Attachment_B_Task_Order_0001_i3_Performance_Work_Statement__Schedule_of_Deliverables.pdf

Attachment B

United States Department of Education

Office of Innovation and Improvement

Performance Work Statement

ED-OII-15-R-0009, Task Order 0001

Investing in Innovation Fund (i3)

A. Program Description and Purpose

The Investing in Innovation Fund (i3), established under section 14007 of the American

Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), provides funding to support (1) Local

Educational Agencies (LEAs), and (2) nonprofit organizations in partnership with (a) one or more LEAs or (b) a consortium of schools. The purpose of the program is to provide competitive grants to applicants with a record of improving student achievement, in order to expand the implementation of, and investment in, innovative practices that are demonstrated to have an impact on improving student achievement or student growth for high-need students, as well as to promote school readiness, close achievement gaps, decrease dropout rates, increase high school graduation rates, and improve teacher and school leader effectiveness.

These grants shall (1) allow eligible entities to expand and develop their work so that their work shall serve as models of best practices, (2) allow eligible entities to work in partnership with the private sector and the philanthropic community, and (3) identify and document best practices that shall be shared and taken to scale based on demonstrated success.

There shall be three separate grant categories of i3 funding:

1. Development grants provide funding to support high potential and relatively untested practices, strategies, or programs whose efficacy shall be systematically studied.

2. Validation grants provide funding to support educational practices for which there is moderate evidence of success, and to bring them to scale regionally statewide.

3. Scale-up grants provide funding to support educational practices for which there is strong evidence of prior success, and to bring them to scale nationally, regionally, or statewide.

The intent is to provide the most funding for those practices, strategies, or programs for which there is the most evidence and for which there is the greatest reach. Although the Office of

Innovation and Improvement (OII) may flexibly move its total funds among these grant categories when making awards, applicants shall apply separately to each of the categories.

Consequently, i3 shall have three independent competitions and review processes, one for each category of grant. Information about i3 is available on the OII website at http://www.ed.gov/programs/innovation/index.html.

The Contractor shall be responsible for establishing the review according to the tasks as described in this Performance Work Statement (PWS). Please note that all dates shall be determined by the closing date of the application. This date shall be determined once the Notice

Inviting Applications (NIA) is published in the Federal Register.

http://www.ed.gov/programs/innovation/index.html

This task order will be fixed price. It is anticipated that the Department will receive a total of

195 applications, requiring 100 reviewers and 40 alternate reviewers. Should the number of applications received or the number of reviewers required increase or decrease by 5% or more an equitable adjustment will be made to the contract to either increase (if the number increases) or decrease (if the number decreases) the amount of funding on the task order.

B. Tasks

Task 1: Project Management Support

Subtask 1.1: Meet and Communicate with the Department

1.1.a: i3 Kick-Off Meeting

The Contractor shall arrange a planning meeting with the i3 Competition Manager (CM) and the

Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR). The meeting shall be held in a conference room at the U.S. Department of Education (Department). The purpose of the meeting shall be to review the Task Order (TO) and the Contractor’s work plan for the competition review. The Contractor shall prepare the draft work plan and agenda prior to this meeting and provide the draft work plan and agenda to the COR 24 hours prior to the scheduled meeting. The Contractor shall submit written minutes of this meeting to the COR and CM for review and approval within seven calendar days after the meeting.

1.1.b: Submit Work Plan

The draft work plan shall include the Contractor and CM’s activities and their completion dates.

Items to be included in the draft work plan are the deliverables of the task order by task, the dates of completion by the Contractor, and the dates of completion by i3 staff. Once the COR has approved the work plan, the finalized work plan shall be used by the Contractor to plan work, by the COR to track work under this TO, and by OII and i3 staff and management to monitor activities. The Contractor shall submit the notes before the final work plan within seven calendar days after the meeting. The final format of the work plan shall delineates the following: tasks, deadline for tasks, those assigned to work on tasks, a list of completed tasks, a list of outstanding tasks to be completed, and other relevant information required for the implementation of the work plan.

Subtask 1.2: Status Reporting

The Contractor shall communicate daily with the CM and COR. A daily summary email shall include updates on the Contractor’s progress on tasks, such as securing and/or replacing reviewers, swapping applications due to conflict of interest, payment of reviewers, etc.

Additionally, the Contractor shall participate in weekly check-in calls as needed with the CM and COR to discuss status of ongoing tasks.

The contractor shall submit monthly progress reports to the COR for the duration of the task order. The contractor shall summarize the major activities and accomplishments during the reporting period and provide information for each project task and subtask regarding significant findings and events, problems encountered, and suggested solutions. The contractor shall specify in the reports the extent to which the project is on schedule. The contractor shall submit the reports by the 15th of each month for the preceding month.

