SAPRO_RFP_Prev_Tng_and_Curr_Dev_Q_and_A.pdf

H98210-19-R-0024 Amendment 02

Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office (SAPRO) Prevention Training & Curriculum

Solicitation H98210-19-R-0024

Questions and Answers

Q1. Would the Government please indicate whether this requirement is currently being performed by an incumbent contractor? If this support is currently provided by other contractors, would the Government please identify them?

A1: This requirement is not currently being performed by a contractor.

Q2. According to page 25 of the solicitation, there is a Price evaluation; however, on Page 24 of the Instructions to Offerors there is no mention of submission requirements for pricing. Can you please clarify the required pricing format response to accompany the Technical Quote?

A2: See solicitation amendment 01 revised addendum 52.212-1 (b)(6).

Q3. There is a page limit for the Technical Quote of 20 pages, will the Government please indicate the page count requirements for the Pricing Volume?

A3: There is no page limit for the price quote.

Q4. Will the Government please identify Key Personnel required? For the Key Personnel identified, does the government require resumes for all Key Personnel?

A4: See solicitation amendment 01 revised addendum 52.212-1 (b)(4)(vi). The solicitation does not require resumes; however, offerors can submit resumes with their proposal.

Q5. Does the Government require the Offeror to respond to all-sub bullets included in PWS Statement of Work?

A5: Reference Addendum to 52.212-1 (b)(4)(i) through (vi).

Q6. For Past Performance qualifications will the Government allow the Offeror to include performance where the contractor was a Subcontractor and not a Prime contractor? Does the Government have a desired format/number of Past Performance qualifications that they are requesting the Offeror to include in their Technical Quote?

A6: The Government is not requesting any Past Performance information from the vendors. See Addendum to 52.212-1 (b)(10) for details.

Q7. According to page 16 of the Solicitation, travel is anticipated in Option Year 1 to support tasks 4.5 and 4.7. Does the Government anticipate that Travel costs for SMEs will be anticipated to support Task 4.8, Webinars Phase 2?

A7: No. Review paragraph 7.2, for travel instructions on webinars.

Q8. Does the Government have a desired Security Clearance requirement for Key Personnel or Instructors supporting the training delivery?

A8: No. However, review section 10.0. Compliance with HSPD-12 is required in order to obtain Common Access Cards (CAC). Vetting packages will be processed by DHRA.

Q9. Regarding Section 4.5 and 4.7 of the PWS: As a point of clarification, there will be two 160-hour prevention curriculum pilots in the First Year and three 160-hour sessions in the Option Year?

A9: Yes, that is correct.

Q10. Is it the government’s intention that the two instructors provided by the contractor will instruct the entire 160 hours of each prevention curriculum? Will they be the only instructors for the duration of the training?

A10: Given that the curriculum material will likely build on each other over the 160 hours, it will be helpful if the same instructors are leading the entire 160 hours. Our preference is for there to be a co-facilitation model.

Q11. Will the participants in the prevention curriculum trainings later be facilitators? In other words, is the primary purpose of these pilots to develop a cadre of training facilitators or simply to vet the curriculum created by the contractor?

A11: The purpose is just to vet the curriculum created by the contractor to identify changes that need to be made based on feedback from attendees.

Q12. Is it the government’s intention that the 160-hour curriculum will always be administered by instructors provided by the contractor? If not, will that at least be the case for the first and option years of this contract?

A12: For the purposes of this contract, the 160-hours of curriculum will always be administered by instructors provided by the contractor.

Q13. What are the timelines of the 160-hour prevention curriculum trainings? Will they be four consecutive business weeks or split up? Will the contractor have a say in when they are held?

A13: The 160-hour prevention curriculum trainings should be delivered in four consecutive business weeks. The schedule for the trainings will be decided based on discussions between the contractor and the government.

Q14. ADDENDA TO 52.212-1 & 2: “The technical quote shall not exceed 20 pages in length.

This may include product literature, or other documents, if necessary.” Is Past Performance included in the 20-page limit?

