DQ EGBA 2027000024 SLDS Analytics Schema Stress Testing, Reporting, and RStudio Support req#13537925.pdf

Documented Quote EGBA 2027000024

SLDS Analytics Schema Stress Testing, Reporting, and RStudio Support

All questions and inquiries regarding this solicitation must be sent to:

Sole Point of Contact:

Brandon Brasfield

Brandon.Brasfield@state.co.us

Schedule of Activities

Activity Time Date

Solicitation Publication (VSS) 4:00pm 7/21/2026

Written Inquiry Deadline 2:00pm 7/23/2026

State Response to Written Inquiries 4:00pm 7/24/2026

Vendor Response Submission Deadline 4:00pm 7/28/2026

Please submit to the following address: http://www.bidnetdirect.com//oit http://www.bidnetdirect.com//oit

Table of Contents

Schedule of Activities 2 Table of Contents 3 Section 1 Solicitation Information 4

1.1. Introduction 4

1.2. Background 4

1.3. Overview 4

1.4. Goals 5

1.5. Anticipated Term 5

1.6. Respondent Inquiries 6

Section 2 Scope of Work/Specification and Requirements 7

2.1. Accessibility Requirements 7

2.2. Insurance Requirements 7

2.3. Mandatory Requirements 7

2.4. Scope of Work/Specifications 8

Section 3 Quote Submission Information 11

3.1. Quote Submission Instruction 11

3.2. Timeliness Of Quote Submission 11

3.3. Quote Format and Content 11

3.4. Pricing and Cost Proposal Structure 12

Section 4 Award 13

4.1. Award (See Procurement Rule R-24-103-204-01) 13

4.2. Negotiations 13

4.3. Single Quote 13

4.4. Colorado Business Registration 14

4.5. Notice of Award 14

4.6. Documents After Awards 14

Section 5 General Administrative Information 15

5.1. Terms and Conditions of agreement 15

5.2. Colorado Offeror Self Service and Registration 15

5.3. Video Surveillance and Telecommunications Prohibition 16

5.4. Colorado Vendor Self Service 17

5.5. Modifications and/or Supplemental Information To The Solicitation 17

5.6. News Releases and Announcements 17

5.7. Response Material Ownership 17

5.8. Submission of Confidential or Proprietary Information 17

Section 1 Solicitation Information

1.1. Introduction

On behalf of the State of Colorado, the Office of Information Technology (OIT) is issuing this solicitation for SLDS Analytics Schema Stress Testing, Reporting, and RStudio Support. OIT’s objective is to hire an expert analytics vendor to evaluate, optimize, and maximize the usefulness of Codata, Colorado's State

Longitudinal Data System (SLDS). The selected vendor will ensure the system's database schemas stay fast and stable under heavy reporting workloads, create structured datasets for stakeholder reporting, and help internal data analysts safely access data using RStudio environments

1.2. Background

The State of Colorado utilizes COdata, the State Longitudinal Data System

(SLDS), to securely track and evaluate data trends across K-12 education, higher education, and the workforce. Managed under the Data Management and

Governance functional group, COdata serves as a critical decision-making utility for tracking long-term public program efficacy, establishing educational baseline metrics, and informing policy leadership. As the repository for disjointed datasets across multiple state agencies, the presentation and transformation layers of the SLDS require a robust, fast, and secure database schema capable of handling intensive analytical queries and high-concurrency reporting loads.

1.3. Overview

The Governor's Office of Information Technology (OIT), on behalf of the Data

Governance sub-service, is issuing this solicitation to engage an expert analytics vendor to evaluate, optimize, and maximize the operational utility of the COdata system. The selected vendor will provide specialized professional services across three core task areas:

1. Schema Stress Testing & Performance Testing: Evaluating the resilience and speed of the SLDS schemas, specifically testing longitudinal student identifier tracking against record collisions, split identity histories, duplicate entries, and corrupted input data inputs.

2. Analytics & Reporting Development: Utilizing advanced statistical modeling to transform raw longitudinal data into structured reporting datasets, automated compliance reports, and reproducible R scripts.

3. Analyst Support & RStudio Integration: Extending custom R packages and Quarto/RMarkdown template ecosystems, supporting R-based application deployments, and conducting targeted technical upskilling sessions and office hours for internal state data analysts.