Task 2: Processing and Pre-Screening Grant Applications

Subtask 2.1: Download Applications

The Contractor shall download all electronic applications from the Department’s grant system

G5 after the closing date. The Contractor shall print all applications double sided, including any attachments or electronic submissions that are not compatible with the Department’s software, and make one copy for i3 staff and three copies for reviewers for each peer review panel fifteen calendar days after the closing date. The Contractor shall forward one copy of the application to the program office and one copy shall be retained with the Contractor. The Contractor shall work with Department IT staff to compile application data on each applicant from the SF 424.

The Department expects to receive the following number of applications per competition:

Development Full Application Competition (84.411C: 150 applications

Validation Competition (84.411B0: 40 applications

Scale-up Competition (84.411A): 5 applications

All applications shall be downloaded and copied within ten calendar days of the closing date of the competition.

Subtask 2.2: Screen Applications

The Contractor shall check the master list of applications generated from G5 or by Application

Control Center (ACC) (if applications are not submitted electronically) to ensure that each application has a PR Award number, DUNS, and Tax Identification number. The Contractor shall inform the COR of any discrepancies so that they may be resolved promptly, including identifying applications that may be duplicates, incomplete, or otherwise incorrectly submitted.

Also, the Contractor shall inform the COR of any applications believed to be ineligible for further consideration by program reviewers.

The COR shall complete the screening of all applications within fifteen (15) calendar days after the closing date of the competition and send to the Contractor to set up panels for the competition peer review. Before panels are configured, the contractor shall complete a duplicate check review of all applications.

Subtask 2.3: Reviewer Database Extract

The Contractor shall generate a spreadsheet extract of all the database information that the

Contractor compiles, including the reviewers used during the competition and any information on all the candidates. This extract includes all of the peer reviewer checklist information, including name, address, phone and email contact info, etc., but also the identification of reviewer type, and self-identified areas of expertise on the i3 absolute priorities. The extract shall also include information that the Contractor collects during the i3 reviewer screening of the peer reviewers, including the scores assigned for expertise on each priority and attribute, updated addresses, reviewers used and reviewer not used, and all other data points collected during the process and included in the Contractor’s reviewer database. The Contractor shall provide the

COR with the data extract within thirty (30) calendar days of grant award date.

Task 3: Peer Reviewer Support

Subtask 3.1 Secure Panel Reviewers for the i3 Competitions Review

3.1.a: Print Reviewer Resumes and Information Sheets and Enter Reviewer

Information into a Database

The Contractor shall be given access to the i3 reviewer applications in G5 in order to print submitted reviewer resumes and information sheets, as needed. The Contractor shall enter information sheet data into a secure, database and deliver the hard copy documents to the i3 staff for review and scoring. The database shall include the name and contact information from the reviewer resume, identified areas of expertise, and the scoring information for the resumes. The

Contractor shall then pick up the completed score sheets and enter this information into the database. The Contractor shall prepare reviewer scoring reports as requested by the i3 staff.

Note: The final database shall be delivered to the COR at the end of the period of performance for this task order. The final database shall include complete information on all reviewers screened for all aspects of the i3 competition (Development Full Application, Scale-Up and

Validation components).

3.1.b: Select Panel Reviewers

Department staff shall screen reviewer resumes, the Contractor shall input scores into the reviewer database and shall provide the data to the COR on an ongoing basis. The COR shall then review the results and identify which reviewers shall be used, and the Contractor shall secure those reviewers. The group from which to select reviewers shall be determined by the i3 team and submitted to the Contractor no later than seven (7) calendar days after the closing date.

Potential reviewers shall include individuals from various backgrounds and professions including: PK-12 teachers and principals, college and university educators, researchers and evaluators, social entrepreneurs, strategy consultants, grant makers and managers, and others with education expertise. The COR shall provide the Contractor with the specific areas of expertise required for the reviewers.

3.1.c: Contact Reviewers

The Contractor shall use an online reviewer availability system to secure reviewers by competition and by experience, and submit it to the COR for modifications and approval. An approved availability system shall be in place no later than two weeks before the Closing Date.

The Contractor shall notify individuals being considered as reviewers to confirm their availability to serve, making potential reviewers aware of the online reviewer availability system.

The Contractor shall secure 25% more commitments from potential reviewers than anticipated for use in the competition in each of the major reviewer qualification categories. For each interested individual the Contractor shall gather the following information:

Preferred contact information, Potential conflicts of interest, Confirmation of availability for the reviewer orientation, and

Confirmation of availability during the review period.