A14: See A6. If offerors wish to include it with their technical proposal it shall not exceed 20 pages.

Q15. ADDENDA TO 52.212-1 & 2: “The technical quote shall not exceed 20 pages in length.

This may include product literature, or other documents, if necessary.” Is the Pricing quote included in the 20-page limit?

A15: See A3.

Q16. Does the DoD currently have a similar or related training program in use? If yes, will the Government please tell us the contractor name, contract number, and value?

A16: The DoD SAPRO office does not have a training program currently active to support this requirement.

Q17. Should the pricing quote be submitted in a separate file? If yes, what is the page limit?

A17: See A3 and amendment 01.

Q18. ADDENDA TO 52.212-1 & 2: (iv) “How do you plan on obtaining and retaining qualified key personnel?” Which roles are considered key personnel?

A18: See solicitation amendment 01 revised addendum 52.212-1 (b)(4)(vi).

Q19. Does the government foresee vendor facilitating more than 2 pilots in the base and 3 trainings in the option year? If so, how many total classes will the vendor facilitate?

A19: No more than two pilots in the base and three trainings in the option year are anticipated.

Q20. Does the government anticipant (first pilot using draft curriculum and final pilot using revised curriculum) both pilots being conducted in the option year?

A20: Yes.

Q21. In Section 4.2, the government mentions vendor to develop curriculum for sexual assault prevention practitioners with little to no experience, can the government please define the role and responsibilities of the Sexual Assault Prevention Practitioners? And whats the intent of the training for practitioners (for example, are we training them to become experts to train others in DoD; or provide basic knowledge on prevention, or support survivors during intake of disclosure, etc.

A21: The Sexual Assault Prevention Practitioners will be those responsible for primary prevention activities within their Service. These individuals will have limited backgrounds in prevention.

This training will provide them with basic knowledge on prevention so that they can be better informed to complete their roles, which focus on the identification, implementation, and evaluation of evidence-based/evidence-informed sexual assault prevention activities.

Q22. Whats the government’s goal/objectives for the sexual assault practitioners pertaining to training? What level of knowledge are we preparing them for (basic, intermediate, expert)? Whats the practitioners current day to day jobs or is their main or only role a sexual assault prevention practitioner their main role/ job?

A22: SAPRO is developing curricula that will be used for someone with a full time position focused on sexual assault prevention. The level of knowledge will be basic to intermediate.

Q23. In Section 4.2.2, the government indicated that vendor shall create draft session evaluation tool with a pre- and post-session component for Government review. Is there an evaluation tool the government is currently using?

A23: No.

Q24. Section 4.3.1 and 4.3.2, Government ask vendor to develop and submit webinar delivery concept, who are the stakeholders participating in webinars? How many participants will be participating in webinars? How did the government come up with the number 7 unique webinars?

What makes them unique, the topics?

A24: The stakeholders will primarily be practitioners focused on sexual assault/sexual harassment.

While the audience is not strictly prevention-focused, our webinars should be focused on increased the prevention knowledge and skills of those in attendance. The “unique” terminology refers to the fact that the webinars cover seven different topics and are not the same content repeated over time.

Seven is a reasonable expectation within the time limits of the proposed contract.

Q25. Government indicate 2 facilitators, how many curriculum developers does the government anticipate will be needed to support this effort?

A25: This will depend on the time, effort, and level of knowledge and expertise of those involved in the development process.

Q26. In section 4.4.1, government ask the vendor to provide resources and tools to ensure leaders understand the prevention process, can the government define who the “Leaders” are in this particular stakeholder audience?

A26: “Leaders” refers to those individuals at various levels of leadership in the Military Services.

For example, this might include junior, mid-level, and senior leaders. The goal is to provide tools so that these leaders can understand and communicate in appropriate ways about prevention and the importance of prevention.

Q27. In section 4.8, What exactly does the govt mean by “continue/expand webinar series” for example, are we expanding audience, topics, number of webinars implemented? Who is the expanded audience?

A27: Meaning continue/expand from what was provided in the base year. Topics will be new but the audience is the same. The option year will include ten webinars, which is a reasonable expectation within the time limits of the proposed contract.

