DRAFT NCSES Facilities Survey PWS FYs 2027 and 2029.pdf

Attachment 1

Survey of Science and Engineering Research Facilities

Survey Cycles for FY 2027 and FY 2029 Performance Work Statement

July 2026

I. Purpose

The purpose of this acquisition is to collect and tabulate data from research-performing colleges and universities in the United States on the characteristics of their science and engineering research facilities capacity for the FY 2027 and FY 2029 survey cycles.

II. Background

The National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics (NCSES) within the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) collects, maintains, and disseminates information on science and engineering (S&E) resources in the United States. Specifically, Section 505 within the America COMPETES Reauthorization Act of 2010 directs NSF as follows:

“(a) Establishment- There is established within the Foundation a National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics that shall serve as a central Federal clearinghouse for the collection, interpretation, analysis, and dissemination of objective data on science, engineering, technology, and research and development.

(b) Duties- In carrying out subsection (a) of this section, the Director, acting through the Center shall--

(1) collect, acquire, analyze, report, and disseminate statistical data related to the science and engineering enterprise in the United States and other nations that is relevant and useful to practitioners, researchers, policymakers, and the public, including statistical data on--

(A) research and development trends;…”

NCSES collects data on U.S. resources allocated to the funding and performance of research and development (R&D). S&E research facilities at academic institutions are an important part of these national resources. In 1985 Congress mandated that the NSF establish an ongoing data collection and analytic system to document the current status of and need for research facilities by major field of science and engineering (Public Law 99-159 §108). To meet this mandate, NCSES has conducted the Survey of Science and Engineering Research Facilities on a biennial basis since 1986.

III. Objectives

The objective of this acquisition is to establish a task order to:

• Conduct the FY 2027 and FY 2029 survey cycles for the Survey of Science and Engineering Research Facilities (Facilities Survey);

• Maintain a database consisting of individual institution data from the Facilities Survey;

• Generate detailed tables using the database;

• Prepare and deliver data files from each survey cycle to NCSES for the NCSES data repository;

• Format the data in a cumulative data file for use in NCSES databases such as the Data Table Builder;

• Conduct research on survey design and methodologies including, but not limited to, eligibility criteria; question development; survey instruments; and editing and imputation;

• Prepare documentary information on the survey including methodology reports;

technical notes, imputation memos, and survey overviews.

IV. Methodology

NCSES conducts the Facilities Survey to provide national estimates for all research-performing academic institutions. The academic universe for each survey cycle is defined as a census of institutions that performed at least $1 million in separately accounted S&E research and development in the previous fiscal year.

In the most recent FY 2025 Facilities Survey, a census of 645 academic institutions was conducted.

The sampling frame used for the survey was the FY 2024 Higher Education Research and Development Survey (HERD) conducted by NCSES.

Prior cycles of the survey have used a multiple step data collection process. During the first step, letters were sent to the president, chancellor or director of the eligible institutions requesting their institution’s participation in the survey and confirming that the institution wishes to again use the previous cycle’s institutional coordinator. If an institution did not previously participate, they were asked to name a new coordinator. Concurrently, the prior cycle’s institutional coordinator was sent an email informing them of the NSF letter to their institution’s president/chancellor/director. During the FY 2025survey cycle, some communications were sent by both emails and letters to account for university staff who were still working remotely during the pandemic.

In the second step, the coordinators were sent the survey and instructions for distribution.

Coordinators serve as the point of contact for most communication regarding the survey. During phase three, data were collected through a Web-based survey. Finally, during telephone survey follow-up, missing data were obtained and potential data inconsistencies were resolved with respondents.

The Facilities survey includes data on the following items by major S&E field:

• Net assignable square feet (NASF) used for sponsored research;

• The condition of research facilities;

• The amount of space (and costs) that is planned for repair, renovation, or construction;

• The amount of repair/renovation and construction that is deferred;

• The amount (and costs) of repair/renovation and construction of research space completed;

• The cost and space information of individual construction projects;

• Whether research space is shared with researchers in other fields or is shared for purposes other than research; and,

• Sources of funds for the repair/renovation and construction projects initiated in the two-year period since the last survey.

The FY 2027 and FY 2029 surveys will continue the biennial data collection on the amount and characteristics of S&E research space. The survey will be a census of research-performing academic institutions. The frame will be a list of academic institutions from the most current NSF Higher Education Research and Development Survey.

