ESBD_486331_1770047597144_RFP 26-093, Network Access Control Replacement.pdf

RFP-26-093 Network Access Control Replacement Due, February 24, 2026, 10:00 AM, CDT

REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL (RFP)

RFP # 26-093

Network Access Control (NAC) Replacement

Aruba ClearPass

NIGP Code: 920-66

Proposal Due Date is February 24, 2026, 10:00 AM, CDT

Alvin College (“College” or “ACC”) invites proposals from firms to provide a complete Network

Access Control (NAC) solution based on Aruba ClearPass. It is not the intent of any condition of the specifications to prohibit any responsible vendor from submitting a proposal.

Proposals are due by Tuesday, February 24, 2026 @ 10:00 a.m. Central Daylight Time (CDT) and will be opened and only the names read publicly. Proposals will be reviewed and subsequently tabulated by the Purchasing Department and then processed through appropriate channels for committee review, if applicable, and approval. The Board of Regents of ACC will make final approval. Any procurement of services will be initiated by a valid, signed purchase order issued by the College.

All proposals and supporting documentation must be submitted by mail, or delivered by courier, or hand delivered by a vendor representative. If proposal is mailed, please mark “RFP #26-093” on the front of the envelope; and/or deliver to:

Alvin College

Purchasing Director/Agent

ATTN: Alan A. Phillips, CPPB

3110 Mustang Rd, Building M

Alvin, TX 75511

EMAIL: aphillips@Alvincollege.edu

The proposal must be received prior to the proposal deadline. Proposals received after the deadline will not be opened, read, evaluated, or recorded, and will be returned to the vendor unopened. Companies are encouraged to respond even if they do not wish to submit a Proposal.

“No Proposal” is considered as a response.

ACC reserves the right to accept or reject any and/or all proposals, or waive any and/or all formalities, technicalities, and conditions, or permanently abandon the RFP. The College will have a minimum of ninety (90) days after the Submittal Deadline for evaluation, selection, and any unforeseen delays. Vendors shall not withdraw their proposals prior to the termination of this period. ACC will accept the proposal(s) determined by the College to be in its best interest in accordance with applicable law. It is not the intent of any condition, specification, or other requirement in the proposal process to prohibit any responsible vendor from submitting a bid.

mailto:aphillips@Alvincollege.edu

TABLE OF CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION PAGE 4

PROPOSAL INSTRUCTIONS PAGE 5

SCOPE OF WORK PAGE 7

TERMS AND CONDITIONS PAGE 11

EVALUATION CRITERIA FOR AWARD OF CONTRACT PAGE 21

INFORMATION REQUIRED FROM RESPONDENT PAGE 23

RFP CHECKLIST PAGE 27

VENDOR INFORMATION PAGE 28

NO PROPOSAL PAGE PAGE 29

VENDOR CERTIFICATION FORM PAGE 30

REFERENCE FORM PAGE 33

INTRODUCTION

The Alvin College District, a two/four-year public college, was approved by the qualified voters of the Alvin Independent School District on November 2, 1948. From its inception until 1971, the

College was administered by officials of the Alvin Independent School District. The 1971-72 academic year marked the beginning of a new era in the history of Alvin College. A separate administration, tax district, and College Board were established to assume the management, control, and operation of a newly created Alvin Junior College District.

Alvin College is a public community college in Brazoria County, Texas. The college provides educational opportunities in workforce training, academics, technical fields, adult basic education, and personal development. The College seeks to provide students the opportunity to develop skills needed to enter and succeed in College programs through continuing opportunities to extend and upgrade skills, knowledge, and interests; through testing, evaluation, and counseling to allow students to make informed decisions regarding their abilities, achievements, and behavior; and through experiences to develop personal, social, and cultural dimensions.

Alvin College is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of

Colleges and Schools to award associate degrees and certificates. Alvin College is centrally located in Alvin, TX (Brazoria County), southeast of Houston. The College generally serves students within its service area of Alvin Independent School District, Pearland Independent

School District and Danbury Independent School District, as well as other school districts outside its service area.

Aside from general academic education, the College prides itself on Career and Technical

Education programs, such as Nursing, Process Technology, Business Administration, Emergency

Medical Services and other allied health programs, Radio/TV Broadcasting and others. Popular programs in Continuing Education and Workforce Development include Welding, CDL Training, License preparation, and testing, Dental Assisting, Veterinary Assisting, and more.

The College is led by a nine-member Board of Regents elected by the local taxing communities to develop and institute a vision for the College ensuring the needs of the community and students are met.

The administration of the College is led by the President and Vice Presidents responsible for the unique administrative and academic areas of the campus ensuring compliance with local, state and federal regulations. The aforementioned administrators are known as the Executive

Leadership Team (ELT) and are further charged with carrying out the vision of the Board of

Regents.

PROPOSAL INSTRUCTIONS

Respondents must abide by all requirements of the Instructions to Respondents.