Q28. Ref: General, would the Government please confirm whether there is an incumbent previously performing this work? If so, would the Government please provide the vendor name, contract PoP, and contract value?

A28: See A1.

Q29. Ref: General, if there is no incumbent, would the Government please confirm whether similar efforts have been performed previously? If so, would the Government please provide the vendor name, contract PoP, and contract value?

A29: No similar efforts have not been performed except for a small portion of the scope of this requirement was previously performed by Booz Allen and Hamilton under contract H9821017C0003. Booz Allen and Hamilton developed the narrative document which will be provided as GFI (Paragraph 8.3). This narrative document is an expanded literature review that was further operationalized and will be utilized in order to facilitate the development of facilitator and participant manuals and other supplementary materials as required.

Q30. Ref: General, would the Government confirm if any curriculum has been developed to date or if all content for base and option years will be new?

A30: See A37.

Q31. Ref: Addenda to 52.212-1&2, Section (b)(10) Past Performance: “The Government may use data provided by the Vendor, and will use data obtained from other sources…” Would the Government clarify what information is expected from Vendors for Past Performance and how it should be submitted to the Government (e.g., is Past Performance a separate volume? If so, please identify the page limit, contract information required, etc.)?

A31: A past performance volume is not required. See solicitation amendment 02 revised addendum 52.212-1 (b)(10).

Q32. Ref: Addenda to 52.212-1&2, Sections (b)(4)(vi), would the Government confirm that the “Senior Curriculum Development Specialists” and the “Subject Matter Expert” are example labor categories, not key personnel requirements?

A32: The sample labor category in amendment 01 are considered key personnel.

Q33. Ref: 4.2 of the PWS, would the Government confirm if the 160 hours of training will be 8 hrs/day for consecutive 4 weeks, or will the training be spread across months to total 160 hours?

A33: The 160 hours of training will be performed 8/hours per day for a consecutive 4-week period. See A13.

Q34. Ref: 4.3.3.2 of the PWS, would the Government confirm if the contractor is responsible for the entire continuing education credit process? If so, would the Government provide insight into that process and how long it would take?

A34: No, the contractor is not responsible for the entire continuing education credit process. The contractor would need to process for webinar attendees utilizing an existing single government system. Processing credits typically takes less than 1 hour per webinar.

Q35. Ref: 4.5.1 of the PWS: “Provide the Government an implementation plan to pilot the curriculum using the DRAFT curriculum developed in Base Year (first pilot) and REVISED curriculum (second pilot).” In Section 4.5 and in the Deliverables Table on page 13, it states that both pilots will be conducted in the Option Year. Would the Government confirm that both pilots are in the Option Year, or if they are split between base and option years?

A35: Yes, both pilots are planned for the option year; however, the planning for the pilots will occur in the base year.

Q36. Ref: 4.10. Surge Capability, the Government has identified surge required for “requirements listed in 4.3 or 4.9”. Is this a typo? Should the referenced sections be 4.3 (Webinars (Base)) or 4.8 (Webinars Phase 2 (OY1))?

A36: No this is not a typo, Sections are correct.

Q37. 4.2 Curriculum Development (BASE) and 8.4. “Using narrative that will be provided by the government (see 8.4), develop a curriculum for new sexual assault prevention practitioners…”Could the Government provide example narratives for facilitator and participant manuals and other supplementary materials to better inform our pricing? In addition, could a Government Prevention Plan of Action and self-assessment template for the development of the leadership tools also be provided for the same reason?