All items on the questionnaire are reported at the institutional level except for questions on animal research space and the condition of research space. A confidentiality statement similar to that below covering these excepted survey items is required on the questionnaires:

"Responses to the confidential items are collected under a pledge of confidentiality and will only be used for statistical purposes. Information from confidential items is not published or released for individual institutions; only aggregate totals will appear in publications. In accordance with the Confidential Information Protection and Statistical Efficiency Act (CIPSEA) of 2018 and other applicable federal laws, your responses will not be disclosed in identifiable form to anyone other than agency employees or authorized persons. Any questionnaire item not marked as confidential will be available on a public use file. Per the Federal Cybersecurity Enhancement Act of 2015, your data are protected from cybersecurity risks through screening of the federal information systems that transmit your data."

The Contractor shall make all staff working with confidential data aware of the importance and requirements for maintaining confidentiality; All Contractor staff (including any subcontractors) working on the NSF confidential data must sign an NCSES Data Use Agreement, acknowledging their responsibilities to protect the data. A duly authorized representative of the organization with legal authority to bind the organization must also sign the Organization Data Use Agreement. In addition, Contractor staff using NCSES confidential data will also be required annually to take NCSES-required training about data confidentiality. This training will be made available via the Internet.

Data collection will begin by October 27, 2027 for the FY 2027 cycle and by October 24, 2029 for the FY 2029 cycle.

The tasks in this performance work statement are:

Base: FY 2027 Survey Task 1 Initial meeting Task 2 Transition plan and processes Task 3 Survey management plan Task 4 Revise data collection instruments Task 5 OMB survey clearance support

Task 6 Collect data Task 7 Produce table shells Task 8 Data files and documentation Task 9 NCSES data repository files Task 10 Public use files and user guide Task 11 Write and send thank you letters to respondents Task 12 Impute for unit and item nonresponse Task 13 Produce data tables, technical notes, and survey description Task 14 Data Release InfoBrief Task 15 Methodology Report Task 16 Conduct ad hoc data analyses Task 17 Conduct survey methodological analyses Task 18 Conduct monthly meetings and project management

Option: FY 2029 Survey Task 1 Revise data collection instruments Task 2 Update survey management plan Task 3 Collect data Task 4 Produce table shells Task 5 Data files and documentation Task 6 NCSES data repository files Task 7 Public use files and user guide Task 8 Write and send thank you letters to respondents Task 9 Impute for unit and item nonresponse Task 10 Produce data tables, technical notes, and survey description Task 11 Data Release InfoBrief Task 12 Methodology Report Task 13 Conduct ad hoc data analyses Task 14 Conduct survey methodological analyses Task 15 Transition plan and processes Task 16 Conduct monthly meetings and project management

V. Performance Work Statement

Independently, and not as an agent of the Government, the Contractor shall furnish all the necessary services, qualified personnel, material, equipment, and facilities, not otherwise provided by the Government as needed to perform the work detailed below. The tasks required as part of this performance work statement are below. All survey instruments (electronic and paper) and survey software developed under this task order are the property of NCSES.

Base: FY 2027 Survey

Task 1. Kick-off meeting Within two weeks after the award of the contract, the Contractor shall meet with the Contracting Officer (CO), the Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR), and other NCSES staff to discuss and review tasks and deliverables. The Contractor, in cooperation with NCSES, shall prepare an agenda for this meeting, which shall include discussion of study objectives, study tasks, institutional recruitment, contract schedule, including plans for the transition from the incumbent and any other items the Contractor wishes to include. The agenda shall be submitted to the COR three business days before the meeting. This half-day meeting shall be held in Alexandria, Virginia at NSF or virtually at the COR’s discretion.

Within one week of the initial meeting, the Contractor shall provide the COR with the minutes of the meeting describing each issue discussed and the conclusions reached.

Task 2. Transition plan and processes Transition for the 2027 survey cycle and all transition activities will take place within two months of task order award. A closely concerted coordination effort with the incumbent Contractor is needed to ensure successful transition of survey materials, data files, and documentation for all past survey operations and data-related items. A successful transition is instrumental in carrying out the initial survey activities for the 2027 survey.

After careful review of the draft transition plan developed under the previous contract by the incumbent contractor, the new contractor shall develop a more detailed transition plan that includes the status of materials provided by the incumbent Contractor (see list below) and any needs by the new Contractor for information or materials. The detailed transition plan shall be submitted to the COR within three weeks from award of the task order, and shall include a detailed plan for the transition, testing, and operation of all IT systems, and an assessment of the risks accompanying the transition process.

Within one month of the task order award date, NCSES will host a meeting at which the new Contractor shall meet with the incumbent Contractor. The purpose of the meeting will be to provide the new Contractor with background and materials and to convey the urgency of a smooth and expedient transition for the 2027 survey. The two contractors shall work together to ensure that the transition does not disrupt survey operations and service to survey respondents.