A. Entity Submitting RFP: The terms “vendor”, “proposer”, “firm”, “company”, “respondent”, or “contractor” used in this RFP or any subsequent documents or communications related to this RFP are interchangeable and mean the entity submitting a proposal and seeking to enter into a contract for the goods and/or services requested in this RFP.

B. Acquiring Documents: Proposal documents may be downloaded from the State of Texas

Electronic State Business Daily (ESBD) website at ESBD (txsmartbuy.com).

C. Proposals may not be withdrawn for a period of ninety (90) days subsequent to the closing date and time without the consent of Alvin College.

D. Alvin College reserves the right to accept or reject any and/or all proposals, waive any formalities and technicalities and to award contracts as determined by the College to be in its best interest in accordance with applicable law (Texas Education Code 44.031(b)).

The College reserves the right to award multiple contracts as a result of this RFP if deemed in the best interest of the College.

E. Proposals submitted for consideration should follow the format and order of presentation described below:

a. Cover Letter: Containing a summary of respondent's ability to perform the services described in the RFP and confirming that respondent is willing to perform those services and enter into a contract with Alvin College.

i. The cover letter should also:

• Identify the submitting respondent;

• Identify the name, title, address, telephone number, and email address of each person authorized by the respondent to contractually obligate the respondent;

• Identify the name, address, telephone number, and email address of the contact person for technical and contractual clarifications throughout the evaluation period.

b. Number of Response Copies: Each respondent is required to submit and provide one

(1) signed original response of the proposal, two (2) paper copies and one thumb drive of the proposal. The original response is to be labeled “Original” on the first page or front cover of the proposal.

c. Legibility/Clarity: Responses to the requirements of this RFP in the formats requested is required with all questions answered in as much detail as practicable. The respondent's response is to demonstrate an understanding of the requirements.

Proposals prepared simply and economically, providing a straightforward, concise https://www.txsmartbuy.com/esbd description of the respondent's ability to meet the requirements of the RFP is also desired. Each respondent is solely responsible for the accuracy and completeness of its proposal.

F. Schedule of Events:

• RFP available to prospective respondents: January 29, 2026

• Deadline to receive written inquiries: Noon, February 13, 2026

• Proposal Due Date: 10:00 AM, February 24, 2026

Alvin College reserves the right to change the schedule of events to the RFP at any time.

Any changes will be issued via Addenda and posted online at ESBD (txsmartbuy.com).

G. Respondent Inquiry Period: An initial inquiry period is hereby firmly set for all interested respondents to perform a detailed review of the proposal documents and to submit any written questions relative thereto. ACC is always conscious and extremely appreciative of your time and effort in preparing this proposal. Without exception, all questions regarding this RFP MUST be submitted in writing by email before noon (CDT), February

13, 2026 and only to Alan Phillips, Purchasing Agent, at aphillips@alvincollege.edu and received by the deadline to receive written inquires date set forth above. Inquiries shall not be entertained thereafter. It is the respondent’s responsibility to make sure they have obtained all addenda and acknowledged receipt of such on the Vendor Certification Form.

H. Withdrawal of Proposal: A respondent may withdraw a proposal that has been submitted at any time up to the proposal closing date and time. To accomplish this, a written request signed by the authorized representative of the respondent must be submitted to the ACC

Purchasing Department via the previously stated email address.

mailto:aphillips@alvincollege.edu

SCOPE OF WORK

Network Access Control (NAC) Replacement – Aruba ClearPass

Overview and Quick Reference This Request for Proposal solicits qualified Aruba/HPE Authorized Partners to provide a complete Network Access Control (NAC) solution based on Aruba ClearPass. The scope includes procurement of hardware and licensing, professional services for design and implementation, replacement of the existing Cisco ISE environment through a full redesign and best-practices re-implementation of Aruba ClearPass, and knowledge transfer.

Key elements of this RFP include:

- Physical ClearPass appliances deployed in a single-site high-availability architecture

- Centralized wired and wireless authentication using identity-based access control

- Consolidation and rationalization of wireless SSIDs through role-based enforcement

- Centralized guest access replacing the existing Meraki-based guest solution

- Standards-based logging and monitoring integration (ManageEngine OpManager/Log360 integration desired but optional)

- Compliance alignment with FERPA, GLBA, TAC 202, and NIST

- Fixed-price, milestone-based professional services with defined on-site requirements for cutover and knowledge transfer

1. Introduction & Purpose The College is soliciting proposals from qualified vendors for the procurement, configuration, and implementation of an Aruba ClearPass-based Network Access Control (NAC) solution to replace the College’s existing Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) deployment. The solution must support the College’s current Cisco-based network while enabling a multi-year transition to Aruba networking infrastructure.

2. Procurement & Contracting Requirements Vendors must procure all products and services through a valid state or cooperative purchasing agreement such as DIR, BuyBoard, TIPS, or OMNIA. Vendors may use any eligible cooperative contract and must clearly identify the contract vehicle used.

Only Aruba/HPE Authorized Partners may respond. Aruba Professional Services may be included directly or as a subcontractor.

3. Project Background & Current State The College operates two campuses and currently utilizes Cisco ISE deployed on physical appliances in a high-availability configuration.