A37: The Government has content developed that currently includes 6 modules and 36 lessons on topics related to sexual assault. These lessons and modules will need to be reviewed, streamlined, and revised before finalizing. Below are the proposed topics for the curriculum for which content has been developed – we expect that the organization will need to be modified and that the final document may not include all of the current content (and additional content, although expected to be minimal, if at all, may need to be developed based on decisions made with the final product):

Module 1: Public health and prevention focus is on sexual assault in a military context, description of the public health approach to prevention, and common approaches to sexual assault prevention Module 2: Strategic planning for prevention focus is on assessing community needs, collaboration including engagement and convening of stakeholders, and using data to develop a strategic plan Module 3: Program selection, readiness assessment, tailoring, and piloting focus is on understanding evidence, program selection, assessing readiness, program tailoring and adaptation, piloting prevention programs, and developing logic models Module 4: Program implementation and management focus is on planning and coordinating as it relates to program implementation, training of personnel, program delivery, engaging community members and leadership, and monitoring implementation fidelity Module 5: Evaluation focus is on program evaluation, data collection and analysis, and using data for continuous quality improvement Module 6: Integrating Prevention Efforts focus is on shared risk and protective factors and use of health equity approach in prevention

The Government expects that the supplementary materials will be developed by the Contractor.

This will include any handouts or other learning materials that will be used in delivery of the curriculum (e.g., small group activities to reinforce concepts discussed). No supplementary materials have been developed for the lessons/modules.

The DoD SAPRO Prevention Plan of Action can be found at: https://www.sapr.mil/prevention-strategy

Q38. 4.2 Curriculum Development (BASE). “The curriculum is currently estimated to comprise approximately 160 hours of classroom engagement…” Does the Government anticipate that the 160-hour training sessions will be provided as one block (i.e. 4 consecutive weeks of training at a specific location), or will the training be broken into smaller increments to be provided at different times during the base period?

A38: See responses to A10, A12, and A13.

Q39. 4.3 Webinars (BASE). “Develop and implement webinars to build capacity for prevention, and provide continuing education…via e-learning opportunities” Is the intended audience for the webinars the same as those participating in the 160-hour classroom curriculum, or is it a different or expanded audience? If different or expanded, would you please describe the intended audience?

A39:

The audience for the webinars is similar to those who will be participating in the 160-hour curriculum; however, it is not the same individuals. It will be individuals who have a range of backgrounds/expertise in prevention, although most will have minimal knowledge of sexual assault prevention. The webinars will need to be at a beginner or intermediate level. The content of these webinars will be similar to what is included as part of the curriculum content.

Q40. 6.0 Contractor Manpower Reporting and SSF 1449; Addenda to 52.212-1&2 (b)(4) (v), and Amendment 0001. “The Contractor shall report ALL Contractor labor hours…”

“(v) how staffing plan will support recruiting, retention, …and the PWS requirements by providing labor categories, number of proposed hours,…”requirements by providing labor categories, number of proposed hours,…” Amendment 1 (b) (6) Price – “… the vendor must also submit a breakdown of the pricing that includes: a. Fully burden (sic) Labor Rate … b. A breakdown of the labor mix including the proposed labor categories c. Number of hours proposed for each labor category.

It appears that all line items are to be proposed as firm fixed price, however Section 6.0 requires that the contractor report all labor hours as would be required in a level of effort contract. Amendment 0001 also requires labor rates. Would the Government please clarify the ambiguity?

A40: PWS Section 6.0 Is the DoD Contractor Manpower Report is data collecton for labor hours on service contracts.. This is a Firm Fixed Priced requirement.

Q41. 7.2 Contractor travel. “Travel costs to the Mark Center Complex for post award conference, meetings, webinars, and other meetings as determined will not be reimbursed, and shall be included in the contractor’s firm-fixed price…” Would the Government please provide an estimate of the number of meetings at the Mark Center Complex which are expected to occur? Are meetings at other locations in this context expected? If so, where are they likely to be and how many meetings are anticipated?

A41: Travel will be to the Mark Center Complex as described in 7.1, aside from required travel specifically supporting 4.5 and 4.7 within OY1, see paragraph 7.2 for specifics. Describing 7.1 further, in the Base Year vendors can anticipate attending approximately 9 in-person meetings (1 per month). OY1 vendors can anticipate approximately 12 in-person meetings (1 per month).

Webinars may be scheduled remotely.

