Attachment_B_-Capability_Statement_Instructions.pdf

REL Peer Review and Support PWS Capability Statement Instructions

Independent Review and Technical and Logistical Support for Regional Educational Laboratories

SOLICITATION # ED-IES-17-R-0025

CAPABILITY STATEMENT INSTRUCTIONS

The U.S. Department of Education (the Department) is conducting market research to determine if sufficient interest and capability exists in the marketplace for the Independent Review and Technical and Logistical Support for Regional Educational Laboratories, hereafter referred to as “REL Peer Review and Support.” This notice is NOT a request for proposals, but is an invitation for potential offerors to express interest and provide information regarding their relevant knowledge, skills and capabilities. Information submitted in response to this Special Notice may be used to assist the Department in finalizing its acquisition strategy.

Disclaimer: The Department will not pay for the provision of any information nor will it compensate any respondents for providing this information. This notice in no way obligates the Government to award any contract to any interested party. Feedback will not be provided to any interested party who submits information to the Department in response to this notice.

Capability Statement Submission Deadline

The deadline for submitting Capability Statements and Basic Information responses is Tuesday, April 25, 2017 by 11:00 AM (EST) via e-mail to the following individuals:

Barakat.Shakir@ed.gov, and cc: Veronica.Price@ed.gov

Primary Point of Contact:

Barakat Shakir Contract Specialist Barakat.Shakir@ed.gov

Secondary Point of Contact:

Veronica Price, Sr. Contracting Officer Veronica.Price@ed.gov

Capability Statement Instructions

In response to the attached DRAFT REL Peer Review and Support Performance Work Statement (PWS), the Department hereby solicits capability statements from eligible, interested parties.

Capability Statements shall be no longer than 4 pages (single-spaced, with a minimum of one-inch margins and 12-point font).

Interested Parties shall provide responses for all content areas noted below. The information requested in the Basic Information Section, discussed below, does NOT count against the 4 page Capability Statement page limitation.

BASIC INFORMATION

(a) Please state your business/company name and address. Include contact information such as a corporate email address and website URL.

(b) Please state your business size status (i.e., large or small) in the stated NAICS code of 541720. Also provide all socio economic categories for your company and the corresponding NAICS code, and a statement as to whether NAICS code of 541720 is the most appropriate code.

(c) State if the requirement should be set-aside for small business, and why (or why not)?

(d) State if your business believes that GSA OASIS contracts are a viable procurement tool;

and if so, under which pool?

(e) State if your company believes that the DRAFT REL Peer Review and Support PWS contains any unduly restrictive language or content? Why? Please cite specific examples and provide feedback.

(f) State if the DRAFT REL Peer Review and Support PWS content provides opportunities for small business subcontracting. Why or why not?

CAPABILITY STATEMENT CONTENT AREAS

The capability statement must describe the collective expertise and experience of your company’s personnel, in each of the following areas:

• Experience in designing, implementing, and maintaining an application similar to the one described in the PWS (Task 3.1) and experience in troubleshooting problems that arise in the implementation and use of a SharePoint system that is similar in scale and complexity as the one described in this PWS (Task 7.1).

Interested parties shall provide a minimum of two examples of personnel’s successful past experience designing, implementing and maintaining an application similar to the one described in PWS (Task 3.1) and at least two examples of troubleshooting problems that arise in the implementation and use of a SharePoint system that is similar in scale and complexity as the one described in this PWS (Task 7.1).

• Experience and skill in designing and conducting education research and evaluations, in particular in conducting research using methods relevant to the contract (e.g., small scale randomized controlled trials, quasi-experimental studies, rigorous quantitative and qualitative descriptive research, etc.) and familiarity with IES standards and guidelines including the What Works Clearinghouse standards (version 3.0). Interested parties shall provide a minimum of three examples of personnel’s successful past experience designing and implementing education research studies of the type that will be reviewed in this contract. Ideally, interested parties shall provide at least one example of randomized controlled trial and at least one example of high-quality descriptive research. This should include demonstrated experience managing costs and timeliness.

Interested parties shall also provide a minimum of two examples of personnel’s knowledge of and experience with the WWC standards. For example, are personnel certified WWC reviewers, or have personnel served as WWC reviewers on a WWC contract?

• Experience and skill in providing independent review of education research, and experience editing and producing engaging reports and tools that communicate technical and complex ideas in plain language to multiple stakeholders with limited technical expertise. Interested parties shall provide a minimum of three examples of personnel’s successful past experience in providing independent review of education research and of editing and producing engaging reports and tools for multiple stakeholders. This should include demonstrated experience managing costs and timeliness.

• Experience applying knowledge of current analytic methods used in education evaluation and research and of current education issues facing education policymakers and practitioners. Interested parties shall provide a minimum of three examples of personnel’s successful past experience in applying knowledge of current analytic methods in education research and evaluation and in applying knowledge of current education issues facing policymakers and practitioners.

In addition, the capability statement shall address the following experience and capacity at the corporate level:

• Experience with projects similar in scale and diversity of subtasks to that described in the Draft REL Peer Review and Support PWS. Interested parties shall provide evidence of successful corporate experience with a minimum of two past projects that are similar in scale and diversity of tasks to that described in the Draft REL Peer Review and Support PWS.

Independent Review and Technical and Logistical Support for Regional Educational Laboratories