1.4. Goals

The primary objectives of this procurement initiative are to:

a. Abate performance, quality, and schedule risks by optimizing database schema views, constraints, and stored procedures to handle high reporting workloads gracefully without misclassifying or double-counting students.

b. Deliver a concrete Data Integrity & Quality Audit tuning log detailing logic vulnerabilities, data leakage points, and baseline benchmarks.

c. Produce repeatable, production-ready analytic products and scripts that map directly to the product backlog approved by the COdata governing board.

d. Standardize internal query practices by implementing an RStudio Access

Kit and documenting application deployment guardrails for secure memory management, caching, and data security.

1.5. Anticipated Term

a. The anticipated term of the Contract or Purchase Order resulting from the award of this solicitation is approximately eleven (11) months, beginning on or about August 1, 2026, and ending on June 30, 2027. The

State is not responsible for any goods delivered or services performed by the awarded Respondent without a State issued Contract, Purchase

Order or related commitment voucher.

1.6. Respondent Inquiries

a. Respondents may submit written inquiries via email concerning this solicitation to obtain clarifications to the Sole Point of Contact identified on the cover page (Brandon.Brasfield@state.co.us). The State, in its sole discretion may not accept inquiries received after the date and time indicated in the Schedule of Activities. Send all inquiries to the

Procurement Contact identified above. Inquiries should be clearly marked with the DQ number and title. Where appropriate, inquiries should include references to any relevant Section/paragraph of the solicitation.

b. Responses to Respondent inquiries will be published on Bidnet collectively, as an amendment to the solicitation. Respondents shall not rely on any verbal statements that alter any specification or other term or condition of the solicitation. Such changes are valid only if provided in writing by the Procurement Contact.

Section 2 Scope of Work/Specification and Requirements

2.1. Accessibility Requirements

All work performed as a result of this solicitation must comply with all applicable provisions of §§24-85-101, C.R.S., et seq., and the Accessibility

Standards for Individuals with a Disability, as established by the Office Of

Information Technology pursuant to §24-85-103 (2.5), C.R.S. and 3) all State of

Colorado technology standards related to technology accessibility and with

Level AA of the most current version of the Web Content Accessibility

Guidelines (WCAG), incorporated in the State of Colorado technology standards.

2.2. Insurance Requirements

The awarded Respondent will be required to submit a certificate(s) of insurance evidencing insurance coverage for the types and amounts of insurance as required by the Insurance provision in the Contract or Purchase

Order Terms and Conditions, included in this solicitation linked in section 5.1, prior to execution of the Purchase Order.

2.3. Mandatory Requirements

To be considered for review, Respondents must meet all of the following minimum qualification standards. Responses that fail to meet a mandatory item or fail to provide the required target documentation will be deemed non-responsive, and the proposal will be rejected without further technical evaluation.

a. Project Timeline Commitment: The Respondent must explicitly certify its capability and commitment to initiate services on August 1, 2026, and achieve full project completion and deliverable close-out by the mandated deadline of June 30, 2027.

b. State Longitudinal Data System (SLDS) Experience: The Respondent must provide documentation verifying that the firm has a minimum of three (3) years of corporate experience evaluating, testing, or building analytics schemas for public sector State Longitudinal Data Systems (SLDS) or disjointed datasets.

c. RStudio & Ecosystem Proficiency: The Respondent must document that the specific personnel assigned to this project possess demonstrated technical expertise engineering custom R scripts, internal R packages, and Quarto or

RMarkdown reporting templates within RStudio Workbench, RStudio

Desktop, or Posit applications.

d. Colorado Business Registration: The Respondent must be fully licensed and registered to do business in the State of Colorado at the time of proposal submission, and must certify that the firm is not presently debarred, suspended, or declared ineligible for contract awards by any federal or state entity.

2.4. Scope of Work/Specifications

a. Task 1: Schema Stress Testing & Performance Optimization

The selected vendor will evaluate and optimize the speed, resilience, and data integrity of Colorado’s State Longitudinal Data System (SLDS) analytics schemas under heavy reporting workloads. The vendor must perform the following testing activities:

i. Longitudinal Linkage Stress Testing: Evaluate how the system tracks unique student identifiers (IDs) across disjointed datasets spanning K-12 education, higher education, and the workforce. Test the presentation and transformation layers against data anomalies, including duplicate records, identity collisions, split histories, and missing links.

ii. Edge-Case & Boundary Integrity Testing: Simulate extreme and corrupted data inputs to verify that database schemas fail gracefully without leaking bad data. Testing must target unexpected null values in mandatory reporting columns, impossible dates, and conflicting agency records.