Q42. Addenda to 52.212-1&2 (b) (10) Past Performance. “…Past performance information is limited to those performed within the last five years…” How many past performance citations should be included in this bid? Is past performance to be considered part of the technical quote and included in the 20-page limit, or should it be its own volume? Is there a page limit if it is to be its own volume?

A42: An amendment will be issued to correct (b)(10) to remove “data provided by the vendor” as we only intend to use what is in PPIRS.

Q43. Addenda to 52.212-1&2 (b) (10) Price. Price proposal format. We are assuming that the price proposal should consist of a completed and signed SF 1449 with the FFP Net Amount included for each Item Number. Is that a correct assumption? In addition, is it permissible to include the Representation and Certifications as a separate section in the price proposal? If not, where should they be placed?

A43: Addenda to 52.212-1&2 (b) (6), Price proposal format assumption is correct. Rep’s and Cert’s can be included with your Price Proposal.

Q44. 4.2: “Curriculum Development (BASE) – Using narrative that will be provided by the government (see 8.4 and 8.5), develop a curriculum for new sexual assault prevention practitioners (with little or no experience in prevention) to include a training facilitator manual, participant manual, and all supplementary materials (e.g., visual aids, handouts, activities).”

a. What level of detail will be included in the narrative provided by the Government?

b. Will the Government also provide access to SMEs to collaborate in development?

A44: a. See A37. The current narrative is approximately 400 pages in length (spread over 6 modules), and is likely to contain a sufficient level of detail for the vendor to create the required curriculum; however, it is possible that in limited situations the vendor may need to identify/develop additional content necessary to weave together the existing narrative into a usable curriculum.

b. The Government has SMEs on staff who will be reviewing and approving the work of the vendor and they will be available for consultation and collaboration as needed; however, the vendor is expected to enlist the services of appropriate topic experts to assist in creating the draft curriculum.

Q45. 4.3: “Webinars (BASE) – Develop and implement webinars to build capacity for prevention, and provide continuing education focused on sexual assault prevention-related topics via e-learning opportunities.”

a. Will the prevention practitioner position be required to achieve a specific number of continuing education units (CEUs) per year or two years?

b. Will these CEUs be required to maintain a professional certification or license?

c. If yes, is DoD SAPRO currently an accredited provider for CEUs or Continuing Education Training (CET) or have an association with an accredited provider linked to an organization such as the International Association for Continuing Education and Training

(IACET)?

A45: a. At this point, prevention practitioners have no CEU requirements.

b. At this point, prevention practitioners have no requirement for professional certification or license, or CEU requirement.

c. N/A.

Q46. 4.5.1.1: “At the time of Option Year award, the Government will confirm the training location.”

Will the Government provide or designate a classroom with the appropriate audio-visual, computer, internet access, and other training items to conduct the curriculum pilot, as well as all the other training events?

A46: Yes, the room(s) provided by the Government during the course of this contract will be equipped with the items deemed necessary by the Government to perform training.

Q47. 4.5.1.2: “Provide the Government a summary of observations and recommended adjustments based on feedback from the pilot group.”

Please clarify that the government is looking for a curriculum designed to satisfy a joint/neutral service scope. To what extent would the curriculum development be expected to respond to Service-specific needs?

A47: The curriculum developed under this contract will not be Service-specific. Any customization will be done in conjunction with the Services, and is not included in the scope of this contract.

Q48. 4.7: “Field Curriculum (OY1) – Implement a sexual assault prevention curriculum to create a cadre of appropriately trained prevention practitioners.”

Please confirm whether the scope is to create a cadre of Service neutral prevention practitioners.

Will any service-specific concerns will be addressed by the client outside of this contract or as part of a surge?

A48: See A47.

Q49. 4.8.3: “Using a Government-provided webinar platform (currently Adobe Connect), host and deliver or co-deliver (Government may provide a co-presenter) and facilitate webinar.”

Will these webinars be accessed internationally?

A49: Webinars may be attended by DoD personnel whom may be located in international locations.

Q50. 4.4: “Leadership Tools (Base) – Develop tools to help DoD military leaders understand and communicate effectively on the prevention process and prevention system.”