The Contractor shall confirm that a reviewer meets the following requirements:

Have unlimited access to a computer with Internet accessibility and a printer, Are able to navigate a WWW browser, Are able to complete and submit on-line forms, Are able to send and receive e-mail, Are able to commit to a performance based contract for services, and

Have completed G5 training, or are able to complete the training by the beginning of the review.

The Contractor shall provide ongoing updates via the online availability system. The Contractor shall deliver a final database to the COR four days after the closing date. The database shall detail the following information:

Which reviewers are available, Which competition the reviewer shall be assigned to, and

Whether or not the reviewer has a conflict of interest.

Subtask 3.2 Prepare Applications and Reviewers for Review

3.2.a: Prepare Applications for the Review

For the review, applications shall be randomly assigned to reviewers using G5, and each application shall be randomly assigned and reviewed by five (5) reviewers. In order for this random assignment, applications need to be placed in groups for review. These groups shall be set by Absolute Priority area identified in the applications. The Contractor shall mark and place each submitted application in the appropriate priority group. The Contractor shall submit the list of applications assigned by priority group no later than ten (10) calendar days prior to the onset of the review for the COR’s approval. The COR shall approve the application priority group assignments within two (2) calendar days. Once approved, the Contractor shall ensure that each application is correctly marked in G5. Reviewers will review approximately 10-15 applications.

3.2.b: Prepare Reviewers for Review

As with the applications, approved reviewers shall be placed in a group for review. These groups shall be set by the Absolute Priority area for which each reviewer was determined to have subject matter expertise. The Contractor shall mark and place each approved reviewer in the appropriate priority group. The Contractor shall submit the list of reviewers assigned by priority group no later than ten (10) calendar days prior to the onset of the review for the COR’s approval. The COR shall approve the reviewer priority group assignments within two (2) calendar days. Once approved, the Contractor shall ensure that each reviewer is correctly inputted and marked in G5.

If a reviewer finds a conflict of interest once they receive the application, he/she shall notify the panel monitor and Contractor immediately. If a reviewer needs to be replaced for any reason, the

Contractor shall notify the COR immediately. Upon the COR’s instruction, the Contractor shall contact alternate reviewers for availability. The Contractor, with the approval of the COR, shall determine all panel replacements.

3.2.c: Create Competition Panels

The Contractor shall develop panel assignments. The COR will provide the Contractor with the number of applications per panel for each peer review panel. The Contractor shall create each panel in G5 and assign reviewers to each panel. The Contractor shall ensure that reviewers do not review applications where there is a conflict of interest.

The COR shall provide the Contractor with a list of individuals who shall serve as panel monitors and the Contractor shall assign them to panels. The Contractor shall then contact each panel monitor and provide him or her with the contact information of the reviewers assigned to the panel, the time of the panel call, and the list of applications assigned to the panel.

During the actual panel calls, the Contractor shall remain available to reassign applications and reviewers to panels if an unforeseen circumstance arises, such as a conflict of interest, or illness of a reviewer, for example.

The Contractor shall submit the complete panel list, consisting of reviewers assigned and applications assigned, no later than fourteen (14) calendar days prior to the onset of the peer review for the COR’s approval. Once panels are determined, the Contractor shall prepare and mail each reviewer a package of background materials (as described in Task area 6) and a set of applications to review. The Contractor shall ensure that reviewers receive their packages no later than seven (7) calendar days prior to the start date of the panel calls.

3.2.d: Create Panels for the Reviewers

Panels shall be composed of five (5) members, including three (3) “content” reviewers and two

(2) evaluation reviewers.

Panel members shall (1) have a different geographical area from the other reviewers on the panel; (2) have a background or expertise in the program content for which they are reviewing;

and (3) not have a conflict of interest. The Contractor shall submit the panel list no later than fourteen (14) calendar days prior to the onset of the peer review for the COR’s approval. The

COR shall approve the panels within two (2) calendar days. Once approved, the Contractor shall prepare and email each reviewer a package of background materials and a set of applications to review. The Contractor shall ensure that reviewers receive their packages no later than seven (7) calendar days prior to the start date of the panel calls.

If a reviewer finds a conflict of interest once they receive the application, he/she shall notify the panel monitor and Contractor immediately. If a reviewer needs to be replaced for any reason, the

Contractor shall notify the COR’s immediately. Upon the COR’s instruction, the Contractor shall contact alternate reviewers for availability. The Contractor, with the approval of the COR, shall determine all panel replacements.