Current capabilities include:

- Wired 802.1X authentication

- MAC Authentication Bypass (partially implemented)

- Wireless guest access currently provided through Meraki using a basic click-through agreement page

The existing guest access solution is decentralized and limited in functionality. The College seeks to replace this with a centralized, policy-driven guest access solution within ClearPass to improve consistency, auditing, and long-term flexibility.

Key drivers for replacement include administrative complexity, end-of-support status, licensing cost concerns, limited internal expertise, and the strategic goal of adopting a vendor-agnostic NAC platform.

4. Target-State Objectives The College seeks a clean re-implementation of NAC using Aruba ClearPass aligned with higher-education best practices. Objectives include simplified administration, improved security posture, support for mixed-vendor environments during transition, and scalability for future growth.

5. Environment Overview Approximate environment sizing: The College maintains approximately 7,200 total wired endpoints. Vendors shall size the solution based on peak concurrent utilization; the College estimates a maximum of approximately 1,500 wired endpoints concurrently online.

- College-owned PCs: 1,600

- College-owned Macs: 10

- Mobile devices: fewer than 50

- BYOD – 8000

- IoT and special-purpose devices: approximately 1,000

Primary identity source is a hybrid Active Directory and Entra ID environment.

Student Population and On-Campus Concurrency The College currently serves approximately 6,000 total students, and anticipates growth to approximately 8,000 total students by 2030. However, total enrollment is not representative of on-campus device concurrency due to the College’s instructional delivery mix.

Approximately 45% of enrolled students are dual enrollment and do not come on campus. An additional approximately 25% of enrolled students participate in fully online coursework. The remaining student population includes traditional on-campus students, hybrid students with limited on-campus requirements, and evening workforce/continuing education students.

Vendors must not size or price the solution based solely on total enrollment. Instead, vendors shall size licensing, appliance capacity, and implementation scope based on estimated peak concurrent endpoints on campus (wired and wireless), including institution-owned devices, BYOD, guests, and IoT/special-purpose devices.

Vendors must clearly document all sizing assumptions in their proposal, including estimated concurrency, authentication frequency, expected guest/event surges, and any factors that materially impact capacity or licensing.

Scalability and Growth The proposed solution must support projected institutional growth through 2030 via licensing expansion and/or additional appliances without requiring a redesign of the solution. Vendors shall provide optional pricing for capacity expansion to accommodate future increases in concurrent endpoint counts.

6. Solution Requirements The solution must be deployed on physical appliances in a single-site high-availability architecture with active-active.

Required capabilities include wired and wireless 802.1X authentication, MAC Authentication Bypass, device profiling, role-based access enforcement, centralized guest access with self-registration and sponsor approval workflows, and concurrent support for Cisco and Aruba network infrastructure.

7. Guest and User Access Use Cases The proposed solution must support a centralized, role-based access model that distinguishes access based on user identity and intent.

Guest access shall provide anonymous, internet-only connectivity with default bandwidth limits and session-based expiration.

Student access shall authenticate using institutional credentials (their student email address) and apply student-specific access policies with higher, controlled bandwidth limits.

Sponsored guest access shall support sponsor approval workflows with selectable access duration and elevated, time-bound bandwidth policies.

All access must be centrally enforced, logged, and auditable.

8. Wireless SSID Strategy and Consolidation The College currently operates multiple wireless SSIDs supporting employee, student, guest, and specialized use cases. The College seeks to reduce unnecessary SSID sprawl by leveraging centralized authentication and role-based access enforcement.

The selected vendor shall assess the existing SSID landscape, propose a rationalized SSID strategy, minimize user-facing SSIDs where feasible, and clearly identify which SSIDs should remain, be consolidated, or be retired. Final SSID design shall be developed collaboratively during implementation and approved by the College.

9. Hardware & Licensing Vendors shall propose appropriately sized hardware and licensing to support the described environment. The College anticipates two physical appliances in a high-availability configuration and licensing sufficient for approximately 2,500 to 3,000 concurrent endpoints, including three years of software subscription and support.

10. Scope of Professional Services Services must include solution design, full ClearPass implementation without migration of existing ISE policies, integration with directory services, logging configuration, and policy validation.

Logging and monitoring integration must be configured and validated using standards-based methods (e.g., Syslog export and alerting). Integration with ManageEngine platforms (including OpManager and Log360) is desired but not required and may be proposed as an optional line item.

10.1 On-Site Presence Requirements

The vendor may perform design and implementation activities remotely; however, the following activities must be conducted on-site at the College:

- Major production cutovers and go-live support, conducted after hours as required

- Administrator training and knowledge transfer sessions

- Final documentation review and operational handoff meeting

The vendor shall provide an on-site project closeout session that includes review of as-built documentation, review of configuration and policy design, walkthrough of common administrative workflows, and final Q&A.

Knowledge transfer must enable College staff to independently administer ClearPass policies, guest workflows, and perform troubleshooting processes without vendor dependency.