4.4.2.1: states “the Government will share the tools with select leaders at appropriate levels to ensure content fits audience needs.”

4.9.2: the PWS is to update prevention tools developed for “officers and senior enlisted leaders.”

Question: Can the Government verify whether these are the same tool sets or two different tool sets?

A50: See 4.9.2. Update prevention tools developed for officers and senior enlisted leaders. Based on feedback from leaders, revise and update materials developed in base year to ensure relevance for target audience.

As noted in 4.9.1, a tool will also be developed that focuses on the competencies that will be helpful to identify, hire, train, and retain a prevention workforce

Q51. Can the Government provide any additional detail or context about the "narrative" they will provide as the basis for curriculum development? (PWS 4.2 and 8.4)

A51: See A37 and A44.

Q52. Are the 160-hour trainings intended to be completed in 8-hour days over four consecutive five-day weeks? (PWS 4.2, 4.5.1.1, 4.5.1.3, and implied for 4.7.2)

A52: See A13.

Q53. Is the audience for the webinars the same as for the trainings? (PWS 4.3)

A53: See A39.

Q54. Can we assume webinar audience members have already completed the 160-hour core curriculum? (PWS 4.3)

A54: See A39.

Q55. Is the intention that there is a practice webinar before each webinar? For example, in the base year, 7 webinars conducted twice each—are there then 14 live webinars and 14 practice webinars? (PWS 4.3.3.1 and 4.8.3.1)

A55: Yes, there will be 14 live webinars; however, only 7 practice webinars will be necessary. A check of equipment will occur before the other 7 but since the webinars are repeated, it will only have to be practiced one time.

Q56. Will the contractor have access to participant email addresses and/or a military email distribution system, or how will the contractor support distribution of webinar announcements?

(PWS 4.3.3.2 and 4.8.3.2)

A56: SAPRO will provide the contractor a distribution list for the webinar announcements and will be open to other suggestions by the contractor for distribution of announcements. In addition, SAPRO will assist with webinar promotion in terms of announcing during appropriate meetings, Service outreach, etc.

Q57. Has the Government identified short-term, medium-term and long-term outcomes for the new sexual assault prevention practitioners? (PWS 4.2)

A57: The narrative that has been developed considers learning outcomes for the prevention practitioners but this has not been finalized. This will be part of the curriculum development process.

Q58. Can the Government please provide the narrative referred to in 4.2? (PWS 4.2)

A58: See A37 and A44.

Q59. Will the Government require the contractor use Getting To Outcomes (GTO)? (PWS 4.2)

A59: We are asking for development of a curriculum, webinars, and leadership tools. To the extent that Getting to Outcomes is applicable, it may be included.

Q60. How will the new curriculum interface with existing DoD and US Armed Services training curricula for prevention practitioners (i.e. Army 5 week Foundations Course)? (PWS 4.2)

A60: See A47. Current training does not exist (or is limited) for prevention practitioners.

Q61. How does the Government intend that the new curriculum will inform US Armed Services existing prevention efforts? (PWS 4.2)

A61: See A47. Current training does not exist (or is limited) for prevention practitioners.

Q62. To what extent should proposals address the following components of the Prevention Plan of Action, particularly elements not outlined in this PWS, including collaborative relationships, data, resources, policy, comprehensive approach, quality improvement and continuous improvement?

(PWS 4.2)

A62: We are asking for development of a curriculum, webinars, and leadership tools. To the extent that the elements outlined in the Prevention Plan of Action are applicable, they may be included.

Q63. Who will the pilot curriculum training participants be?

A63: Training participants for the pilot curriculum will be those individuals identified by their Services as appropriate for the training. They may or may not have positions that are focused full time on prevention but they will have an interest in prevention and their work will likely touch on prevention in some way.

Q64. Will the contractor be able to collect evaluation data (both qualitative and quantitative) from pilot curriculum training participants during the pilot so that we can course correct the curriculum based on these formative evaluation findings?

A64: See PWS 4.2.2., 4.5.1.2, 4.5.1.3, 4.5.1.4, and 4.6.