3.2.e: Prepare Materials for Reviewers (not applications)

Once approved the Contractor shall prepare and mail each reviewer a package of background materials including: (1) a letter from ED regarding the program’s grant competition (to be provided to the Contractor by the COR); (2) a letter from the Contractor regarding submission of required forms; (3) a technical review package, G5 instructions, and conflict of interest materials

(4) the PowerPoint for the orientation webinar, and (5) the Frequently Asked Questions document. The Contractor shall ensure that reviewers receive their materials no later than seven

(7) calendar days prior to the start of the panel calls.

The Contractor shall email a postage label for the reviewer to use to mail the required honorarium forms to the Contractor.

3.2.f: Provide Applications to Reviewers

The Contractor shall be responsible for mailing printed applications to reviewers. Reviewers shall receive their assigned applications no later than seven (7) calendar days prior to the start date of the panel calls. Complete applications shall be printed (double sided) by the Contractor and mailed by the Contractor.

Subtask 3.3 Survey Peer Reviewers and Conduct Peer Reviewer De-briefing

The Contractor shall survey the reviewers for all competition reviews. The survey shall be included with the materials distributed to reviewers. The Contractor shall analyze the results, using summary statistics of the surveys and provide a written report of the findings with any necessary explanations and copies of all forms to the COR at the debriefing meeting which shall take place thirty (30) calendar days after the completion of the review.

Task 4: Administrative Support for Grant Competitions and Peer Review

Subtask 4.1: Prepare Official Grant Files for Successful Applications

The Contractor shall prepare the official grant files in accordance with the guidance provided in the Discretionary Grant Handbook and follow additional guidance provided by the COR. A copy of that guidance shall be provided to the Contractor to ensure that the grant files are done properly. The COR shall provide the file folders to the Contractor. The Contractor shall print all applications double sided in a manner that they can be read continuously in the grants file folder.

The Contractor shall arrange for the official grant files to be delivered to the COR within seven calendar days prior to the obligation of awards.

Subtask 4.2: Preparation of Successful Application Technical Review Forms for i3 Website

The Contractor shall prepare the Technical Review Forms in the appropriate format for them to be placed on the i3 Department website. The website formatted Technical Review Forms shall be redacted and 508 compliant PDFs and shall be delivered to the COR seven (7) calendar days prior to announcement of the highest-rated applications. Prior to the redaction, the COR shall train the Contractor on the redaction process, and this training shall take place fourteen (14) calendar days prior to obligation of the grants. This training shall last for thirty (30) minutes and will be done by the i3 team through a conference call. A Word document with instructions shall be provided to the trainees by the i3 team.

Subtask 4.3: Print Technical Review Forms for Unsuccessful Application

Unsuccessful applications shall also require two (2) sets of copies of the Technical Review

Forms for the following entities: (1) Project Director; and (2) Authorized Representative. The

Contractor shall complete all printing within fourteen (14) calendar days prior to obligation of the successful grants.

Subtask 4.4: Preparation of Technical Review Forms in PDF Format for Unsuccessful

Applications

A PDF copy of each unsuccessful application’s Technical Review Forms shall be provided to the

COR. The Contractor shall save the PDFs onto a flash drive and it shall be delivered to the COR within fourteen (14) calendar days prior to the obligation of the successful grants.

Subtask 4.5: Preparation of Successful Application Technical Review Forms for i3 Website

The Contractor shall prepare the Technical Review Forms in redacted, 508 compliant PDF format for them to be placed on the i3 Department Website. The Website formatted Technical

Review Forms shall be delivered to the COR seven (7) calendar days prior to the announcement of the highest-rated applications. Prior to the redaction, the COR shall train the Contractor on the redaction process, and this training shall take place fourteen (14) calendar days prior to obligation of the grants. This training shall last for thirty (30) minutes and will be done by the i3 team through a conference call. A Word document with instructions shall be provided to the trainees by the i3 team.

Subtask 4.6: Mail Reviews of Unsuccessful Applications

The COR shall provide the Contractor with a standard letter to inform applicants that their application was not selected as a highly rated application for the full application submission.

The COR shall also provide the Contractor with Government letterhead as well as appropriate envelopes for the packages. The Contractor shall make copies of this letter on letterhead and provide the copies of this letter and a copy of the reviewer’s comments for each of the unsuccessful pre-applicants’ appropriate personnel. The i3 staff shall mail the packages of the letters and reviewers’ comments. These copies shall be placed in government-franked envelopes and delivered to the COR within fourteen (14) calendar days prior to obligation of the successful grants.