Materials to be provided by the incumbent at the start of this project include the following:

• All software and associated systems documentation used for the 2025 Facilities Survey;

• Detailed and complete inventory of past survey documentation (including data collection contact materials) and data files (including public use files and NCSES data repository deliverables) provided by the incumbent and past contractors;

• Electronic files containing all programs developed under previous contracts;

• Table specifications and programming code used to produce the data tables and other reports;

• Contact information received from each institution during the FY 2025 survey cycle;

• Materials related to the evaluations, methodological research, and statistical activities performed by the incumbent Contractor;

• Historical/archival data files and associated documentation from all Facility Survey cycles beginning with FY 2007.

All materials shall be stored by the Contractor. A detailed and complete inventory of all materials received and of all materials developed shall be maintained by the Contractor and be accessible at all times by the COR, for transition to the next contractor at the end of this task order. The Contractor is encouraged to identify other aspects of the project that should be included in the transition activities.

Task 3. Survey management plan Based on the kick-off meeting discussions and consultation with the COR, the Contractor shall review and revise the proposed Survey Management Plan. The Contractor shall submit a revised Survey Management Plan for NCSES review and approval within 2 weeks after the kick-off meeting.

The Survey Management Plan must contain the following:

Resource Plan

• Staffing information including an organizational chart and proposed personnel crucial to successful project outcomes by task assignments, their hourly rates, and the number of proposed hours per person per task per year (or a percentage of their time);

• Resumes for key personnel;

• Status of materials provided by the incumbent Contractor and identification of additional materials needed to move to a fully functioning operation

Communication Plan

• Plan for establishing communication protocols between the Contractor’s staff and the COR;

• Plan for releasing data and other products developed under this task order;

• Plan to inform the respondent population about changes resulting from the transition to the new Contractor, including changes in operations and procedures for communicating with the new Contractor.

Project Management Plan

• Schedule of activities under this task order using an electronic package such as MS Project for the development of a work breakdown schedule (WBS) which provides detailed schedules for completion of tasks and subtasks, to track/monitor progress and interrelated activities.

• Plan for development of a real time information management system (IMS) that provides up-to-date information on all actions on tasks and deliverables. This IMS shall provide the COR access to real time information that assists NCSES in managing the project and shall include the following information: when surveys were sent to each institution and when each institution responded; the mode of response; the number of institutional contacts initiated by the Contractor by mode of contact (paper, e-mail or telephone), date of contact and reason for contact; date each institution first logged on to the website; contacts initiated by the institutions, date of contact, the mode of contact and the issues raised; response rates.

• Plan for budget and financial reporting system with detail, by year, task and subtask and at the task and subtask level actual versus projected costs by activity and staffing, to ensure careful monitoring of the negotiated costs vs. actual costs for the contract.

Quality Assurance and Quality Control Plan

• The objective of Quality Assurance (QA) is the early identification and resolution of problems in cost, timeliness and quality of the survey processes and data file. The QA plan for the survey systems processes, files and databases shall contain procedures for quality assurance, and will evolve as the task order progresses. The QA plan shall also include risk assessments of any trade-offs involving data quality, the schedule, and the budget.

• The QA plan shall address detailed procedures that are integrated throughout the entire range of survey activities, including all phases of data collection, processing and analysis; for example, mailing packages that include the survey invitation and reminder letters, survey forms and instructions and other correspondence; response tracking; keying; data editing;

table preparation and verification, and so forth. The QA results shall be used to provide timely feedback to the affected areas of survey operations to improve the quality of work. The IMS (specified in the Survey Management Plan/Schedule) shall be structured to help identify potential problems and to be proactive in responding to these problems.

• The QA procedures will evolve (e.g., the QA for the 2029 survey shall be revised based on the experience gained during the 2027 survey). The procedures will also be reviewed during each survey cycle and revised as need arises and in response to NCSES requests. Results of the QA plan shall be reported in the Methodology Report for each survey cycle. The COR shall request any updates to the QA procedures within four weeks of the Facilities Survey data public release. The Contractor shall submit revised QA procedures for review and approval within 2 weeks of this request.

• A Quality Control (QC) plan is also part of this task. The QC plan shall specify procedures the

Contractor will use to ensure accuracy for all final products and deliverables including the microdata and metadata files, and shall designate the roles accountable for accuracy of a product, including the author, the reviewer, the QC checker, etc. QC procedures shall include “best practices” for web survey data collections and for all aspects of the survey process.

• The Contractor shall monitor and evaluate QC results from each survey operation for early detection of possible problems and resolution, and assessment of the overall quality of survey operations. All QC results shall be documented and shared with the COR on a weekly basis and included in the Methodology Report for each survey cycle.

• The QA and QC plan shall be submitted to the COR within four weeks of the kick-off meeting for review and approval by the COR. After approval of the quality plans, the Contractor’s methods and procedures for quality (and general requirements for checking of work) shall be provided to each staff person on the project. Training in specific areas of quality as relevant to each task shall be provided to staff working on that task. The Contractor shall ensure that detailed QA and QC procedures are implemented and closely followed.