11. Vendor Assumptions Not Accepted The following assumptions shall not be accepted:

- Reuse or migration of existing Cisco ISE policies

- Manual or ongoing backend processes to support guest access

- Decentralized or platform-dependent guest access designs

- Incomplete configurations requiring post-award additions

- Omission of required integrations, documentation, or training

- Additional licensing or services required post-award to meet stated requirements

12. Documentation & Knowledge Transfer Deliverables must include as-built documentation, architecture diagrams, administrative runbooks, configuration documentation, and formal administrator training.

13. Project Timeline The target project duration is 120 days, with a preferred completion of 90 days pending board approval. Respondents must provide a detailed project schedule containing checkpoints and milestones.

TERMS AND CONDITIONS

A. Term of Contract: The term of the contract will begin upon final approval by the ACC

Board (approximately March 2026). The initial term of contract will be for a one-year period. On the anniversary date, the contract may be mutually renewed for up to four (4) additional one (1) year terms. The maximum term of the contract is five (5) years. Either party may terminate the agreement on the anniversary date, without cause, with thirty (30) days’ written notice and contractor’s fulfillment of all outstanding purchase orders received prior to the termination date.

B. Escalation/De-escalation Clause: Escalation or de-escalation of service agreement costs may only occur at the time of renewal, if in agreement with the terms and conditions of this request for proposal. Any request for escalation or de-escalation must be approved by the College. Escalation of costs will not be approved if the escalation exceeds 3% of the previous year’s cost.

C. Modifications of Proposal Terms and/or Amendments: Alvin College reserves the right to change the schedule of events or issue addenda to the RFP at any time. Alvin College also reserves the right to cancel or re-issue the RFP. Only interpretations or corrections to the proposal provided in writing by the Alvin College Purchasing Department shall be binding. Prospective vendors are advised that no other source is authorized to provide information concerning, or explain or interpret, the proposal documents. If the respondent needs to submit changes or addenda, such shall be submitted in writing, signed by an authorized representative of the respondent, cross-reference clearly to the relevant proposal section, prior to the proposal opening, and should be submitted with proposal documents. Such shall meet all requirements for the proposal.

All addenda may be posted on the Electronic State Business Daily website ESBD

(txsmartbuy.com). It is the vendor’s responsibility to check this website for addenda postings prior to submitting responses and acknowledge receipt of such in the Vendor

Certification Form. Proposers finding errors, requests for additional information, omissions, or corrections that need to be made in the proposal shall contact the

Purchasing Department no later than February 13, 2026 @ 12:00 PM. You may submit this addenda information via email to Alan Phillips, Director, Purchasing, aphillips@alvincollege.edu.

D. Proposal Rejection: Issuance of this RFP in no way constitutes a commitment by Alvin

College to award a contract. Alvin College reserves the right to accept or reject any or all proposals submitted or to cancel this RFP if it is in the best interest of the College to do so.

E. Cost of Offer Preparation: Alvin College is not liable for any costs incurred by respondents or contractors prior to issuance of or entering into a contract. Costs https://www.txsmartbuy.com/esbd mailto:aphillips@alvincollege.edu associated with developing the proposal and any other expenses incurred by the contractor in responding to the RFP are entirely the responsibility of the respondent and shall not be reimbursed in any manner by Alvin College.

F. Professional Services: This proposal may include services that are required to be procured under Chapter 2254 Professional Services Procurement Act of the Texas

Government Code, such as architects and engineers.

G. Written or Oral Discussions/Presentations: Written or oral discussions may be conducted with respondents who submit proposals determined to be reasonably susceptible of being selected for award. The College reserves the right to enter into a contract without further discussion of the proposal submitted based on the initial offers received.

Any commitments or representations made during these discussions, if conducted, may become formally recorded in the final contract.

Written or oral discussions/presentations for clarification may be conducted to enhance the College's understanding of any or all of the proposals submitted.

Proposals may be accepted without such discussions.

H. Acceptance of Proposal Content: By submitting a response to this sealed proposal, each respondent affirmatively accepts and consents to the terms and conditions to this sealed proposal contract in its entirety except to the extent specifically set forth in its response. The mandatory RFP requirements, including addenda, shall become contractual obligations if a contract ensues. An official authorized Purchase Order, Certificate of Liability Insurance, with worker’s compensation, naming Alvin College as an additional certificate holder is required to be in place before services begin.

I. Deviations: If vendor intends to deviate from the standard terms and conditions, specifications, or other requirements associated with this solicitation, the vendor must list or reference all such deviations, with complete and detailed information regarding the deviations, on a separate sheet of paper and submit it with the bid submittal. The College will consider any deviations in its award decision, and reserves the right to accept or reject the bid based upon any submitted deviations.

In the absence of any deviation identified and described in accordance with this solicitation, the vendor asserts that it will fully comply with the standard terms and conditions, specifications, and all other requirements associated with this solicitation if awarded a contract.

