Intent to Sole Source.docx

Any vendor wishing to respondSAP

State of South Carolina

INTENT TO AWARD

SOLE SOURCE

Solicitation:

Date Issued:

Procurement Officer:

Phone:

E-Mail Address:

Mailing Address:

Procurement Director:

5400023623 06/21/2022 Brittany Driggers 803-896-8533 Driggers.brittany@doc.state.sc.us SC Department of Corrections Attn: Purchasing Branch Ruthie Bishop, CPPB

DESCRIPTION: Intent to Sole Source – APEX Learning

USING GOVERNMENTAL UNIT: SC Department of Corrections

The Term "Offer" Means Your "Bid" or "Proposal". Your offer must be submitted in a sealed package. Solicitation Number & Opening Date must appear on package exterior. See "Submitting Your Paper Offer or Modification" provision.

SUBMIT YOUR SEALED OFFER TO EITHER OF THE FOLLOWING ADDRESSES:

MAILING ADDRESS:

SC Department of Corrections Attn: Purchasing Branch 4420 Broad River Road Columbia SC 29210

PHYSICAL ADDRESS:

SC Department of Corrections Attn: Purchasing Branch 4530 Broad River Road Columbia SC 29210

RESPONSE PERIOD ENDS AND MUST BE SUBMITTED BY (Opening Date/Time): 07/07/2022 @ 10:00:00a.m.

THIS INTENT TO SOLE SOURCE MAY BE EMAILED TO:

purchasing@doc.sc.gov

SUBJECT LINE MUST STATE INTENTENT TO SOLE SOURCE

*********NOT TO BE SENT TO BUYERS EMAIL ADDRESS***********

CONFERENCE TYPE: Not Applicable

DATE & TIME:

(As appropriate, see "Conferences - Pre-Bid/Proposal" & "Site Visit" provisions) LOCATION: Not Applicable

You must submit a signed copy of this form with Your Offer. By signing, You agree to be bound by the terms of the Solicitation. You agree to hold Your Offer open for a minimum of thirty (30) calendar days after the Opening Date. (See "Signing Your Offer" provision.)

NAME OF OFFEROR

(full legal name of business submitting the offer) Any award issued will be issued to, and the contract will be formed with, the entity identified as the Offeror. The entity named as the offeror must be a single and distinct legal entity. Do not use the name of a branch office or a division of a larger entity if the branch or division is not a separate legal entity, i.e., a separate corporation, partnership, sole proprietorship, etc.

AUTHORIZED SIGNATURE

(Person must be authorized to submit binding offer to contract on behalf of Offeror.)

DATE SIGNED

TITLE

(business title of person signing above)

STATE VENDOR NO.

(Register to Obtain S.C. Vendor No. at www.procurement.sc.gov)

PRINTED NAME

(printed name of person signing above)

STATE OF INCORPORATION

(If you are a corporation, identify the state of incorporation.)

OFFEROR'S TYPE OF ENTITY: (Check one) (See "Signing Your Offer" provision.)

___ Sole Proprietorship ___ Partnership ___ Other_____________________________

___ Corporate entity (not tax-exempt) ___ Corporation (tax-exempt) ___ Government entity (federal, state, or local)

COVER PAGE - PAPER ONLY (MAR. 2015)

SAP

SAP

PAGE TWO

(Return Page Two with Your Offer) HOME OFFICE ADDRESS (Address for offeror's home office / principal place of business)

NOTICE ADDRESS (Address to which all procurement and contract related notices should be sent.) (See "Notice" clause)

_________________________________________________ Area Code - Number - Extension Facsimile

_________________________________________________ E-mail Address

PAYMENT ADDRESS (Address to which payments will be sent.) (See "Payment" clause)

____Payment Address same as Home Office Address ____Payment Address same as Notice Address (check only one) ORDER ADDRESS (Address to which purchase orders will be sent) (See "Purchase Orders and "Contract Documents" clauses)

____Order Address same as Home Office Address ____Order Address same as Notice Address (check only one)

ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF AMENDMENTS

Offerors acknowledges receipt of amendments by indicating amendment number and its date of issue. (See "Amendments to Solicitation" Provision)

