Attachment 1 Performance Work Statement (Version 2).pdf

(VERSION TWO)

PERFORMANCE WORK STATEMENT (PWS)

FOR

CONTRACTED RESOURCE PERSON FOR THE RESPONDING V/T STAFF FOR THE PEACE CORPS

SEXUAL MISCONDUCT POLICY AND PROCEDURES

FOR

OFFICE OF GENERAL COUNSEL

1.0 GENERAL

1.1 BACKGROUND:

The Peace Corps is an independent civilian executive agency of the Federal Government established in 1961 to promote world peace and friendship through service of American volunteers abroad. The Peace Corps is committed to the safety and well-being of all Volunteers and Trainees (V/Ts).

Peace Corps Manual Section (MS) 246, Volunteer/Trainee Sexual Misconduct Policy and

Procedures, lays out the process Peace Corps staff must follow when a Volunteer/Trainee (V/T) alleges that another currently serving V/T committed an act of sexual misconduct against them.

In response to situations where a Volunteer/Trainee (V/T) reports having experienced sexual misconduct by another V/T, the Reporting V/T (victim/survivor) can elect to bring a complaint against the Responding V/T (accused V/T) which includes an investigation of the allegation and a review panel process that reviews evidence and decides whether a violation of the sexual misconduct policy occurred. Ultimately, a Regional Director decides whether to issue or not issue a disciplinary action against the Responding V/T.

Pursuant to the Peace Corps Act, the agency has an obligation to provide the Reporting V/T support through a victim advocate. However, the Responding V/T does not receive independent support from the Office of Victim Advocacy (OVA). In order to provide both parties involved in a Sexual Misconduct Complaint with adequate due process and support throughout the investigation and disciplinary sexual misconduct complaint process, the Responding V/T will have access to a Resource Person for Responding Volunteer/Trainee.

The Resource Person is a contractor who offers the Responding V/T information, limited to procedural issues, throughout the process represented in MS 246 policy and procedures. The

Resource person is not an advocate, attorney, or advisor to the Responding V/T and their conversations are not confidential.

1.2 SCOPE:

This tasks under this contract shall be performed “as needed”, to ensure the Peace Corps can activate the services of a Resource Person when a sexual misconduct complaint is made under

MS 246:

The Contracted Resource Person or Persons shall:

(a) Conduct Conflict of Interest Checks. Conflict of Interest Checks require the contractor to ensure that prior to accepting any assignment, the contractor reviews the names and dates of birth of the Reporting and Responding V/Ts to ensure no personal or professional conflict of interest exists.

(b) Inform the Responding V/T of their role, clearly emphasizing that they are not an advocate, attorney, or advisor and that their conversations with the Responding V/T are not confidential.

(c) Not reveal any non-procedural information to the Responding V/T, including providing an opinion about the outcome or merit of the complaint to any V/T.

(d) Provide timely responses to the Responding V/T’s questions only regarding procedural aspects of MS 246 Sexual Misconduct Policy and Procedures.

(e) Alert Peace Corps staff if they have a reason to believe any V/T’s health or safety is in danger.

(f) Refer Responding V/Ts to appropriate Peace Corps offices, including the Behavioral Health Office for mental health support.

(g) Receive extensive training on the Volunteer/Trainee Sexual Misconduct Policy and Procedures at the start of the contract and receive refresher training every six months or as needed.

1.3 OBJECTIVE:

The objective of this contract is to ensure that a Resource Person is available and properly trained to provide professional, trauma-informed, support to Responding V/Ts. This includes:

(a) Provide timely responses to the Responding V/T’s questions only regarding procedural aspects of MS 246 Sexual Misconduct Policy and Procedures.

1.4 ANTICIPATED WORKLOAD & AVAILABILITY REQUIREMENTS:

The anticipated volume of case numbers requiring activation of a Contracted Resource Person is not to exceed seven (7) cases per year.

When activated, a Resource Person should expect to work between 5 and 20 hours per case, depending on whether the accused Volunteer resigns early or the case proceeds through investigation and adjudication stages

The Resource Persons must be prepared to accommodate time zone differences between their location and Peace Corps posts worldwide. However, the Resource Person is not a therapist or emergency-service provider and may set reasonable parameters around scheduled conversations with Volunteers.

The Peace Corps will issue a laptop to the awardee after award finalization. The awardee is responsible for ensuring the laptop remains compliant with Peace Corps IT security requirements.

2.0 PERFORMANCE REQUIREMENTS:

Contracted Resource Person must have demonstrated qualifications in psychology, counseling or social work with relatable experience in sexual misconduct adjudication processes. The

Contracted Resource Person must also comply with Peace Corps’ training and oversight requirements as instructed by this PWS.

2.0.1 The contractor shall complete training on the Peace Corps Sexual Misconduct Policy and Procedures before serving as a Contracted Resource Person for the Responding V/T. The Peace Corps will provide training on MS 204, MS 243, MS 244, MS 246, MS 271, confidentiality, trauma-informed interactions with V/Ts, and other training as assigned after the award has been made.

2.0.2 Resource Person for the Accused Standards:

(1) Documented experience working directly with individuals involved in reporting or accused of violating sexual misconduct policies in an educational environment or workplace institution for a period of at least one year.

Note: Acceptable evidence includes official position descriptions, reference letters, or performance evaluations demonstrating direct involvement in applying or enforcing sexual misconduct policies.