J. Insurance Requirements

a. Commercial General Liability insurance with limits of not less than:

• Fire Damage (any one fire) $ 50,000

• Medical Expenses (any one person) $ 10,000

• General Aggregate $2,000,000

• Each Occurrence $1,000,000

• Personal Injury & Advertising Injury $1,000,000

• Products & Completed Operations Aggregate $2,000.000

➢ Additional Insured Endorsement in favor of ACC, its Board of

Regents/officials, employees and volunteers

➢ Waiver of all rights of subrogation and other rights in favor of ACC, its Board of Regents/officials, employees and volunteers

➢ Primary and Noncontributory language

➢ A.M. Best Rating of A or better

➢ 30-day Notice of Cancellation

b. Business Automobile Liability insurance covering all owned, non-owned or hired automobiles, with limits of at least $5,000,000 Combined Single Limit for Bodily Injury and Property Damage:

➢ Additional Insured Endorsement in favor of ACC, its Board of Regents/officials, employees and volunteers

➢ Waiver of all rights of subrogation in favor of ACC, its Board of Regents/officials, employees and volunteers

➢ Primary and Noncontributory language

c. Umbrella/Excess Liability insurance with limits of not less than $5,000,000 per occurrence and aggregate with a Self-Insured Retention (SIR) of no more than $10,000. Coverage should be in excess of the Employers Liability, Commercial General Liability, and Business Automobile coverages. The policy should follow form of these policies and should extend above the required terms of the underlying policies.

➢ Additional Insured Endorsement in favor of ACC, its Board of Regents/officials, employees and volunteers

➢ Waiver of all rights of subrogation in favor of ACC, its Board of Regents/officials, employees and volunteers

➢ Primary and Noncontributory language

d. Workers’ Compensation insurance with statutory limits, and Employer’s

Liability insurance with limits of not less than:

• Bodily Injury by Accident (Each Accident) $1,000,000

• Bodily Injury by Disease (Each Employee) $1,000,000

• Bodily Injury by Disease (Policy Limit) $1,000,000

All policies required herein must include:

➢ Other states endorsement to include Texas if business is domiciled outside the State of Texas,

➢ Waiver of all rights of subrogation and other rights in favor of ACC, its Board of Regents/officials, employees, and volunteers

➢ Alternate Employer Endorsement in favor of Alvin College

e. Employee Dishonesty insurance to protect the assets and property of ACC with limits of not less than $500,000.

All coverages must be placed with an insurance company that is rated A or better by A.M.

Best.

The insurance requirements also apply to any sub-contractor(s) in the event that any work is sublet. The contractor shall include all subcontractors of insureds under its policies and/or shall insure that all subcontractors satisfy the same insurance requirements stated herein for the contractor.

In the case any of the policies cancel before the expiration date, the issuing company will mail thirty (30) days’ written notice to the certificate holder, Alvin College.

The vendor shall be required to waive all rights of subrogation against the College, its officials, employees and volunteers for losses arising from work performed by vendor.

All policies (except workers’ compensation) should be primary and non-contributory.

Vendor shall deliver to ACC:

• evidence, satisfactory to ACC, of the existence of insurance promptly after the execution and delivery of any Agreement or Purchase Order issued, and prior to the performance or continued performance of any services performed by Vendor.

• additional evidence, satisfactory to ACC, of the continued existence of all insurance not less than thirty (30) days prior to the expiration of any insurance.

The insurance policies required in any Agreement or Purchase Order will be kept in force for the periods specified below:

• Commercial General Liability insurance, Commercial Automobile Liability insurance, Employee Dishonesty insurance, and Umbrella/Excess Liability insurance will be kept in force until receipt of final payment by ACC to Vendor.

• Workers’ Compensation insurance and Employer’s Liability insurance will remain in effect until the services have been fully performed and accepted by ACC in writing.

K. Indemnification: To the extent allowable by Texas Law and without waiving any rights or entitlement to governmental or sovereign immunity, the parties shall indemnify and hold harmless each other and their respective officers, Regents, or employees, (hereafter referred to as “indemnified party”) against any and all liability (including reasonable attorneys’ fees and court costs) to any persons or entities (except to the extent such liability is the fault of the indemnified party) arising from or related to the negligence or willful acts, omissions, or other misconduct of the indemnifying party or its agents, officers/Regents, and employees, in the performance of this contract. The provisions of this section will not be construed to waive immunity in any way nor to eliminate or reduce any other indemnification or right which any indemnified party has by law or equity and shall survive the termination of this agreement.

L. Limitation of Liability: Neither respondent nor the College shall be responsible to the other for any special, indirect, or consequential damages. Neither party will be responsible to the other for damage, loss, injury, or delay caused by conditions that are beyond the reasonable control, and without the intentional misconduct or negligence, of that party.

Such conditions include, but are not limited to: (a) acts of God; (b) acts of Government agencies; (c) strikes; (d) labor disputes; (e) fire; (f) explosions or other casualties; (g) thefts; (h) vandalism; (i) riots or war; or (j) unavailability of parts, materials, or supplies.

The College retains the right to the approval for insurance coverage. Respondent shall submit a

Certificates of Liability Insurance naming Alvin College as an additional certificate holder.