Confidentiality Plan and Data Security Procedures (CPDSP)

• The Facilities Survey includes information that is collected under a pledge of confidentiality to respondents. Therefore, handling of the Facilities data by the Contractor will require the application of special protections. The following Facilities Survey items are confidential:

o Information provided on research animal space (Questions 1, row i, 3, 10F).

o Information on the condition of S&E research space (Question 7).

• The Contractor shall be responsible for protecting the confidentiality of the confidential

Facilities Survey items, as required by the Confidential Information Protection and Statistical Efficiency Act (CIPSEA) of 2018. The Contractor shall also be subject to all federal (e.g., Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA), Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS)), NSF, and NCSES policies on confidentiality protection, as specified by the NCSES Chief Statistician, regarding data collection, data storage and access, and data dissemination and analysis.1, 2 These policies may change during the period of the contract.

• The Contractor shall submit for review and approval by the COR and NCSES Chief

Statistician a detailed plan for protecting the security of Facilities Survey data at the Contractor site (including all microdata and data files that are used as part of these data), protecting the security of these data when transferring/delivering confidential data, protecting the confidentiality of the survey respondents, protecting the privacy of survey respondents among staff, and documenting any other confidentiality and access issues for the Facilities Survey.

• This detailed deliverable plan will be called the Confidentiality Plan and Data Security

Procedures (CPDSP) and shall be submitted to the COR within four weeks of the kick-off meeting for review and approval by the COR. The CPDSP must include:

o The security of the facility that will house the Facilities Survey data (including all microdata and data files that are used as part of these data);

o The physical and environmental protections of the rooms in which the data will be stored;

o Access control of the facility in which the data are housed;

o Standards that address the physical and environmental protections for individuals who will access the data remotely;

o Protections for the network on which the data are housed;

o Authorization and access controls for the network on which the data are housed;

o Network password requirements to access the network on which the data are housed;

o Data use agreements;

o Data disclosure procedures and review;

o Other items to be addressed in the CPDSP are detailed in subsequent sections.

o See Appendix B for a checklist to use in the development of the CPDSP. Before the

Contractor receives any of the data files, the CPDSP must be approved by NCSES.

Physical Protection

• Upon approval by the COR, the Contractor shall implement procedures addressed in the CPDSP that protect the confidentiality and privacy of survey respondents. The Contractor shall strictly control access to the confidential Facilities Survey items and ensure that only authorized personnel with a need to know will have access to such data.

1 https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/SpecialPublications/NIST.SP.800-53r5.pdf 2 https://csrc.nist.gov/publications/detail/fips/200/final https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/SpecialPublications/NIST.SP.800-53r5.pdf https://csrc.nist.gov/publications/detail/fips/200/final

• The Contractor shall uphold secure database maintenance practices and strict version control procedures and both these procedures must be documented in the CPDSP. The Contractor shall also document confidentiality and access issues for the Facilities Survey data and implement procedures for data protection and dissemination in accordance with FISMA and FIPS protocols. NCSES has the right to conduct unannounced, unscheduled inspections of the Contractor’s site to assess compliance with the CPDSP.

Data Use Agreements

• The Contractor shall document and implement procedures to ensure that all Facilities Survey data collected and processed will be protected from unlawful disclosure. The Contractor shall make all staff working with the data aware of the importance and requirements for maintaining confidentiality. A duly authorized representative of the Contractor’s organization with legal authority to bind the organization must sign the NCSES Organization Data Use Agreement (see Appendix B) annually. All Contractor staff (including any subcontractors) working on the Facilities Survey also must sign the NCSES Individual Data Use Agreement (see Appendix B) each year, acknowledging their responsibilities to protect the data.

• In addition, Contractor staff using NCSES data are also required to take annual NCSES-mandated training on computer security awareness, data confidentiality, CIPSEA, and any other training mandated by NSF/NCSES. This training will be made available via the Internet or other media as approved by the NCSES Chief Statistician.

• The signed Data Use Agreement forms, certificates of completion for the confidentiality training, and the list of all signees shall be delivered to NCSES within four weeks of the kick-off meeting, and annually thereafter. Before the Contractor receives any of the data files, these steps must be completed: 1) the Confidentiality Plan and Data Security Procedures must be approved by NCSES, 2) the signed NCSES Data Use Agreements for Organizations and all individuals on the project must be received by the COR, and 3) staff must complete confidentiality training.

