essential.

1.6.5 Place of Performance:

The work to be performed under this contract will be performed at the San Diego National Wildlife Refuge Complex Headquarters located at 1080 Gunpowder Point Dr., Chula Vista, CA 91910.

1.6.6 Type of Contract:

The government will award Firm Fixed Price contract.

1.6.7 Contracting Officer Representative (COR):

The Contracting Officer Representative (COR) will be identified by a separate letter. The COR monitors all technical aspects of the contract and assists in contract administration. The COR is authorized to perform the following functions: assure that the Contractor performs the technical requirements of the contract; perform inspections necessary in connection with contract performance; maintain written and oral communications with the Contractor concerning technical aspects of the contract; issue written interpretations of technical requirements, including Government drawings, designs, and specifications; monitor Contractor's performance and notify both the Contracting Officer and Contractor of any deficiencies; coordinate availability of government furnished property; and provide site entry of Contractor personnel. A letter of designation issued to the COR, a copy of which is sent to the Contractor, states the responsibilities and limitations of the COR, especially with regard to changes in cost or price, estimates, or changes in delivery dates. The COR is not authorized to change any of the terms and conditions of the resulting order.

1.6.8 Key Personnel:

The following personnel are considered key personnel by the government: contract manager/alternate contract manager, lead evaluator, facilitator. The selected expert or consulting team must demonstrate extensive experience in the design, implementation, and management of comprehensive evaluation frameworks for multi-year education, environmental, conservation, youth development, or community-based programs. The evaluator must possess both advanced research expertise and practical experience applying evaluation findings to real-world educational and behavioral outcomes.

The contractor shall provide a contract manager who shall be responsible for the performance of the work. The name of this person and an alternate who shall act for the contractor when the manager is absent shall be designated in writing to the contracting officer. The contract manager or alternate shall have full authority to act for the contractor on all contract matters relating to daily operation of this contract. The contract manager or alternate shall be available between 8:00 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays or when the government facility is closed for administrative reasons.

Qualifications for all key personnel are listed below:

Required qualifications include:

• Minimum of ten (10) years of progressively responsible professional experience conducting quantitative and qualitative research, program evaluation, and applied behavioral assessment for youth-focused initiatives, educational programs, environmental education programs, and conservation engagement efforts. Demonstrated expertise in designing and implementing multi-year evaluation plans that include baseline assessment, longitudinal data collection, formative and summative evaluation approaches, and year-to-year comparative analysis.

• Advanced knowledge of quantitative methodologies, including survey development, statistical analysis, metric development, indicator tracking, longitudinal assessment, and interpretation of behavioral and attitudinal outcome data.

• Advanced knowledge of qualitative methodologies, including focus groups, interviews, observational methods, participatory evaluation approaches, thematic coding, and mixed-methods integration.

• Demonstrated experience assessing behavioral, cognitive, and attitudinal shifts among youth populations, particularly K-12 students and transitional-age youth/young adults ages 18-24.

• Demonstrated and documented expertise with evidence-based frameworks for evaluating environmental ethics, environmental stewardship, conservation behaviors, outdoor learning outcomes, social-emotional learning, civic engagement, and pro-environmental decision-making.

• Proven experience developing and applying metrics that evaluate the role of teachers, educators, mentors, facilitators, and program staff in influencing student engagement, learning retention, environmental literacy, behavioral change, and long-term educational outcomes.

• Experience evaluating educator effectiveness and instructional practices within formal and informal learning environments, including schools, outdoor education settings, community-based learning environments, and experiential education programs.

• Demonstrated ability to assess student behavior and learning outcomes through multiple measures, including observational assessment tools, participant surveys, educator feedback, engagement indicators, and longitudinal outcome tracking.

• Demonstrated understanding of youth development principles and age-appropriate evaluation methodologies for diverse student populations across developmental stages.

• Experience translating evaluation findings into actionable recommendations that improve program delivery, curriculum implementation, educator practices, participant engagement, and measurable outcomes over time.

• Strong understanding of culturally responsive and trauma-informed evaluation practices, including experience working with communities in densely populated metropolitan areas.

• Demonstrated ability to synthesize complex data into clear technical reports, executive summaries, presentations, dashboards, and stakeholder-facing communications suitable for funders, educators, program leadership, and community partners.

• Demonstrated knowledge of Office of Management and Budget (OMB) requirements and protocols related to public information collection, including survey development, Paperwork Reduction Act considerations, data collection approvals, and public-facing evaluation instruments.