M. License and Permits: The vendor is responsible for obtaining all permits and licenses, if any, required by federal, state, city, and county. The College will not be charged back for the price to obtain the permits and licenses.

N. Open Records: It is understood by submitting a proposal to Alvin College, the document, if requested, will be available for review by any individual or business in accordance with the Public Information Act, Texas Government Code 552. Copies of your proposal will be supplied to the requesting party as allowed by law. ACC will consider all information, documentation, and other materials requested to be submitted in response to this RFP to be of a non-confidential and non-proprietary nature and therefore subject to public disclosure. Proposer will be advised of a request for public information that implicates their materials and will have the opportunity to raise any objections to disclosure to the

Texas Attorney General. ACC may seek to protect from disclosure all information submitted in response to this RFP until the time of a final award.

O. Advertising: The vendor shall not advertise or publish, without the College’s prior written consent, the fact that the College has entered into this contract, except to the extent necessary to comply with proper requests for information from an authorized representative of the federal, state or local government.

The contractor(s) shall not use Alvin College’s logo unless granted expressed written permission from the College’s Marketing Department.

P. Ethics: The contractor shall not accept or propose gifts or anything of value nor enter into any business arrangement with any employee, official or agent of Alvin College.

Q. Compliance with Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA): Vendor shall be in compliance with all relevant requirements of the American with Disabilities Act (ADA) as applicable to their operations. By submission of a proposal response, vendor acknowledges intention to conform to the requirements of the ADA. Failure to comply with

ADA constitutes good cause for the College to suspend a contract with any successful vendor.

R. Universal & Commercial Code: This writing and subsequent information given and forwarded to the College shall be a sole and final expression of the agreement between the College and the vendor, and is intended also as a complete and exclusive statement of the terms of their agreement. Whenever a term defined by the Uniform Commercial

Code is used in this agreement, the definition contained in the Code is controlling.

S. Discrimination: By submitting a signed proposal, the vendor certifies that the company does not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment because of race, religion, color, sex or national origin, and certifies that the company complies with equal employment opportunities regulation.

T. Debarment: Any bidder or any principals of a bidding company that are presently debarred, suspended, proposed for debarment, declared ineligible, or voluntarily excluded from covered transactions by any Federal or State Government entity shall be considered ineligible to be awarded a contract by Alvin College.

U. Force Majeure: Neither Contractor, its suppliers, Member or Lead Agency, nor Alvin

College will be liable for any failure or delay in this agreement due to any cause beyond its reasonable control, including acts of war, acts of God, earthquake, flood, embargo, riot, sabotage, labor shortage or dispute, governmental act or failure of the Internet (not resulting from the negligence or willful misconduct of contractor), provided that the delayed party: (a) gives the other party prompt notice of such cause, and (b) uses its reasonable commercial efforts to promptly correct such failure or delay in performance. If contractor is unable to provide services for a period of ten (10) consecutive days as a result of a continuing force majeure event, the college may cancel the purchase order without penalty.

V. Contract Negotiations: If for any reason the respondent(s) whose proposal is most responsive to the College's needs, price and other evaluation factors set forth in the RFP considered, does not agree to a contract, that proposal shall be rejected and the College may negotiate with the next most responsive respondent(s). Negotiation may include revision terms, conditions, or requirements. The College may enter into a contract with more than one respondent.

W. Contract Award Execution: The College reserves the right to enter into an agreement without further discussion of the proposal based on the initial offers received.

The RFP, any addendums, and the proposal of the selected respondent(s), along with the

College’s Purchase Order, will become part of any contract initiated by the College.

If the contract negotiation period exceeds thirty (30) days or if the selected respondent(s) fails to sign any contract within seven (7) calendar days of delivery of it, the College may elect to cancel the award and award the contract to the next-highest-ranked respondent(s).

Award(s) shall be made to the respondent(s) whose proposal, conforming to the RFP, will be the most advantageous and is in the best interest of the College.

X. Notice of Award: Alvin College Purchasing Department will notify respondent(s) of a potential award.

Y. Award Protest: A vendor who has timely responded to an Invitation to Bid, Request for

Proposal, or Competitive Sealed Proposal, but is not awarded the bid, has the right to protest the bid award if the amount of the bid is over $50,000 in the aggregate. A protest must be made in writing and submitted to the Director, Purchasing, no later than five (5) business days after the award of the bid. The date of the bid award will not be counted as one of the five (5) business days. Any protest submitted after five (5) business days is untimely and will not be considered by the College.

The written protest must contain the following in order to be considered:

a. A specific identification of the statutory, regulatory, or policy provision(s) that the action complained of is alleged to have violated;

b. A specific description of each act alleged to have violated the statutory, regulatory, or policy provision(s) identified in “a” of this subsection;

c. A precise statement of the relevant facts;

d. An identification of the issue or issues to be resolved;

e. Arguments and authorities in support of the protest; and

f. An affidavit that the contents of the protest are true and accurate.

No amendments to the protest will be considered by the College.