DISCOUNT FOR PROMPT PAYMENT

(See "Discount for Prompt Payment" clause)

PREFERENCES - A NOTICE TO VENDORS (SEP. 2009): On June 16, 2009, the South Carolina General Assembly rewrote the law governing preferences available to in-state vendors, vendors using in-state subcontractors, and vendors selling in-state or US end products. This law appears in Section 11-35-1524 of the South Carolina Code of Laws. A summary of the new preferences is available at www.procurement.sc.gov/preferences . ALL THE PREFERENCES MUST BE CLAIMED AND ARE APPLIED BY LINE ITEM, REGARDLESS OF WHETHER AWARD IS MADE BY ITEM OR LOT. VENDORS ARE CAUTIONED TO CAREFULLY REVIEW THE STATUTE BEFORE CLAIMING ANY PREFERENCES. THE REQUIREMENTS TO QUALIFY HAVE CHANGED. IF YOU REQUEST A PREFERENCE, YOU ARE CERTIFYING THAT YOUR OFFER QUALIFIES FOR THE PREFERENCE YOU'VE CLAIMED. IMPROPERLY REQUESTING A PREFERENCE CAN HAVE SERIOUS CONSEQUENCES. [11-35-1524(E)(4)&(6)]

PREFERENCES - ADDRESS AND PHONE OF IN-STATE OFFICE: Please provide the address and phone number for your in-state office in the space provided below. An in-state office is necessary to claim either the Resident Vendor Preference (11-35-1524(C)(1)(i)&(ii)) or the Resident Contractor Preference (11-35-1524(C)(1)(iii)). Accordingly, you must provide this information to qualify for the preference. An in-state office is not required, but can be beneficial, if you are claiming the Resident Subcontractor Preference (11-35-1524(D)).

____In-State Office Address same as Home Office Address ____In-State Office Address same as Notice Address (check only one)

PAGE TWO (SEP 2009)

End of PAGE TWO

Intent to Award Sole Source

SOUTH CAROLINA DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS

The South Carolina Department of Corrections intends to Sole Source APEX Learning for the procurement of digital curriculum and affiliated tutorials, aligned to South Carolina content standards, and approved by the SC State Board of Education, that can be offered to an unlimited incarcerated population of learners. The course curriculum must serve grades 9-12 and adult education and include adult basic education, career and technical education, tutorials, and responsive assistance.

The Palmetto Unified School District serves approximately 2,500 student inmates incarcerated in the South Carolina Department of Corrections. There are 21 sites across the state, located in 16 counties.

Digital Curriculum Solution “APEX Learning”

· Must include technical support to IT personnel

· Must cover a one-year access License\Subscription for unlimited students

Unlimited Courses One-year access for unlimited Courses Description: License and Support

· Implementation: remote support should be provided for implementation of the platform

· Ongoing technical support for the life of the subscription: Teachers/Educators, Administrators and PUSD IT should have a toll-free number where they can reach technical support on-demand for issues they encounter.

· Support should be available 24/7 to students, teachers, administrators, and IT personnel through key strokes or help buttons that offer solutions and information

· One-on-one – Subscription should include one-on-one technical help from either phone, email, or live web chat.

· Platform support must be included

· Access for Teachers/Educators and Administrator logins should be included.

Platform: Web-based, comprehensive digital curriculum that satisfies South Carolina academic standards and enables students ages 17 and older of diverse academic abilities (grades 9-12) and experiences to earn units toward completion of a high school diploma, adult basic education certificate, career and technical education requirements, high school diploma equivalency, and test preparation.

Training: Online training via recorded videos, webinars, knowledge-base, or other resources for the life of the subscription should be included. Initial introductory training for teachers should be included with the platform.

· Professional Development – The platform should include initial Professional Development training, via webinar platform or live session.

· Knowledge base – Training should include instructor access to online knowledge base.

· Platform should include web-based online training including recorded video sessions, and/or live webinars available 24/7 to users.

