Market Research RFI Postsecondary Revised.docx

U.S. Department of Education Office of Postsecondary Education (OPE)

Title of Project: Postsecondary Analysis

General Information:

This REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI) is for market research and planning purposes only and shall not be considered to be an obligation by the Government to acquire any products or services.

The market research RFI pertains to a procurement called “Postsecondary Analysis,” also referred to by its internal U.S. Department of Education tracking number 2334. Any response(s) to this RFI will help the Department determine whether this procurement should be a small-business set aside or open to all large vendors.

Pursuant to 48 C.F.R. Part 10, the Government is conducting market research to:

· Determine what sources exist that are capable of satisfying the Government’s requirements listed below,

· Determine the capabilities of potential contractors,

· Determine the size and status of potential sources, and

· Determine the level of competition.

The market research RFI is the first step in satisfying these requirements. Capability Statements from interested small-business vendors are requested, however, all businesses are welcome to submit a response. (See instructions below).

While the precise acquisition strategy is to be determined, the Department is contemplating a firm-fixed-price task order award and intends to issue a solicitation this winter with an anticipated award date in the 2nd quarter of the fiscal year.

This is a re-compete of a prior contract or task order.

The anticipated NAICS code is 611710 Educational Support Services.

These will be reviewed and may change before the solicitation is released.

Structure of Capability Statement Responses:

Interested offerors are asked to provide a brief response to this Request for Capability Statements which are no longer than 10 pages (excluding cover page, double-spaced, no smaller than 12-point font, a minimum of one-inch margins) with the information detailed below. No additional appendices or separate documents (except comments on the PWS) will be accepted.

1. Company name, DUNS number, company mailing address, company website (if applicable), and point of contact information (one person's name, telephone number and e-mail address).

2. Company's applicable socioeconomic status and available contract ordering vehicles (include contract numbers), if available.

3. Capabilities Statement that clearly aligns the capabilities of the company to the requirements contained in the draft PWS. Please include evidence of relevant experience and expertise.

4. Comments regarding the draft PWS. As much as possible, please refer to a section number or page number with your questions/comments. If submitting PWS Comments as a separate document, please note in this section that “comments were submitted separate from the capability statement.”

5. Any barriers to making this contract fixed-price, as opposed to time-and-materials. Any such feedback should specifically identify which tasks would be difficult to fix-price and why.

6. Any additional information which the company deems important and relevant to this Notice, including but not limited to, any perceived barriers to competition, discussion of any proposed teaming arrangements with partners/subcontractors/consultants, or any proposed solutions that the Department may not have considered.

7. Please comment on the appropriateness of the NAICS code and PSC code. Also please indicate your interest in responding to a solicitation when released.

8. Please comment on whether you believe this can be set aside for small businesses.

Offerors should submit Capability Statements and/or PWS Comments by e-mail to the Contract Specialist, copying the Contracting Officer, by no later than 2:00 PM EST, on December 10th, 2024. The Contract Specialist is Alexander Lelansky: Alexander.Lelansky@ed.gov and the Contracting Officer is Katie Opper: Katie.Opper@ed.gov.

Background of Requirement:

The U.S. Department of Education’s (The Department) Office of Planning, Policy and Innovation (PPI) in the Office of Postsecondary Education (OPE) requires support for Postsecondary Analysis. This entails but is not limited to: Analysis of the Title II teacher preparation programs, teacher shortage areas, college accreditation, Campus Safety and Security, Equity in Athletics, and distance education. PPI uses many data sources for its analyses, including the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), Accreditation database, e-Recognition database, and College Navigator. Technical assistance is needed to extract data, integrate data sources, conduct annual production data work, analyze data, produce data reports, write analysis computer programs, produce analysis reports, and other data science tasks.

C. PURPOSE AND OBJECTIVES

OPE is seeking contractual support from an external contractor to:

· Analyze postsecondary data, including but not necessarily limited to, data about Institutions of Higher Education (IHEs), college students preparing to be teachers, teacher shortages, Federal Student Aid, and Accreditation;

· Conduct production data work on existing processes and data transfer protocols;

· Prepare reports for Congress, other external users, internal decision-makers, and others; and

· Publish data, findings, and reports in peer-reviewed and other public venues.

Draft Performance Work Statement (DPWS): Attached for your review is a Draft Performance Work Statement, which includes background, purpose of the task order, legislative authority, scope of work, and tasks and deliverables.

Disclaimer:

PARTICIPATION IN THE MARKET RESEARCH IN NO WAY INFLUENCES THE SOURCE SELECTION FOR THESE SERVICES.

This is not an invitation for bid, request for proposal or other solicitation. The sole purpose of this Notice is to inform industry of this procurement and to begin conducting market research for procurement planning purposes. This Notice is not to be construed as a commitment on the part of the Government to award a task order nor does the Government intend to directly pay for any information or responses submitted as the result of this Notice. Any task order that might be awarded based on information received or derived from this Notice will be the outcome of the competitive process.