Q65. Reference: RFQ, Amend 1; Addendum to 52.212-1 -- Instructions to Offerors -- Commercial Items. (DEVIATION 2018-O0018); pgs. 2 & 3.

Question: Are we correct to understand that offerors are to submit a separate Cover Letter, Technical Quote, and Price Quote?

A65: Cover letter is not required but may be submitted. Because this should be submitted electronically per RFP, they should be submitted as separate attachments.

Q66. Reference: RFQ, Amend 1; Addendum to 52.212-1 -- Instructions to Offerors -- Commercial Items. (DEVIATION 2018-O0018); pgs. 2 & 3.

Question: Are we correct to understand that the Cover Letter should contain:

Items required by 52.212-1 that are not addressed in SF 1449 or Technical and Price Quotes

Completed Representations and Certifications Completed SF1449 and SF 30

A66: Reps and Certs’ should be include with the Price Proposal.

Q67. Reference: RFQ, Amend 1; Addendum to 52.212-1 -- Instructions to Offerors -- Commercial Items. (DEVIATION 2018-O0018); pgs. 2 & 3.

Question: Are we correct to understand that the Price Quote should contain:

Section SF 1449 - CONTINUATION SHEET with completed CLINS Breakdown of the pricing requested in Amend 1

A67: Correct, See Addendum 52.212-1 Instructions to Offerors (b)(6) for details.

Q68. Reference: RFQ, Amend 1; Addendum to 52.212-1 -- Instructions to Offerors -- Commercial Items. (DEVIATION 2018-O0018); pgs. 2 & 3.

Question: Are we correct to understand that the Cover Letter has no page limit?

A68: See A65.

Q69. Reference: RFQ, Amend 1; Addendum to 52.212-1 -- Instructions to Offerors -- Commercial Items. (DEVIATION 2018-O0018); pgs. 2 & 3.

Question: Are we correct to understand that the Price Quote has no page limit?

A69: See A3.

Q70. Reference: RFQ, Amend 1; Addendum to 52.212-1 -- Instructions to Offerors -- Commercial Items. (DEVIATION 2018-O0018); pgs. 2 & 3.

Question: Are cover pages, that are omitted from page count permitted for the Technical and Price Quotes?

A70: See A65. Page limit for Technical Proposal can be found under Addendum to 52.212-1 (b)(4).

Q71. Reference: RFQ, Amend 1; Addendum to 52.212-1 -- Instructions to Offerors -- Commercial Items. (DEVIATION 2018-O0018); pgs. 2 & 3.

Question: Are tables of content, that are omitted from page count permitted for the Technical and Price Quotes?

A71: See A70.

Q72. Reference: RFQ, 52.212-3 OFFEROR REPRESENTATIONS AND CERTIFICATIONS- -COMMERCIAL ITEMS (OCT 2018); pg. 26.

Question: Are quoters who have completed their Representations and Certifications in the System for Award Management (SAM) permitted include a statement stating their representations and certifications are up to date in SAM and are not required to submit a separate copy of completed Representations and Certifications?

A72: See FAR 52.212-3: “The Offeror shall complete only paragraph (b) of this provision if the Offeror has completed the annual representations and certification electronically in the System for Award Management (SAM) accessed through https://www.sam.gov. If the Offeror has not completed the annual representations and certifications electronically, the Offeror shall complete only paragraphs (c) through (u)) of this provision. “

Q73. Page 9, (4.3.3) Subject Matter Experts: The RFP states that the contractor shall “host and deliver or co-deliver (Government may provide a co-presenter) and facilitate webinars with Government approved subject matter experts.” Should the contractor plan to recruit and compensate the subject matter experts or guest speakers who participate in webinars, or will the SMEs/guest speakers be government personnel who are tasked to assist?

A73: See A44a.

Q74. Page 11, (4.8) Webinars Phase 2 (OY1) – The RFP states that the contractor shall “continue/expand webinar series to build capacity for prevention, and provide continuing education focused on sexual assault prevention-related topics via e-learning opportunities” (emphasis added).