• The Contractor shall provide evidence that they have approval from their Institutional

Review Board (IRB) or other legal authorities from their organization to conduct activities related to the use of this data (i.e., they adhere to the requirements of their organization) before any actual data can be provided to the Contractor as part of a transition. If the Contractor does not have an IRB, they shall certify that they are following NSF’s Common Rule for the Protection of Human Subjects. 3

3 https://www.nsf.gov/bfa/dias/policy/docs/45cfr690.pdf https://www.nsf.gov/bfa/dias/policy/docs/45cfr690.pdf

Data Disclosure Procedures and Review

• The Contractor shall provide to the COR a nondisclosure statement each year, documenting that all required staff have signed Data Use Agreements and attended confidentiality training and identifying all incidents of the disclosure of confidential Facilities Survey data. The Contractor shall further notify the NCSES Chief Statistician, NCSES Confidentiality Officer, and COR in writing (electronic transmission is acceptable) within one hour of discovery of any unauthorized release of confidential Facilities Survey items to anyone other than individuals with signed NCSES Data Use Agreement forms. The Contractor shall submit, annually, the nondisclosure statement and statement of actual disclosures of data to the Contracting Officer (CO) and COR each December 31st during the contract period of performance and at the end of the contract.

Survey Cycle Data Release

• With approval from NSF/NCSES, the Contractor may receive access to Facilities Survey data for a new survey cycle that has not been publicly released. No release of any data in any form for a new survey cycle is permitted until the COR issues an official release authorization to the Contractor. The Contractor shall specify in the CPDSP and implement internal written procedures and policies to ensure that data are not released before the official NSF/NCSES release date. Violation of this contract requirement is grounds for termination of the contract.

• Even after data for a survey cycle are approved for release by the COR, there are still limitations on the access to and use of the data and files. The Contractor shall follow the CPDSP as approved by the COR.

Disposition of Survey Data

• A data disposition plan shall be submitted as part of the CPDSP for approval by NCSES. The data disposition plan shall include instructions related to the closeout tasks near the end of the contract.

• Any revisions to the plans requested by NCSES shall be incorporated by the Contractor and sent to the COR within two weeks.

Task 4. Revise the paper and Web survey instruments Based on any survey review activities conducted under Task 15 and consultations with the COR, the Contractor shall revise the paper survey, which will be provided to the survey recipients as a PDF. Revising the survey is an iterative process and the Contractor shall provide drafts of suggested revisions to the paper survey instrument to the COR. Following receipt of COR comments on the first draft revisions, the Contractor shall provide a second draft of the paper survey instrument.

Following receipt of COR comments on the second draft revisions, the Contractor shall provide a final draft of the paper survey instrument. The final draft of the paper survey instrument shall be compliant with Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended by the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (P.L. 105-220).

All deliverables should be provided in a structured machine-understandable format that includes standardized schemas for tagging and metadata. All materials, software programming/documentation, etc. developed by the Contractor under this task order shall be the property of the U.S. Government. Any software used will be non-proprietary and transferable to a subsequent Contractor.

When the final paper survey iterations are completed and the paper survey questions are considered final, the Contractor shall revise the Web version of the survey. The Contractor shall allow institutions to view their responses from the FY 2025 cycle as part of the FY 2027 data collection.

The Contractor shall test the Web instrument in house. Following in-house testing and any related revisions, the Contractor shall provide the revised instrument to NCSES for beta testing. The Contractor shall allow two weeks for NCSES testing. Within one week of COR comments, the Contractor shall deliver the final Web version of the survey.

Task 5. OMB survey clearance support During the period of this task order, an information collection request (“clearance”) must be submitted to OMB to permit the FY 2027 and FY 2029 survey cycles. The survey clearance package must be submitted by NCSES to OMB by June 1, 2027. To allow time for NCSES review and revisions, the Contractor shall submit the draft OMB clearance package to NCSES by March 12, 2027. The Contractor shall prepare the OMB clearance package with significant input from NCSES (see Appendix B). The OMB clearance package shall include plans and proposed respondent burden hours for any methodological work, pilots, or pretests. The Contractor shall include the draft survey contact materials in the OMB clearance package. The format and content of the OMB clearance package shall be specified and approved by the COR. The final OMB clearance package shall be submitted by NCSES and, when appropriate, the Contractor shall assist the COR in addressing any questions from

OMB.

As necessary, the Contractor shall prepare OMB generic clearance packages for methodological research activities conducted for the Facilities Survey. The Contractor shall draft for NCSES review and approval and provide final copies of all materials for the generic clearance package, including:

letter to OMB under the generic clearance for methodological research; prototype materials; scripts used to recruit respondents; interview or focus group protocols or guides; study plans; and data analysis plans.

In order to provide input for the OMB full clearance and generic clearance packages, the Contractor shall collect and maintain information on the respondent burden survey via pre-testing of any new or expanded questions. Any proposed respondent contacts requesting burden information shall be submitted to the COR for advance approval.