(2) Completed training about sexual misconduct and assault in an education and/or workplace institution from either the Association of Title IX Administrators (ATIXA), National Association for Behavioral Intervention and Threat Assessment (NABITA), or a similar training organization, documented by a certificate or official record.

2.0.3 The contractor must conduct a conflict check, by reviewing the names and dates of birth of the parties (V/Ts) involved in the sexual misconduct matter for which they are being asked to provide services, to ensure they do not have a personal or professional conflict of interest or connection to the Reporting or Responding V/T.

2.0.4 When a V/T is accused of sexual misconduct and is the subject of a disciplinary complaint, the Contracted Resource Person for the Responding V/T is responsible for keeping the Responding V/T informed of the procedural sexual misconduct complaint process.

2.0.4.1 The contractor can review the procedural aspects of the MS 246 policy and procedures with the Responding V/T, including:

• Refer them to relevant sections of the MS 246 policy and procedures;

• Refer them to speak to appropriate Peace Corps staff involved in the response process;

• Provide timing updates for the sexual misconduct disciplinary process;

• Provide updates regarding the number of days the Responding V/T has to submit written responses or requests to the Review Panel, Country Director, or Regional Director ;

• Answer general procedural questions involving the sexual misconduct disciplinary process.

2.0.4.2 The contractor cannot:

• Provide any strategic recommendations or advice to the Responding V/T;

• Give the Responding V/T legal advice, even if the Contracted Resource Person staff is an attorney;

• Review the Responding V/T’s responses to the complaint process, communications, or related documents or matters;

• Serve as an advocate for the Responding V/T;

• Guarantee confidentiality to the Responding V/T’s about their conversations; or

• Keep confidential documents of V/Ts after case is closed.

2.0.4.3 The Contractor must keep the Peace Corps’ Coordinated Agency Response (CARS)

Team informed of the Responding V/T’s position in the sexual misconduct disciplinary process, specifically:

• Maintain a case management log that documents their interactions and general actions taken to support the Responding V/T (without any PII);

• Inform the CARS Team if the Responding V/T expresses a desire to resign from their position as a V/T;

• Escalate any concerns of the Responding V/T experiencing or planning to engage in actions that could result in a serious threat/imminent harm to themselves or others;

• Keep the CARS Team apprised of the Responding V/T’s well-being;

• Ask the CARS Team to answer procedural questions the Responding V/T has, including the timing of the investigation or disciplinary process, response deadlines, etc.

2.0 PERFORMANCE REQUIREMENTS SUMMARY

Item No.

Deliverable

Description Frequency PWS Reference Deliver to Format Due

01 Training Completion Initial and refresher training on MS 241, MS 243, MS 246, confidentiality, and trauma-informed care

Annually & as-needed

PWS 2.0.1 COR Certificates (and/or)

E-learning record

Within 30 days of award & before service

02 Case Coverage Provide daily coverage for Responding V/T inquiries when activated.

Continuous

Objective 1.3

PWS 2.0.4 & 2.0.4.1

COR Data report (Excel/PDF)

Email certification

Within 24 hours of receiving notice that new complaint is initiated.

03 Escalation Reports Document and report Serious/Imminent Threats or other exceptions to confidentiality

As-needed (within 1 hr)

PWS 2.0.4.3

Exception:

Communication between the

Responding V/T and the Contracted Resource

Person is not confidential and the Resource Person can report any serious/imminent

COR Data report (Excel/PDF)

Email certification

4.0 Performance Requirements Summary (PRS):

threats to Peace Corps CARS team

04 Conflict Checks Data analysis to ensure the

V/T does not have a personal or professional conflict of interest or connection to the

Reporting or Responding V/T.

Continuous

PWS 2.0.3 COR Data report

Email certification

After receiving case but before initial outreach is conducted.

05 Call Documentation Maintain and submit non-PII case management data

(date/time, question type, referrals)

Monthly PWS 2.0.3.1 COR Case Management Log (Excel/PDF)

Email certification

By 10th of each month

06 Quarterly Feedback Submit summary of lessons learned and recommendations for quality improvement

Quarterly

PWS 2.0.3.1 COR Data report

Email certification

Last business day of each quarter

07 Record Compliance Confirmation that no PII/confidential materials were retained.

Send email to confirm that no

PII (and/or) confidential materials were retained.

As-needed (case closure)

PWS 2.0.4.2 COR Data report (Excel/PDF)

Email certification

Within 2 business days of closure

4.0 Performance Requirements Summary (PRS)

Item No.

Service Output Performance Objective Acceptable Quality Level

(AQL)

Method of Surveillance

01 Respond to Inquiries from

Responding V/T

Provide trauma-informed responses to

Responding V/T

95% Response

Rate

COR review of case management log

Respond to

Inquiries from

CARS Team

Provide up to date status updates to the sexual misconduct coordinated agency response team.

95% Response

Rate

COR random check-ins with CARS team members

Confidentiality

Caller confidentiality maintained unless exception applies

100% COR non-PII case management logs

Information

Accuracy

Deliver accurate, policy-compliant information

(MS 204, MS 243, MS

246)

100% Random monitoring by COR

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.

Documentation Submit monthly non-PII call data 100%

COR review of submitted case management worklog

Referrals Referral of Responding

V/T to appropriate Peace Corps staff

100%

COR review of case management worklog

Training Completion

Complete Sexual

Misconduct Policy and Procedures Training for

Peace Corps

100% COR verification of training records

Professional Standards

Complete industry standard sexual misconduct trainings

100%

COR review of training certificates/ reference check