Technical Requirements:

· All websites are whitelisted through a firewall (SonicWall) and the vendor must be willing to provide an exhaustive list of links and IP’s required to run the platform for them to be whitelisted;

· The vendor must also be willing to provide – in the bid - a list of any ports which must be open in order for IT Security to vet the ports and assure they can be used.

Platform Requirements:

· Platform must offer appealing interface that offers both visual and auditory components to satisfy diverse learning styles and interests.

· Platform and content must incorporate learning theory, adult learning theory, best practices and evidence-based approaches to integrating technology into learning

· Platform must provide help and information access on every content screen to ensure effective support to users

· Platform must provide monitoring tools to assist instructors with assessing student progress, identifying needs for additional support or intervention, and progress toward mastery of standards

· Platform must include frequent checks for understanding and mastery.

Platform Content Requirements:

· Content must offer a South Carolina comprehensive digital curriculum, aligned to South Carolina academic standards and approved by the South Carolina State Board of Education, that can be offered securely to an incarcerated population (ages 17 and older) and that provides rigorous content, differentiated, personalized instruction, targeted remediation, scaffolded support, assessment, and course progress tracking by student, teacher, and administrator.

· Course catalog should be complete and available, and available courses must include foreign languages, CTE courses, and TABE test preparation.

· Platform and content must incorporate learning theory, adult learning theory, best practices and evidence-based approaches to integrating technology into learning

· Content must align with grade-level curriculum requirements of the State of South Carolina Academic standards. These standards can be found at https://ed.sc.gov/instruction/standards-learning/.

· The curriculum must serve grades 9-12 and adult education, and offer career and technical education, test preparation and practice, tutorials, and online assistance for a broad array of courses. (Completion of a course of study must be the equivalent of completing and earning Carnegie Unit (120 hours of instruction) toward graduation and attainment of a high school diploma.)

· Integrated tutorials and supports must provide an array of interventions and support and must serve students with special needs, struggling learners or those who have been out of school for some period of time, students with differing levels of literacy and numeracy, struggling readers (less than 8th grade reading ability), and advanced learners (and Gifted and Talented).

· Instructional assistance embedded in the platform should include checks for understanding, calibrated scaffolded instruction with targeted adaptive remediation, chunked/sequenced instruction, active learning opportunities, and integrated assessments

· Digital curriculum provides computer-delivered, individualized instruction that can be integrated into traditional instruction or delivered as stand-alone course in a variety of content, career exploration, and life skills courses in subjects that enables students to progress at their own pace and that offers additional supports and tutorials to students as needed.

Differentiated Instruction

· Platform should include differentiated instruction tailoring educational needs for individual students.

· Platform should include flexible, individualized instruction that respects and delivers instruction at appropriate levels to students with special needs, struggling learners or those who have been out of school for some period of time, students with differing levels of literacy and numeracy, students with less than 8th grade competencies), and advanced learners (and Gifted and Talented).

Student Confidence & Motivation

· Platform should contain embedded strategies designed to keep students motivated and engaged.

· Platform should also contain visual and audio learning tools to engage students effectively.

· Platform should chunk curriculum to ensure

· Platform should Use chunking and sequencing to apportion content so that students remain engaged and confident in their ability to learn the material

Tiered Intervention

· Platform should offer a range of strategies to support, reinforce, and practice learning for students who are struggling to master content in an area.

· Strategies should include adaptive remediation techniques,

· Course content should be deliverable and incorporate reading materials at differing levels of text complexity and growth of comprehension, and include foundational, skills, and reading literature and informational text.

· Strategies should include frequent checks for understanding and practice opportunities

· Strategies should include scaffolded instructional units

· Strategies should serve students with special needs, struggling learners or those who have been out of school for some period of time, struggling readers (less than 8th grade reading ability), and advanced learners (and Gifted and Talented).

Practice & Assessment

· Platform should include strategies and tools that allow students to practice and apply (in different formats and contexts) newly attained skills and content understanding.

· Frequent checks for understanding should be integrated into the content and course delivery so that student progress can be promptly monitored and addressed if needed.