The Director, Purchasing, legal counsel for the College, and/or a committee headed by and appointed by the Vice-President, Administrative Services/CFO, shall review the protest documentation and shall provide the protestor a final written determination regarding whether any statutes, regulations, or policies have been violated, the reasons for the determination, and remedial action to be taken, if any. This review and final determination may be made with the assistance of legal counsel. The written determination shall be made within ten (10) business days of the receipt of the protest, unless the Director, Purchasing, notifies protestor that additional time is needed. The decision shall be final.

Z. Venue: This agreement shall be governed by the laws of the State of Texas. Both parties agree that venue for any litigation arising from this contract shall be in Brazoria County, Texas.

AA. Pricing: ACC is a member of the following cooperative contracts: All TEA Region Purchasing Groups; TASB BuyBoard; HCDE-Choice Partners; E&I Cooperative Services;

Region 4/TCPN; TipsUSA; TXMAS/TXSmartBuy; Region 17/NCPA Region 19; Region 10/Equalis Group; HGAC-Buy; and US Communities/Omnia Partners. If your company has been awarded one or more of these cooperative purchasing contracts that includes the products and services requested, and that cost is more economical, please base pricing on the most advantageous cooperative contract, and mark the appropriate contract on the Vendor Information Page.

BB. Background and/or Criminal History Investigation For Certain Contracts: Prior to commencement of any services by the awarded vendor, ACC may require a background and/or criminal history investigation report to be submitted by Vendor and vendor’s subcontractors who will be providing services to ACC under the awarded Contract. Such report shall be updated to include any new hires providing services under the awarded contract. Prohibited offenses will be dependent on the nature of the contract, but may include the following: (1) For IT services and any financial services, no person shall be engaged by vendor who has charges pending or who has been convicted, of any crime involving moral turpitude; and (2) For construction services wherein personnel will have continuous duties on campus, no person shall be engaged by the vendor to work on College property where students are present who have charges pending, or who have been convicted for a) any sex offense, b) any crimes involving distribution of controlled substances; or c) any felony offense against property. It shall be the responsibility of the vendor to ensure compliance with this provision.

CC. COOPERATIVE PURCHASING AGREEMENT: As permitted under Interlocal

Cooperation Act C Texas Government Code, Chapter 791, other governmental entities may wish to also participate under the same terms and conditions contained in this contract. If this bid does not specifically list additional entities, each entity wishing to participate must have prior authorization from Alvin College and the vendor. If such participation is authorized, all purchase orders will be issued directly from and shipped directly to the entity requiring supplies/services. Alvin College shall not be held responsible for any orders placed, deliveries made or payment for supplies/services ordered by the entities. Bidder is to state their willingness to allow other governmental entities to participate in this contract, if awarded.

Yes: ___________

No: ____________

*Response required

DD. Additional Items: Following the contract award, additional services of the same general category that could have been encompassed in the award of this contract, and that are not already on the contract, may be added.

EE. Purchase Orders: This project will be initiated by an ACC Purchase Order. A valid, numbered purchase order will be emailed or faxed to the vendor by the ACC Purchasing Department or ACC employee. Orders will not be placed by telephone.

In accordance with applicable law, the College is not obligated to purchase any products and/or services in the event that the State of Texas or the Alvin College Board of Regents does not allocate funds. Alvin College will not be responsible for any goods delivered or services performed without its valid Purchase Order signed by an authorized representative. Contractors supplying goods or services without having first received a valid Purchase Order do so at their own risk. Authorized Alvin College personnel will notify the vendor of all adjustments and cancellations to any Purchase Order.

FF. Invoice and Payment Terms: Invoices are to be submitted to the Accounts Payable

Department for products and services that have been received or for services rendered.

Invoices without references to the purchase order number may delay payment to the vendor. Invoices listing items or services other than those shown on the approved purchase order will not be paid. Itemized invoices must be submitted via email to AP@alvincollege.edu or mailed to the ACC Accounts Payable Department, 3110 Mustang Road, Alvin, TX 77511. Upon receipt of a properly executed invoice and verification of delivery or service from the respective department, payment will be processed in accordance with Texas Government Code, Subchapter B, Payments and Interest, Chapter

2251.021 (b). Terms are to be 30 days net, although contractor may in addition offer early payment discounts for use at the ordering member’s discretion.

GG. Tax Exemption: ACC is exempt from payment of federal excise taxes as well as all state and local sales taxes. These taxes are not to be included in the proposal nor on any invoices for goods or services. If taxes are included in the vendor’s proposal, it will not be included in the evaluation or award. Tax exemption certificates shall be furnished upon request.

HH. Warranty, if applicable: Contractor shall provide warranty details for parts and labor on proposal form. All materials used on any project shall be new and, if applicable include a manufacturer’s warranty.

II. Termination of Contract:

1. Termination by Mutual Agreement

The contract may be terminated at any time, with or without cause, by the mutual agreement of the parties hereto, with thirty (30) days’ written notice prior to the effective date.