• Familiarity with federal plain language requirements and demonstrated ability to develop reports, surveys, educational materials, and public communications that comply with federal Plain Writing standards and accessibility best practices.

• Demonstrated understanding of Section 508 accessibility compliance requirements and experience ensuring evaluation tools, reports, surveys, dashboards, and digital deliverables meet applicable federal accessibility standards for public use and dissemination.

• Demonstrated familiarity with environmental, ecological, conservation, and community engagement issues specific to Southern California, including experience working within regional environmental education, outdoor learning, conservation, habitat restoration, climate resilience, coastal, urban refuge, or natural resource programs.

• Demonstrated knowledge of the educational systems, institutional structures, and youth-serving environments within Southern California, including experience collaborating with K-12 schools, school districts, higher education institutions, informal education providers, and community-based organizations.

1.6.9 Identification of Contractor Employees:

All contract personnel attending meetings, answering Government telephones, and working in other situations where their contractor status is not obvious to third parties are required to identify themselves as such to avoid creating an impression in the minds of members of the public that they are Government officials. They must also ensure that all documents or reports produced by contractors are suitably marked as contractor products or that contractor participation is appropriately disclosed.

1.6.10 Contractor Travel:

No additional travel cost included.

1.6.11 Other Direct Costs:

No additional travel cost included.

1.6.12 Data Rights:

The Government has unlimited rights to all documents/material produced under this contract. All documents and materials, to include the source codes of any software, produced under this contract shall be Government-owned and are the property of the Government with all rights and privileges of ownership/copyright belonging exclusively to the Government. These documents and materials may not be used or sold by the contractor without written permission from the Contracting Officer. All materials supplied to the Government shall be the sole property of the Government and may not be used for any other purpose. This right does not abrogate any other Government rights.

1.6.13 Organizational Conflict of Interest:

Contractor and subcontractor personnel performing work under this contract may receive, have access to, or participate in the development of proprietary or source selection information (e.g., cost or pricing information, budget information or analyses, specifications or work statements, etc.) or perform evaluation services which may create a current or subsequent Organizational Conflict of Interest (OCI) as defined in FAR Subpart 9.5. The Contractor shall notify the Contracting Officer immediately whenever it becomes aware that such access or participation may result in any actual or potential OCI and shall promptly submit a plan to the Contracting Officer to avoid or mitigate any such OCI. The Contractor's mitigation plan will be determined to be acceptable solely at the discretion of the Contracting Officer and in the event the Contracting Officer unilaterally determines that any such OCI cannot be satisfactorily avoided or mitigated, the Contracting Officer may affect other remedies as they deem necessary, including prohibiting the Contractor from participation in subsequent contracted requirements which may be affected by the OCI.

1.6.14 PHASE IN / PHASE OUT PERIOD:

To minimize any decreases in productivity and to prevent possible negative impacts on additional services, the Contractor shall have personnel on board during the thirty (30) day phase-in/phase-out periods. During the phase-in period, the Contractor shall become familiar with performance requirements in order to commence full performance of services on the contract start date.

PART 2

GOVERNMENT FURNISHED PROPERTY, EQUIPMENT, AND SERVICES

2. GOVERNMENT FURNISHED ITEMS AND SERVICES:

2.1 Services:

The Government will provide support to assist with production set-up.

2.2 Facilities:

The Government will provide the necessary meeting space for the contractor staff to provide the support outlined in the PWS, to include desk space, a projector, and other items necessary to facilitate a two-day in-person meeting with project partners.

2.3 Utilities:

The Government will provide all utilities in the facility that will be available for the contractor's use in performance of tasks outlined in this PWS. The Contractor shall instruct employees in utility conservation practices.

2.4 Equipment:

N/A

2.5 Materials:

N/A

PART 3

CONTRACTOR FURNISHED ITEMS AND SERVICES

3. CONTRACTOR FURNISHED ITEMS AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

3.1 General:

The Contractor shall furnish all supplies, equipment, facilities, and services required to perform work under this contract that are not listed under Section 2 of this PWS.

PART 4

SPECIFIC TASKS

4. SPECIFIC TASKS:

4.1 Basic Services:

The contractor will work with the USFWS SoCal Urban Refuge coordinator to develop and implement a multi-year cross-project evaluation plan with the Project partners within the SoCal Urban Wildlife Refuge Project.