· Assessments should indicate to the student inmate and to the teacher and administrator progress toward content mastery of South Carolina academic standards or industry standards as appropriate.

· The platform should also include measurement assessments for students allowing teaching to measure and track learning gains.

Student Assessment & Reporting

· Platform should offer assessment reporting that allows teachers and students to monitor progress and track student learning gains.

· Platform should offer a “grade book” for teachers and for reporting purposes

· Platform should offer reports that can identify individual, course section, and collective mastery of standards, areas for intervention, and course completion rates.

· Assessments and Reports should be available in flexible formats for download.

Unlimited Tutorials One-year access for unlimited Tutorials Description: License and Support

· Implementation: remote support should be provided for implementation of the platform

· Ongoing technical support for the life of the subscription: Teachers/Educators, Administrators and PUSD IT should have a toll-free number where they can reach technical support on-demand for issues they encounter.

· Support should be available 24/7 to students, teachers, administrators, and IT personnel through key strokes or help buttons that offer solutions and information

· One-on-one – Subscription should include one-on-one technical help from either phone, email, or live web chat.

· Platform support must be included

· Access for Teachers/Educators and Administrator logins should be included.

Platform: Web-based, comprehensive digital curriculum that satisfies South Carolina academic standards and enables students ages 17 and older of diverse academic abilities (grades 9-12) and experiences to earn units toward completion of a high school diploma, adult basic education certificate, career and technical education requirements, high school diploma equivalency, and test preparation.

Training: Online training via recorded videos, webinars, knowledge-base, or other resources for the life of the subscription should be included. Initial introductory training for teachers should be included with the platform.

· Professional Development – The platform should include initial Professional Development training, via webinar platform or live session.

· Knowledge base – Training should include instructor access to online knowledge base.

· Platform should include web-based online training including recorded video sessions, and/or live webinars available 24/7 to users.

Technical Requirements:

· All websites are whitelisted through a firewall (SonicWall) and the vendor must be willing to provide an exhaustive list of links and IP’s required to run the platform for them to be whitelisted;

· The vendor must also be willing to provide – in the bid - a list of any ports which must be open in order for IT Security to vet the ports and assure they can be used.

· Platform must offer appealing interface that offers both visual and auditory components to satisfy diverse learning styles and interests.

· Platform and content must incorporate learning theory, adult learning theory, best practices and evidence-based approaches to integrating technology into learning

· Platform must provide help and information access on every content screen to ensure effective support to users

· Platform must provide monitoring tools to assist instructors with assessing student progress, identifying needs for additional support or intervention, and progress toward mastery of standards

· Platform must include frequent checks for understanding and mastery.

Platform Content Requirements:

· Content must offer a South Carolina comprehensive digital curriculum, aligned to South Carolina academic standards and approved by the South Carolina State Board of Education, that can be offered securely to an incarcerated population (ages 17 and older) and that provides rigorous content, differentiated, personalized instruction, targeted remediation, scaffolded support, assessment, and course progress tracking by student, teacher, and administrator.

· Course catalog should be complete and available, and available courses must include foreign languages, CTE courses, and TABE test preparation.

· Platform and content must incorporate learning theory, adult learning theory, best practices and evidence-based approaches to integrating technology into learning

· Content must align with grade-level curriculum requirements of the State of South Carolina Academic standards. These standards can be found at https://ed.sc.gov/instruction/standards-learning/.

· The curriculum must serve grades 9-12 and adult education, and offer career and technical education, test preparation and practice, tutorials, and online assistance for a broad array of courses. (Completion of a course of study must be the equivalent of completing and earning Carnegie Unit (120 hours of instruction) toward graduation and attainment of a high school diploma.)

· Integrated tutorials and supports must provide an array of interventions and support and must serve students with special needs, struggling learners or those who have been out of school for some period of time, students with differing levels of literacy and numeracy, struggling readers (less than 8th grade reading ability), and advanced learners (and Gifted and Talented).