2. Termination for Convenience This contract may be terminated by either party upon written notice delivered to the other party at least (90) business days prior to the effective date of termination. By such termination, neither party will nullify its obligations or liabilities already incurred for performance or failure to perform prior to the date of termination.

mailto:AP@alvincollege.edu

3. Termination for Cause

ACC may terminate any resulting contract for cause based upon the failure of contractor to comply with the terms and/or conditions of the agreement, or failure to fulfill its performance obligations pursuant to the agreement, provided that the College shall give the contractor written notice specifying the contractor's failure. If within sixty

(60) days after receipt of such notice, the contractor shall not have corrected such failure or, in the case of failure which cannot be corrected in sixty (60) days, begun in good faith to correct such failure and thereafter proceeded diligently to complete such correction, then the College may, at its option, place the contractor in default and the Agreement shall terminate on the date specified in such notice.

The contractor may exercise any rights available under the law to terminate for cause upon failure of the College to comply with the terms and conditions of this agreement, provided that the contractor shall give the College sixty (60) days’ written notice specifying the College's failure and a reasonable opportunity for the College to cure the defect.

EVALUATION CRITERIA FOR AWARD OF CONTRACT

A. Best Value Evaluation: This RFP will follow the Best Value evaluation methodology. Best

Value looks at a number of criteria to evaluate proposals, including but not limited to cost.

It is a subjective evaluation process that reviews all proposals to determine which one provides the best value to the College.

B. Proposal Evaluation: All responses received as a result of this RFP may be subject to evaluation by a selected College committee for the purpose of selecting the respondent(s) with whom the College shall contract. The College may reject any or all proposals if none are considered in the best interest of the College.

The College reserves the right to separate and accept and/or eliminate any item(s) listed in this bid that it deems necessary to accommodate budgetary and/or operational requirements.

The College reserves the right to reject any and/or all bids submitted, to waive any formalities or technicalities, and to make whatever award it deems to be in the best interest of the College.

When determining the method listed under Subchapter (a) that provides the best value, the College shall consider any of the criteria below (reference Texas Education

Code, SEC 44.031(b)).

• The purchase price

• The reputation of the vendor and of the vendor’s goods or services

• The quality of the vendor’s goods or services

• The extent to which the goods or services meet the college’s needs

• The total long-term cost to the college to acquire the vendor’s goods or services

• For contract for goods and services, other than goods and services related to telecommunications and information services, building construction and maintenance, or instructional materials, whether the vendor or the vendor’s ultimate parent company or majority owner:

➢ Has its principal place of business in the state of Texas; or

➢ Employs at least 500 persons in the state of Texas

• Any other relevant factor specifically listed in the request for bids or proposals.

C. Selection Criteria: Selection shall be made among the respondents deemed to be fully qualified and best suited among those submitting proposals on the basis of the evaluation factors included in the RFP, including price. If necessary, clarifications of each RFP shall be received from respondents so selected. The College may cancel this RFP or reject proposals at any time prior to an award and is not required to furnish a statement of the reason why a particular RFP was not deemed to be the most advantageous. The award document will be a contract incorporating by reference all requirements, terms and conditions of the solicitation and the respondent’s RFP as negotiated. The following criteria shall use these maximum weights to evaluate responses to this RFP:

Criteria Weight (%)

Aruba ClearPass experience 30%

College relationship experience 10%

Positive higher-education experience 20%

Documentation and training quality 15%

Migration and cutover approach 10%

Total Cost 15%

Note: Cisco ISE to ClearPass migration references are preferred.

D. Competitive Pricing: Vendor’s pricing proposal form may be ranked alongside ones received from other vendors.

E. Past Performance in Similar Environments: Vendors past performance in environments of similar size and scope will be evaluated and subjectively ranked.

Preference will be given to experience at institutions of higher education and/or community colleges.

F. Personnel and Subcontractors, if applicable: The respondent shall identify the proposed subcontractors and the service and/or product each proposed subcontractor will provide. The respondent should provide sufficient information/submittals to document the proposed subcontractors experience providing the service and/or product.

The qualifications of the personnel proposed by the respondent to perform the requirements of this RFP, whether from the respondent's organization or from a proposed subcontractor, will be subjectively evaluated. Therefore, the respondent should submit detailed information related to the experience and qualifications, including education, training and licensure, of proposed personnel.

G. Contract Initiation: This entire RFP, including its Terms and Conditions and official ACC

Purchase Orders, will stand as the contract between Alvin College and the awarded vendor(s).

INFORMATION REQUIRED FROM RESPONDENT

Company Background and Experience: The respondents are to describe their background, relevant experience and qualifications, including, but not limited to the following:

Company Structure: The respondent is to include in the proposal the legal form of their business organization, the state in which incorporated (if a corporation), the office location that will be the point of contact during the term of any resulting contract as they relate to this RFP.

Experience: The respondent must clearly describe relevant experience in providing same or similar services with the various types of groups, specifically colleges/Universities. The respondent must clearly demonstrate that the experience’s related minimum qualifications are met.

References: The respondent…