Task 6. Collect data The Contractor shall collect the FY 2027 survey data according to the procedures set forth in the FY 2027 Survey Management Plan. The primary method of data collection shall be a Web-based instrument. The Contractor shall achieve response rates of at least 95 percent.

The survey collects a limited amount of confidential data and therefore the handling of the data by the Contractor shall require special protections of the data. The Contractor shall follow the procedures in the approved CPDSP.

The COR will provide the Contractor with a list of institutions for the survey frame. The final population list will include the institution’s identification number, the institution name, type of institutional control, and highest degree granted.

Immediately prior to the start of data collection, the Contractor shall update all names and addresses of all institutions and all individuals included in the data collection. Data collection shall begin (correspondences sent to institutional directors/presidents) by October 27, 2027. An email from the NCSES project director to existing institutional coordinators with Web survey information shall be sent the day data collection begins.

The Contractor shall use a real time, Web-based monitoring system that NCSES can access to monitor the data, response status and relevant comments from respondents in real time. The Contractor shall ensure that all respondent and staff related comments are entered into the system.

The monitoring system shall minimally include: the name of the institution, the identification code of the institution, the name and contact information of the institutional coordinator, status of agreement to participate by institution, status of survey completion, and status of reminders to respondents. NCSES may ask for additional variables to be included at the time the monitoring system is established. The monitoring system shall also provide the COR with the ability to view current surveys for individual institutions.

In addition to the real-time monitoring system, weekly status reports shall be submitted via email to the COR or posted on the survey management system for the duration of this task. These reports shall include at least the rates of institutional participation, number of coordinators identified, number of completed surveys, and follow-up activity status.

The Contractor shall begin data follow-up activities (e.g., obtaining missing data, resolution of seemingly data inconsistencies) with respondents no later than four weeks after the receipt of an institution’s response. All data follow-up for all respondents shall end within four weeks of the receipt of the last survey. The Contractor shall consult the COR to identify the appropriate date for accepting the last survey.

The Contractor shall collect and report on survey paradata including, but not limited to: a table indicating the weekly response flow during data collection, respondent comments made on their survey responses, a frequency of all error messages triggered while the respondents are completing the survey, counts of institutions for each edit flag after data submission, item nonresponse rates, and interviewer logs of conversations with respondents. In addition, the Contractor shall conduct and record a debriefing of the survey ‘interviewers’ about the data collection process and any respondent difficulties. A recording of the debriefing shall be included as part of the paradata.

NCSES may ask for additional paradata to be collected at the time the survey is established.

The Contractor shall submit three invoices according to the following progress schedule. Invoice 1 shall be submitted when the survey is fielded. Invoice 2 shall be submitted at the time of the survey due date for respondents. Invoice 3 shall be submitted at the completion of all remaining task activities and deliverables.

Task 7. Prepare table shells for NCSES data tables (DTs) and eTables The Contractor shall propose table shells to be created for the FY 2027 data. Upon acceptance of the proposed tables, the Contractor shall provide the COR with drafts and final table shells for DTs.

The Contractor shall use the FY 2025 eTables as the format for the table shells, which can be downloaded as a zip file from https://ncses.nsf.gov/surveys/science-engineering-research-facilities/2023#data. Any changes to the table formats will be provided by the COR. Accompanying documentation shall include a list of major changes from the prior cycle including

- logic changes such as whether any cell has been calculated differently;

- new questions added to the survey;

- new response categories;

- new disclosure review (if needed).

Acceptance of table shells is subject to review and approval by the COR.

Task 8. Data files and documentation Following editing and imputation, the Contractor shall produce the final data files, which shall be used to prepare the data tables (DTs). For example, the data files for the 2027 survey cycle shall be included in the archival file when processing for the survey cycle is complete. At the close of the 2027 survey cycle, the Contractor shall prepare a complete historical (cumulative) file containing data from all surveys beginning with FY 2007, including select data points from the FY 1987- FY 2005 surveys. The new Contractor will have received, from the incumbent, copies of archival files and associated documentation from these Facility Survey cycles.

The Contractor shall maintain and update the survey historical data files. The Contractor shall make any corrections to prior-year data in the historical files that may be required considering the most recent survey submissions. The Contractor shall perform edits of the data in the historical file to ensure accuracy and internal consistency. All corrections shall be flagged as revised data within the institution level records. The Contractor shall also maintain static data files including each survey year’s final published data.

The Contractor shall confirm the accuracy and consistency of the final data files. All quality assurance measures shall be performed prior to preparation of any data product. The actual data quality assurance measures to be used shall be specified in the QA and QC plans. The Contractor shall provide the COR with pre-imputation frequency tables (including variable and value labels) on all variables. In addition, data file material shall include: edits, verified data entry, and production of preliminary frequency counts or other descriptive statistics requested by the COR to ensure the integrity of the data file.