iii. Business Logic & Hierarchy Validation: Validate embedded database logic—including views, constraints, and stored procedures—against complex state educational rules. Ensure that mid-year student transfers and multi-district enrollments are correctly categorized without double-counting or misclassifying students.

iv. Required Deliverable: The vendor will compile all baseline benchmarks, test scripts, simulated load results, and schema tuning modifications into a comprehensive Data Integrity & Quality Audit Log.

b. Task 2: Analytics & Reporting Development

The selected vendor will transform raw longitudinal records within the SLDS schemas into production-ready analytical assets to support data-driven policy making. The vendor must perform the following development activities:

i. Advanced Statistical Modeling: Execute rigorous statistical analyses common to social science research to isolate key variables and track longitudinal trends across state data structures.

ii. Program Evaluation Artifacts: Design and deploy automated compliance datasets, structured subsets, and evaluation frameworks to measure the long-term impact of public programs across distinct state agencies.

iii. Technical Scripting: Synthesize complicated data patterns into reproducible R scripts and aggregate tables in the presentation layer that directly feed frontend dashboard utilities. All delivered code must maintain a minimum of 90% test coverage to ensure code stability and repeatability prior to state analyst handoff.

iv. Accessibility Standard: All final reporting assets, templates, and dashboards must achieve 100% compliance with Level AA of the Web

Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG 2.1) and C.R.S. §24-85-101 et seq. (HB21-1110) prior to final acceptance.

v. Required Deliverable: The vendor will deliver a product analytic backlog package containing clean, repeatable R scripts attuned to the research questions approved by the COdata governing board.

c. Task 3: Analyst Support & RStudio Integration

The selected vendor will bridge the operational gap between backend database structures and end-user data analysts utilizing RStudio Workbench, Desktop, or

Posit applications. The vendor must perform the following technical support activities:

i. R Package & Template Ecosystem Extension: Develop custom R helper functions, internal packages, and standardized Quarto or R Markdown templates to streamline how internal state analysts connect to, query, and scrub SLDS presentation layers.

ii. Application Deployment Support: Explore and engineer supportive R-based applications to improve secure data access for state business units.

iii. Technical Upskilling & Weekly Meetings: Conduct targeted technical support sessions, developer office hours, and diagnostic troubleshooting to resolve internal analyst roadblocks regarding complex R queries, memory management, and database caching blockers. The vendor shall participate in weekly status meetings with OIT team leads.

iv. Required Deliverables: The vendor will deliver an RStudio Access Kit

(connection scripts and helper functions), clear documentation on security guardrails for application memory management, and a weekly

Analyst Support Log tracking resolved technical tickets.

d. Reporting & Communication Requirements

i. Milestone & Schedule Adherence: The awarded vendor must strictly adhere to project timelines, achieving a target of 95% of project milestones completed on or before scheduled dates to protect the mandatory June 30, 2027 completion deadline.

ii. Communication Cadence: The vendor shall report to designated OIT team leads on a regular basis (cadence and format confirmed during kickoff). Responsibilities include preparing weekly status summaries, updating time/deliverable estimates, and compiling the weekly Analyst

Support Log.

e. Deliverable Acceptance & Quality Standards

i. Accuracy & Review Limit: All draft deliverables (Audit Logs, R Scripts, Access Kits, and Documentation) are subject to formal OIT review. To satisfy SOW alignment and deliverable accuracy, all submissions must achieve final OIT acceptance within two (2) review iterations.

Submissions requiring substantial revision beyond two iterations will be documented as non-conforming performance.

Section 3 Quote Submission Information

3.1. Quote Submission Instruction

a. Respondents shall submit Quotes via the aforementioned Bidnet’s location.

b. Quotes should be included as one or more attachments of commonly accessible file types.

3.2. Timeliness Of Quote Submission

a. A Quote received after the submission deadline may, at the sole discretion of the State, be rejected without further consideration.

3.3. Quote Format and Content

To ensure a fair and fast review, structure your quote to directly address our specific project criteria: your technical approach, your firm's experience with

State Longitudinal Data Systems (SLDS) and RStudio, and the feasibility of your timeline.

a. Part 1: Technical and Qualifications Narrative: Provide a concise narrative (not to exceed 5 total pages) briefly detailing your firm's background, technical approach to the scope of work, and demonstrated experience with longitudinal data systems and RStudio ecosystems.

b. Part 2: Cost and Hour Matrix: Structure your pricing as an itemized matrix that breaks down your quote against the tasks and subtasks detailed in Section 2.4. For each individual subtask, your quote must specify the total budgeted hours and the extended cost calculated against a single, fixed, fully loaded hourly rate. The State will use this task-by-task hour breakdown to evaluate whether your proposed level of effort is realistic and adequate to safely meet the mandatory June 30, 2027 project deadline.