4.2 Task 1: Establish and Implement a Participatory Process for Evaluation Planning The contractor will review all existing data figures and methods, develop agenda topics, intended outcomes, and facilitate a two-day workshop that engages existing key stakeholders, program partners, educators, staff, and relevant community representatives in the collaborative development of evaluation priorities, objectives, methodologies, and outcome measures for the multi-year program. This includes:

• Designing all materials and activities used to engage all partners and stakeholders to assess existing evaluation methods, performance indicators, and outcome metrics to determine their effectiveness, applicability, reliability, and alignment with program goals and intended impacts.

• Facilitating stakeholder-informed discussions, workshops, interviews, and review sessions to identify gaps, strengths, redundancies, and opportunities for improvement within current evaluation frameworks and data collection practices.

4.3 Task 2: Document the Participatory Process or Methods for Identifying Evaluation Metrics The contractor shall clearly document the implementation of the participatory evaluation process, including methodologies, facilitation approaches, decision-making structures, stakeholder engagement strategies, lessons learned, and recommended practices, so that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service may utilize the process as a replicable tool for future participatory planning, collaborative evaluation, and stakeholder-informed decision-making efforts.

4.4 Task 3: Identify and Revise Evaluation Metrics

Review, refine, revise, and recommend updated evaluation metrics, indicators, and assessment tools to optimize available project-specific evidence. Evaluation metrics should provide substantive data that captures participant engagement, educator influence, behavioral change, environmental literacy, and other identified program objectives. Ensure revised metrics and evaluation methodologies are evidence-based, measurable, feasible to implement over multiple program years, and aligned with programmatic goals, federal reporting requirements, and best practices in evaluation and behavioral assessment. The contractor should provide a summary of findings, including any data captured from stakeholders.

4.5 Task 4: Facilitate Implementation of Data Collection

Using the metrics identified, facilitate the administration of surveys, interviews, focus groups, observational tools, and other approved evaluation instruments, in accordance with all applicable federal, state, and local laws, regulations, and agency requirements. Ensure that all evaluation activities and data collection processes comply with applicable federal requirements related to public information collection, accessibility, confidentiality, data management, Plain Writing standards, Section 508 compliance, and other relevant regulatory and ethical standards. The contractor shall consult with project partners to embed evaluation procedures into their programs and provide support in implementing the cross-program evaluation data collection.

PART 5

APPLICABLE PUBLICATIONS

5. APPLICABLE PUBLICATIONS (CURRENT EDITIONS): N/A

5.1 Applicable Regulations and Policies:

The Contractor must abide by all applicable regulations, publications, manuals, and local policies and procedures.

Controlling Paperwork Burdens on the Public (5 CFR 1320).

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA) (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).

381 Department of the Interior (Department) Manual (DM) 11, Information Collection Program Requirements.

TECHNICAL EXHIBIT 1

Performance Requirements Summary The contractor service requirements are summarized into performance objectives that relate directly to mission essential items.

The performance threshold briefly describes the minimum acceptable levels of service required for each requirement. These thresholds are critical to mission success.

Performance Objective (The Service required - usually a shall statement) Standard

Performance Threshold (This is the maximum error rate. It could possibly be "Zero deviation from standard")

Method of Surveillance

PRS # 1.

The contractor shall collect and analyze the data provided by the partners on the Project.

The contractor shall facilitate stakeholder engagement to compile insights and analysis of the existing OMB-approved survey data and annual results.

Submit a Partner Insights Summary

Partner Insights Summary given to SoCal Urban Refuge Coordinator.

PRS # 2

The contractor shall provide an Evaluation Plan to measure the impact each partner has under the SoCal Urban Wildlife Refuge Project.

The contractor shall provide a finalized evaluation plan outlining prioritized outcomes, indicators, and data strategies.

Submit an Evaluation Plan Evaluation Plan given to SoCal Urban Refuge Coordinator with the change-over-year metrics.

PRS # 3

The contractor shall provide an Evaluation Plan to measure the impact each partner has under the SoCal Urban Wildlife Refuge Project.

The contractor shall document the processes used to facilitate and develop the evaluation plan.

Submit a process document to be used by the USFWS

Process documentation given to SoCal Urban Refuge Coordinator

PRS # 4

The contractor shall use the metrics identified to facilitate the administration of surveys, interviews, focus groups, observational tools, and other approved evaluation instruments.

The contractor shall implement the evaluation and report findings.

Submit a preliminary baseline report of first year findings.

Review of findings submitted