The Contractor shall provide NCSES with a link to a file-sharing site to download files containing a PDF copy of each institution’s final survey (i.e., after all data follow-up is complete) at the time the final data file is submitted to NCSES.

The Contractor shall deliver the data files in two formats. The first file shall be a SAS file that can be accessed from personal computers. This file will be used for NCSES’s Data Table Builder and to create the NCSES eTables. The Contractor shall provide any information requested by the COR about the SAS data file required to convert the file for these purposes. The second file shall be created in Excel Open XML format (*.xlsx) or similar software as specified by the COR. The documentation for each file shall meet the current NCSES Data Repository Checklist and Data Requirements Document standards.

Task 9. Data repository files The survey Contractor shall deliver to the NCSES COR, no later than September 8, 2028, the survey (a) Microdata and Associated Files and (b) Products/Reports and Associated Files. The organization and content of the data repository deliveries (a) and (b) are specified in detail in the attached data repository delivery requirements document titled “NCSES Data Repository Delivery Requirements,” provided in the Government Furnished Material. The Contractor shall use the checklists provided in the data repository delivery requirements document to ensure the key components for deliveries (a) and (b) are included in the Data Repository Delivery.

The Microdata and Associated Files shall be delivered, as soon as possible, after final approval of the microdata is given by the NCSES COR. The Products/Reports and Associated Files shall be delivered with the microdata or in a supplemental delivery after final approval of the product/report is given by the NCSES COR.

NCSES requires that each data repository delivery be packaged, handled, and delivered following the confidentiality and security guidelines specified under CIPSEA as needed. The deliveries shall be in an electronic format delivered via a secure FTP or other secure transfer.

Task 10. Public use files and user guide The Contractor shall prepare and submit data files for public use, using the format of previous public use files provided by the COR and in alignment with the QAQC guidance. They shall not contain any confidential variables or respondent contact information. The Contractor shall document the survey data files in an annually revised electronic version of the Data User Guide. A draft copy of the Data User Guide shall be submitted to the COR. The COR will approve or suggest modifications. Two (2) weeks after receipt of COR approval, the Contractor shall submit a final copy. The final draft of the user guide shall be compliant with Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended by the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (P.L. 105-220).

Task 11. Write and send thank you letters to respondents The Contractor shall mail thank you letters to respondents for their participation at a time agreed to with the COR. Thank you letters shall be sent to the institutional presidents with a copy to the institutional coordinator. In addition, a second thank you letter shall be addressed and sent directly to the institutional coordinator. The Contractor shall update the files used for the names and addresses of the respondents and the institutional coordinators immediately prior to sending the letters.

Task 12. Impute for unit and item nonresponse, write memo The Contractor shall impute for nonresponse according to the procedures followed in the FY 2025 survey unless other procedures have been agreed to with the COR. The COR will provide the Contractor with a description of the imputation procedures. The Contractor shall draft an imputation plan to evaluate the imputation by providing the imputation rates, the percent of time that imputed data failed the edits, and an analysis of R-squared and residuals. Within two weeks of COR comments, the Contractor shall provide a final imputation plan.

Task 13. Produce DTs, technical notes, and survey description The Contractor shall produce two drafts and a final set of DTs including technical notes and a survey description based on the survey data. These DTs will serve as the basis for the NCSES published eTables. The final DTs shall be delivered within 3 weeks after receipt of COR comments.

The COR will provide the Contractor with the SAS software programs used to generate the FY 2025 DTs and the Contractor shall use these programs as a basis for generating the FY 2027 DTs.

The technical notes shall use the template provided by the COR and shall update the content published at https://ncses.nsf.gov/surveys/science-engineering-research-facilities/2023#technical-notes. The survey description shall use the template provided by the COR and shall update the content published at https://ncses.nsf.gov/surveys/science-engineering-research-facilities/2023#survey-description. These products shall be considered final when they meet the standards detailed in the NCSES Data Quality Guidelines and they are approved by the COR.

Task 14. Data release InfoBrief At the discretion of and with guidance from the COR, the contractor shall prepare and submit to the COR a Data Release InfoBrief for the FY 2027 and FY 2029 Facilities Surveys. The Data Release InfoBrief provides a 4–8-page summary of general trends and highlights of any notable trend changes. The release of the data after each cycle is dependent upon the clearance of a Data Release InfoBrief by NCSES. The text and tables must conform to NCSES formats and specifications as documented in Appendix B. A Data Release InfoBrief concept document shall be submitted to NCSES within two (2) weeks after delivery of the first draft data tables for review. The contractor shall submit the draft InfoBrief within two (2) weeks of concept approval by NCSES. The final draft InfoBrief shall be submitted within two (2) weeks after incorporating the changes requested by the COR. This may be an iterative process until all NCSES reviews at all levels have been completed. The final report shall be compliant with section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended by the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (P.L. 105-220).