Can the government elaborate on what they mean by “e-learning opportunities?” Is there an expectation for delivering webinar content in an asynchronous e-learning format hosted on an LMS, rather than live or recorded webinars?

A74: Webinars are provided in real time (and recorded for posting in our Community of Practice).

Utilization of an e-learning format hosted on an LMS is not included in the scope of this contract.

Q75. Page 24, (b)(10) Past Performance: The RFQ states that past performance information is limited to those performed within the last five years as of the date of the solicitation. Could the government please verify what past performance information is required to be submitted?

A75: See A6 and A31.

Q76. Page 24, (b)(10) Past Performance: The RFQ states that past performance information is limited to those performed within the last five years as of the date of the solicitation. Is there a limit to the number of specific projects that can be presented as part of an offeror’s past performance?

A76: See A6 and A31.

Q77. Page 24, (b)(10) Past Performance: The RFQ states that the Government may use data provided by the Vendor and will use data obtained from other sources, including the Past Performance Information Retrieval System (PPIRS), which houses the Contractor Performance Assessment Rating System (CPARS) reports. CPARS reports are limited to past performance as a prime contractor. Will the Government accept past performance as a subcontractor?

A77: See A6 and A31. Only as Prime.

Q78. Page 24, (b)(10) Past Performance: Are past performance references included in 20-page limit of the technical quote?

A78: See A6 and A31.

Q79. Page 25, (52.212-3), Offeror Representations and Certifications: Are representations and certifications required to be submitted as a separate volume/attachment outside of the 20-page technical quote page limit?

A79: See A66.

Q80. Is pricing to be submitted as a separate volume/attachment outside of the 20-page technical quote page limit?

A80. See A3.

Q81. Do resumes, past performance, title page, and table of contents count against the technical quote 20-page maximum length?

A81: Yes

Q82. Will you please review and confirm quantities and units desired for each line item and provide context? [For example, is item 0002, Webinar Concept Plan, meant to be one plan billed out over 9 months?]

A82: See CLIN structure pages 3 through 6.

Q83. Will you please share all questions and answers?

A83: All Q & A’s will be posted on FBO.

Q84. Ref: General, will the Government clarify who they define as “new sexual assault prevention practioners"? Does this include SARCs and/or SAPR VA? Or is this a new role being defined?

A84: The Services differ in who qualifies as a “prevention practitioner” but generally the designation of “new” refers to someone who has prevention as part of his/her role, but they lack the training necessary for completing that role. The curriculum that is being developed will be to provide training needed for those individuals to complete their jobs.

Q85. Ref: PWS4.3, 4.8, would the Government clarify who the intended audience for Webinars will be?

A85: See A39.

Q86. Ref: PWS4.3, 4.8, will webinars require closed captioning for live events and/or audio transcription for recordings?

A86: See PWS 4.1.2.

Q87. Ref: PWS 4.3, 4.5, 4.7 4.8, will the vendor be responsible for ensuring that completion of Webinars and/or in-person training sessions is tracked within the Army’s Learning Management System (ALMS)?

A87: See A47. SAPRO does not utilize ALMS.

Q88. Ref: General, does the Government currently use a web-based evaluation tool for pre and post-evaluation assessments? If so would the Government please provide the name and platform of the solution.

A88: See A23. Any recommended web-based evaluation tool would need to be compatible with DoD’s security protocols.

Q89. Will the government consider a one-week extension of the RFQ response date from the current September 16, 2019 due date?

A89: No extensions will be considered.

Q90. Does the government have a dollar maximum or budget ceiling for this firm-fixed price RFQ?

A90: We cannot reveal our budget or government estimate.

Q91. How will the government evaluate the proposals it receives from vendors?

a. Does the government use a scale or grading tool to use to evaluate RFP responses?

b. If using a scale or another tool to grade each proposal, what criteria will the government use to examine?

A91: Instructions to Offerors are under Addendum to FAR 52.212-1 and the award criteria is under Addendum to FAR 52.212-2.