3.4. Pricing and Cost Proposal Structure

a. Proposed pricing must remain firm during the initial term of the

Purchase Order.

b. Fixed Hourly Rate: Respondents must provide a single, fixed, fully loaded hourly rate that applies to all work performed under this project.

This rate must include all direct and indirect costs, including base labor, overhead, profit, travel expenses, and surcharges.

c. Task and Hour Breakdown: In their quote, the Respondent must break down their proposed pricing directly against the specific tasks and subtasks detailed in Section 2.4 (Scope of Work), matching the structure of a standard project hour matrix. For each individual subtask, the

Respondent's quote must explicitly specify:

i. The total number of budgeted hours allocated to complete that specific subtask.

ii. The extended cost (budgeted hours multiplied by the single fixed hourly rate). d. Level of Effort Evaluation: The State will use this detailed task-by-task hour breakdown to evaluate whether the proposed level of effort is realistic and adequate for the scope of work. Quotes that fail to provide this breakdown by subtask, or that submit only a flat lump-sum total without itemized subtask hours, will be deemed non-acceptable and may be rejected without further evaluation.

Section 4 Award

4.1. Award (See Procurement Rule R-24-103-204-01)

a. This solicitation and the resulting Contract or Purchase Order will be awarded to the responsible Respondent whose acceptable Quote is determined to be the most advantageous to the State, with price/cost being the primary consideration. Other considerations may include, but are not limited to, the thoroughness of the technical approach, demonstrated experience with State Longitudinal Data Systems (SLDS) and RStudio, and the feasibility of the proposed level of effort to meet the June 30, 2027 deadline.

b. “Acceptable” means that the goods or services submitted in the

Respondent’s Quote will meet the State’s needs, and that the price is fair and reasonable. The determination of whether a Respondent’s Quote is acceptable, is solely within the State’s discretion.

c. Neither this solicitation nor a Respondent’s Quote constitutes a legally binding offer.

4.2. Negotiations

The State may negotiate with any Respondent to clarify the Respondent’s

Quote or to effect modifications that will make the Quote Acceptable or more advantageous to the State; however any requirements identified in this solicitation may not be negotiated. Reference Procurement Rule

R-24-103-204-01(d).

4.3. Single Quote

If only one Quote is received in response to this solicitation, an award may be made to the single Respondent if the procurement official finds that the price submitted is fair and reasonable and that other prospective Respondents had reasonable opportunity to respond to the solicitation. If the price submitted is not fair and reasonable and there is not adequate time for re-solicitation, the procurement official may enter into competitive negotiations in accordance with Procurement Rule R-24-103-208-02.

4.4. Colorado Business Registration

Within ten (10) business days of the notification of the award of a contract under this solicitation, the awarded Offeror must be properly registered with the Colorado Secretary of State’s Office to do business in Colorado. The State may request that the awarded Offeror provide evidence of such registration, as well as other organizing documents such as Articles of Incorporation or By-laws.

4.5. Notice of Award

A Notice of Intent to Award will be announced on Bidnet.

4.6. Documents After Awards

Prior to Contract or Purchase Order execution, the awarded Respondent must provide the State with proof of Good Standing with the Colorado Secretary of

State and an insurance certificate documenting coverage as required by the

Contract or Purchase Order.

Section 5 General Administrative Information

5.1. Terms and Conditions of agreement

a. The resulting agreement from this solicitation will be issued as a State

Purchase Order.

b. Performance under this solicitation and any resulting Purchase Order is governed strictly by the State of Colorado Purchase Order Terms and

Conditions, available on the State Purchasing Office Website at:

[https://osc.colorado.gov/spco/central-contracts-unit/ purchase-order-terms-conditions](https://osc.colorado.

gov/spco/central-contracts-unit/purchase-order-terms-c onditions).

c. No Exceptions or Redlines: By submitting a quote, Respondent agrees to be bound by the State’s Purchase Order Terms and Conditions without exception. The State will not accept any vendor exceptions, redlines, or proposed alterations to these terms and conditions. Any quote submitted that takes exception to or attempts to modify the State’s

Purchase Order Terms and Conditions may be deemed unacceptable and rejected without further evaluation.

d. In accordance with Colorado Procurement Rule R-24-103-204-03(b), neither this solicitation nor the vendor’s response constitutes a binding offer. The issued Purchase Order constitutes the State's official offer, which the awarded vendor accepts by performance or by written acknowledgment.