Up to five (5) tables and two (2) figures will be prepared for use in the InfoBrief.

Task 15. Update the methodology report and survey overview The Contractor shall maintain up-to-date electronic records of all activities conducted for the project, with easy COR access. These records shall form the basis for the methodology report. The methodology report shall provide sufficient depth and understanding of all project activities to allow replication of the work performed.

The Contractor shall send a draft methodology report to the COR via email. The methodology report shall provide a complete description of all aspects of the just-completed survey cycle including: universe selection, data collection methods, data processing procedures, nonresponse analysis, imputation, analytic specifications and procedures, the historical data files, public use files, and data repository files and how they are updated and maintained, and any caveats or qualifications that attach to the survey findings. It shall name and provide a brief description of all computer software programs used, as well as a history of past survey-cycle changes. It shall provide a list and brief description of any improvements in the just-completed survey cycle.

The methodology report shall conform to the requirements of methodology reports as stated in the Guidelines for Preparing Technical Documentation for NCSES Surveys (Appendix B) and any additional documentation/guidance provided by NCSES. Within two weeks of receiving the COR comments on the revised report, the Contractor shall submit a final methodology report. Upon approval from the COR, this final report shall be produced as a PDF and be compliant with section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended by the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (P.L.

105-220).

https://ncses.nsf.gov/surveys/science-engineering-research-facilities/2023#technical-notes

Task 16. Conduct ad hoc survey data analyses The Contractor shall conduct data processing, special tabulations or statistical analyses of survey data upon request by the COR. These analyses shall be either ‘short turn-around’ requests (usually one to five days) or longer turn-around requests (e.g. 3 to 4 weeks).

This task shall be billed for time and materials.

Task 17. Conduct survey methodological analyses The Contractor shall conduct methodological projects as needed. These projects may include research on substantive topics of the survey such as changes in research space usage or organization, , phone calls or emails with respondents, focus groups, expert interviews, record keeping studies, pretests, outreach activities to data users, site visits, workshops, cognitive interviews, usability testing, conducting special surveys, or other relevant work.

This task shall be billed for time and materials.

Task 18. Conduct monthly meetings and other project management activities Beginning one month after task order award, the Contractor shall meet with the COR and other NCSES staff in person or via teleconference on a monthly basis to discuss the progress of the project. The Contractor shall submit a draft agenda via email for all meetings at least two (2) business days before the meeting.

The Contractor shall be responsible for recording the minutes of the monthly meetings, and all other meetings that the Contractor attends with NCSES. Drafts of the meeting minutes shall be made available for NCSES review within three days following any meeting. The Contractor shall conduct all other project management activities necessary to successful task order completion.

The Contractor shall prepare monthly progress reports for the duration of the task order. These reports shall show the status of all major events and activities identified in each task and shall provide a financial report for both the period of the report and cumulatively for the performance period of each task. The Contractor shall also present a summary of all work performed during the report period, including technical status, accomplishments, problems encountered, solutions to address problems, plans for the coming month and any actions required on the part of NCSES. The timeframe of the monthly reports shall coincide with the timeframe of the monthly invoices.

The Contractor shall invoice monthly.

Option 1: FY 2029 Survey

Task 1. Revise the paper and Web survey instruments Based on the results of any methodological analysis on question development and in consultation with the COR, the Contractor shall revise the paper survey, which will be provided to the survey recipients as a PDF. Revising the survey is an iterative process and the Contractor shall provide drafts of suggested revisions to the paper survey instrument to the COR. Following receipt of COR comments on the first draft revisions, the Contractor shall provide a second draft of the paper survey instrument. Following receipt of COR comments on the second draft revisions, the Contractor shall provide a final draft of the paper survey instrument. The final draft of the paper survey instrument shall be compliant with Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended by the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (P.L. 105-220).

All deliverables should be provided in a structured machine-understandable format that includes standardized schemas for tagging and metadata. All materials, software programming/documentation, etc. developed by the Contractor under this task order shall be the property of the U.S. Government. Any software used will be non-proprietary and transferable to a subsequent Contractor.

When the final paper survey iterations are completed and the paper survey questions are considered final, the Contractor shall revise the Web version of the survey. The Contractor shall allow institutions to view their responses from the FY 2027 cycle as part of the FY 2029 data collection.

The Contractor shall test the Web instrument in house. Following in-house testing and any related revisions, the Contractor shall provide the revised instrument to NCSES for beta testing. The Contractor shall allow two weeks for NCSES testing.