· Instructional assistance embedded in the platform should include checks for understanding, calibrated scaffolded instruction with targeted adaptive remediation, chunked/sequenced instruction, active learning opportunities, and integrated assessments

· Digital curriculum provides computer-delivered, individualized instruction that can be integrated into traditional instruction or delivered as stand-alone course in a variety of content, career exploration, and life skills courses in subjects that enables students to progress at their own pace and that offers additional supports and tutorials to students as needed.

Differentiated Instruction

· Platform should include differentiated instruction tailoring educational needs for individual students.

· Platform should include flexible, individualized instruction that respects and delivers instruction at appropriate levels to students with special needs, struggling learners or those who have been out of school for some period of time, students with differing levels of literacy and numeracy, students with less than 8th grade competencies), and advanced learners (and Gifted and Talented).

Student Confidence & Motivation

· Platform should contain embedded strategies designed to keep students motivated and engaged.

· Platform should also contain visual and audio learning tools to engage students effectively.

· Platform should chunk curriculum to ensure

· Platform should Use chunking and sequencing to apportion content so that students remain engaged and confident in their ability to learn the material

Tiered Intervention

· Platform should offer a range of strategies to support, reinforce, and practice learning for students who are struggling to master content in an area.

· Strategies should include adaptive remediation techniques,

· Course content should be deliverable and incorporate reading materials at differing levels of text complexity and growth of comprehension, and include foundational, skills, and reading literature and informational text.

· Strategies should include frequent checks for understanding and practice opportunities

· Strategies should include scaffolded instructional units

· Strategies should serve students with special needs, struggling learners or those who have been out of school for some period of time, struggling readers (less than 8th grade reading ability), and advanced learners (and Gifted and Talented).

Practice & Assessment

· Platform should include strategies and tools that allow students to practice and apply (in different formats and contexts) newly attained skills and content understanding.

· Frequent checks for understanding should be integrated into the content and course delivery so that student progress can be promptly monitored and addressed if needed.

· Assessments should indicate to the student inmate and to the teacher and administrator progress toward content mastery of South Carolina academic standards or industry standards as appropriate.

· The platform should also include measurement assessments for students allowing teaching to measure and track learning gains.

Student Assessment & Reporting

· Platform should offer assessment reporting that allows teachers and students to monitor progress and track student learning gains.

· Platform should offer a “grade book” for teachers and for reporting purposes

· Platform should offer reports that can identify individual, course section, and collective mastery of standards, areas for intervention, and course completion rates.

· Assessments and Reports should be available in flexible formats for download.

Should you have concerns with this intent to award Apex Learning please send your responses via e-mail to SC Department of Corrections.

RESPONSE PERIOD ENDS AND MUST BE SUBMITTED BY (Opening Date/Time): 07/07/2022 @ 10:00:00a.m.

The Award becomes effective after opening / date and time if no responses are received purchasing@doc.sc.gov - subject line SOLE SOURCE SC Department of Corrections -Attn: Elizabeth McWhorter – Sole Source Purchasing Department -4530 Broad River Road -Columbia, SC 29210

This notice will be posted in the South Carolina Business Opportunities (SCBO) for at least (10) business days as required by SC Code 11-35-1560.

PROTESTS:

If you are aggrieved in connection with the intended award or award of the contract, you may be entitled to protest, but only as provided in Section 11-35-4210. To protest an award, you must (i) submit notice of your intent to protest within (5) business days of the date this notice is posted, and (ii) submit your actual protest within fifteen days of the date this notice is posted. Days are calculated as provided in Section 11-35-310(13). Both protests and notices of intent to protest must be in writing and must be received by the appropriate Chief Procurement Officer within the time provided. The grounds of the protest and the relief requested must be set forth with enough particularity to give notice of the issues to be decided. Any protest or notice of intent to protest must be addressed to the Chief Procurement Officer and submitted in writing.

Chief Procurement Officer -Materials Management Office 1201 Main Street, Suite 600 -Columbia, SC 29201 Facsimile: 803-737-0639 E-mail: protest-mmo@mmo.state.sc.us

All (3) pages of this Intent to Award Sole Source must be submitted with all required information entered on the front (2) pages. You must also provide documentation that you are authorized to perform all aspects of the content required.

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