Subtask 4.7: Redact Successful Applications

For all successful applicants, the Contractor shall, within seven (7) calendar days before the competition results are made public (announcement of the highest-rated applications), redact confidential, personally identifiable, or other non-public information from the applications and reviewer comments and make the redacted files available in 508 compliant PDF format for publication on the Department’s Website. Prior to the redaction, the COR shall train the

Contractor on the redaction process, and this training shall take place fourteen (14) calendar days prior to the announcement of the highest-rated applicants. This training shall last for thirty (30) minutes and will be done by the i3 team through a conference call. A Word document with instructions shall be provided to the trainees by the i3 team.

Subtask 4.8: Redact Unsuccessful Applications

Refer to Subtask 4.7 for Scale-up Competition only.

Task 5: On-Site Reviews – Applications, Hotel Locations and Travel, and Administrative

Tasks

This task is not required in this task order.

Task 6: Reviewer Honorarium

The Contractor shall pay reviewers compensation per application reviewed for fully completing the work. Once the COR has notified the Contractor that a reviewer’s comments have been submitted, compensation shall be paid to the reviewer within 30 calendar days after the

Contractor receives all necessary paperwork. The compensation for each competition is:

- Development Full Application Competition (84.411C):$200

- Validation Competition (84.411B): $200

- Scale-up Competition: $200

Task 7: Competition Website and Database Design, Development, and Maintenance

Support

Subtask 7.1: Grant Competition Webpage

The Contractor shall develop and maintain a Grant Competition webpage for the duration of the review for each competition review. The Contractor shall confirm that the webpage meets all

Department information technology requirements as stated in the master Blanker Purchase

Agreement Scope of Work Appendix A.

The webpage shall include, at a minimum, the following:

The webinar recording of the peer reviewer orientation training;

A downloadable version of the TRF;

Links to application materials on the Department’s website; and

All necessary documents needed by the Contractor.

The webpage shall be submitted to the COR and CM for approval 30 calendar days prior to the application Closing Date. The COR shall approve or provide edits to the webpage within seven

(7) calendar days after receipt. The Contractor shall make the edits and make the webpage live

24 hours after receiving edits from the COR.

Schedule of Deliverables

PWS Reference

Task area/Subtask

Activity Due Date

1.1a Meeting with COR & CM 10 calendar days after the award

1.1a Prepare draft work plan and agenda 24 hours prior to the scheduled meeting

1.1a Minutes of the meeting 7 calendar days after the meeting

1.1b Final work plan 7 calendar days after the meeting

1.2 Monthly Progress Report 15th day of each month

2.1 Downloading and copying of applications 10 calendar days after closing date

2.1 Printing copies of applications 10 calendar days after closing date Development Full Application Review (84.411C) Validation Review (84.411B) Scale-Up Review (84.411A)

2.2 Screen all applications for duplicates 7 calendar days after closing date

2.2 Provide one copy of each application to COR and CM 15 calendar days after closing date Development Full Application Review (84.411C) Validation Review (84.411B) Scale-Up Review (84.411A)

2.3 Reviewer Database Extract 60 calendar days from the grant award date

3.1a Print Reviewer Resumes and Information Sheets and enter reviewer information into a database

As received

3.1b Select panel reviewers 7 calendar days before closing date

3.1c Contact Reviewers Ongoing

3.1c Deliver final database of reviewers The closing date

3.2c Create competition panels and provide completed panel list to COR and CM

14 calendar days after closing date

3.2d Create Panels for the Reviewers Reviewers receive packages no later than 7 calendar days prior to the start of the review

Submit the panel list no later than 14 Calendar days prior to the onset of the peer review

3.2e Prepare materials for reviewers (not applications) 7 calendar days prior to the start of the panel calls

3.2f Provide hard copies of applications to reviewers 7 calendar days prior to obligation of awards

3.3 Reviewer Surveys 30 calendar days after the

completion of the review

3.3 De-briefing Meeting 30 calendar days after the

completion of the review

4.1 Prepare and deliver official grant files 7 calendar days prior to obligation of awards

4.2 Preparation of Technical Review Forms for i3 Website 7 calendar days prior to announcement of highest-rated applicants

4.3 Print Unsuccessful Applications’ Technical Review

Forms

14 calendar days prior to

4.4 Forms in PDF Format 7 calendar days prior to

4.6 Mail Reviews of Unsuccessful Applications 14 calendar days prior to obligation of the successful grants Development Full Application Review (84.411C) Validation Review (84.411B) Scale-Up Review (84.411A)

4.7 Redaction of successful applications 7 calendar days prior to announcement of highest-rated applications

4.8 Redaction of unsuccessful applications 7 calendar days prior to announcement of highest-rated applications Scale-Up Review (84.411A) only

6 Pay honoraria to reviewers 30 calendar days after the Contractor receives all necessary paperwork

7.1 Grant competition webpage 30 calendar days prior to the

closing date