5.2. Colorado Offeror Self Service and Registration

The State uses the Colorado Operations Resource Engine (CORE), Vendor Self

Service (VSS) and BIDNET to publicly post solicitations.

https://www.bidnetdirect.com/colorado/oit.

https://osc.colorado.gov/spco/central-contracts-unit/purchase-order-terms-conditions

Solicitation details for goods and services, as well as construction notices, are publicly available without registration on VSS. Any addendum or modification to this RFP will be published using Colorado VSS and BIDNET. Offerors should check

VSS on a regular basis. Vendors that are registered on VSS may choose to receive notifications of any new information regarding this RFP.

An Offeror must have a current registration on BidNet and VSS in order to be awarded under this RFP. There is no cost to register on Colorado VSS. To become a registered supplier on VSS, please visit www.colorado.gov/vss.

To become a registered supplier on BidNet, please visit:

https://www.bidnetdirect.com/colorado/oit.

5.3. Video Surveillance and Telecommunications Prohibition

Per FAR 52.204-24 through 26, FAR 4.2105(a), and Policy Alert # 20-124 “Section

2 – Merchant Representation”: Prohibition on Contracting for Certain

Telecommunications and Video Surveillance Services or Equipment: Video surveillance and Telecommunications equipment produced by (or any subsidiary or affiliate of such entities) below, is strictly prohibited:

● Huawei Technologies Company

● ZTE Corporation

● Hytera Communications Corporation

● Hangzhou Hikvision Digital Technology Company

● Dahua Technology Company

Agencies shall not solicit offers from, award contracts to renew, place new orders with, or otherwise extend the duration of current contracts, or consent to subcontracts. Moreover, any proposals including commodities or services from the above mentioned vendors (or subsidiaries) will be eliminated from consideration.

https://www.bidnetdirect.com/colorado/oit

5.4. Colorado Vendor Self Service

This DQ is being published on the Colorado Vendor Self Service page (Colorado

VSS) at www.colorado.gov/vss, so that Respondents who have an interest may submit a response in accordance with the terms of this DQ.

5.5. Modifications and/or Supplemental Information To The Solicitation

a. Any modifications, amendments or supplemental information to the solicitation will be published on Colorado VSS. A modification notice will be published on Colorado VSS in the event that it becomes necessary to revise any part of this solicitation.

b. It is the Respondent’s sole responsibility to check Colorado VSS on a regular basis, prior to the Quote submission deadline, as this is the primary means for communicating any clarifications or changes to solicitation content, timeline and/or requirements.

5.6. News Releases and Announcements

Respondents shall not issue any news releases, communications or announcements of any kind pertaining to this solicitation, without prior written approval by the State.

5.7. Response Material Ownership

All material submitted in response to this DQ becomes the property of the State.

5.8. Submission of Confidential or Proprietary Information

a. A Respondent may submit, as a part of its Response, a written request for classification of certain portions of the response as a trade secret or other confidential or proprietary information. Material for which the

Respondent is requesting confidentiality shall be readily identifiable and separated from other portions of the response to facilitate public inspection of the non-confidential portion of the response. Commingling of confidential and non-confidential information is not acceptable.

Neither price information nor any information that will be included in a resulting Contract or purchase order will be considered confidential.

b. The Respondent must include the rationale for any request to classify portions as a trade secret or confidential or proprietary, including references to the authority that allows for such treatment.

c. A complete redacted response should also be included along with an unredacted Response and confidentiality justification.

d. Except as provided in Section 1.2 above, in no event shall an entire response be classified as confidential. The Procurement Official or his or her designee shall determine if the information identified in the

Respondent’s request is exempt from disclosure in accordance with

§24-72-204, C.R.S., and shall inform the Respondent in writing of his or her determination. If the Respondent does not agree with the determination, the Respondent may protest the determination in accordance with article 109 of the Colorado Procurement Code and the terms of this solicitation. Reference Procurement Rule R-24-101-401-03.

Schedule of Activities