Attachment_2._Previous_Writing_Services_RFP.pdf

RFP 14-16

National Endowment for the Arts

ATTACHMENT 2: Previous Writing Services RFP

6/26/2014

REQUEST FOR QUOTE (RFQ) 14-16

Writing Services

Creativity in the Brain Symposium

SECTION B

SUPPLIES/SERVICES AND PRICES

B.1 General

As part of its Strategic Plan for 2014-2018, the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) has pledged to promote public knowledge and understanding about the contributions of the arts. In support of this goal, the NEA is committed to providing the public with reliable information about the value and impact of the arts for individuals and society as a whole.

In recent years, creativity and neuroscience have emerged as two separate but sometimes overlapping research domains that hold promise for understanding the arts' value and impact. Scientific advances at the core of these domains--drawing from such diverse fields as cognitive psychology, neurology, and the science of learning--hold potential for greater public understanding of how creativity works in the brain.

Moreover, these discoveries are occurring at a time when public and private investments in neuroscientific research have reached new heights.

The NEA seeks a contractor to produce a report and executive summary, including appendices, of the

Santa Fe Institute Working Group: "The Nature of Creativity in the Brain." The NEA, in collaboration with the Santa Fe Institute, will hold a working group meeting on July 9-10, 2014, to explore research questions and opportunities that harness the collective insights of researchers and practitioners working across multiple disciplines and sectors.

The report will provide a detailed account of the background and purpose of the convening and its proceedings, including key themes, topics, strategies, and insights explored over the two-day event. It will offer conclusions and findings based on dialogues held in response to questions posed during the working group meeting. The report will be written to be understood by a general (non-technical) audience, but it will be aimed primarily at funders, policy-makers, and researchers active in creativity and/or neuroscience and cognate disciplines.

B.2 Period of Performance & Location

Period of performance: Date of Award through October 8, 2014

Location: Washington, D.C. / Sante Fe, NM

B.3 Pricing Schedule

All pricing should be firm-fixed pricing.

ITEM

No.

SUPPLIES OR SERVICES QTY UNIT UNIT PRICE AMOUNT

Writing Services*

*As described in this

Request For Proposal

1 Lot $ $

FIRM FIXED PRICE GRAND TOTAL*:

(Not To Exceed)

*NOTES*:

1) The National Endowment for the Arts is a federal agency and exempt from sales tax.

2) If necessary, please expand on/include additional pricing info.

3) Price shall be all-inclusive (of travel/overhead/etc.)

SECTION C

DESCRIPTION/SPECIFICATIONS/STATEMENT OF WORK

C.1 Introduction

At a time of heightened interest and investment in brain research, it is important that the study of creativity be positioned both to inform and to benefit from advances in neuroscientific exploration. This working group will evaluate the legacy of creativity research and look for ways to mine new knowledge at the intersections of cognitive psychology, neurobiology, neurotechnology, learning, and the arts. The group will ask how these synergies can fuel new research areas to transform how creativity in the brain can be understood, nurtured, and optimized.

Potential outcomes from the meeting include:

Synthesize and review emerging creativity-based theories that can inform public and private investigations taking place across multiple sectors.

Produce a brief report of the discussion summarizing the current state of this knowledge and the potential for it to be expanded via trans-disciplinary investigations that have potential to illuminate new research focus areas.

Encourage sustained trans-disciplinary creativity investigations among participants and others.

Share the summary with key stakeholders who are conducting similar ongoing investigations and make it available to the public via the NEA and SFI websites and other venues.

Please see attachment for Meeting Agenda and Discussion Topics.

C.2 Scope of Work

The contractor shall perform the below listed duties:

Attend a kick-off meeting with the event organizers at least 1 weeks before the working group meeting, in-person in Washington, DC, or by phone.

Conduct an informal review of research and literature pertaining to the symposium's topic, including publications and/or presentations referenced by the organizers and speakers before and during the working group meeting.

Participate in additional calls or meetings as needed to prepare for the meeting.

Attend the two-day meeting in Santa Fe, NM.

Produce a draft synthesized summary report of the day's proceedings, presentations, discussions, key topics, and recommendations.

The draft must:

Comply with NEA style guide;

Include an executive summary;

Range approximately 40 pages;

Be submitted in MS Word;

Include a conclusions and/or recommendations section, discussing how insights and resources shared during the meeting might advance future research in the arts, creativity, and neuroscience.

Include a bibliography or "Additional Resources" section, possibly as appendices, listing print and online materials highly relevant to the topics discussed.

The contractor shall submit a copy-edited draft summary report, executive summary, and appendices to NEA for review.

Perform fact-checking of direct quotes of symposium participants by coordinating with the NEA to contact those who are quoted for their approval; conduct additional research as requested for the report or appendices.

Incorporate edits received from the NEA and its partners.

Perform additional rounds of NEA review and editing pass-backs as requested.

Submit final report no later than October 8, 2014.

Note: Final draft must be Section 508 Compliant.

C.3 Detailed Specifications

Below is a list of the deliverables the Contractor shall deliver along with supporting details:

C.3.1 Within 2 weeks of the award, and at least 1 week before the Symposium: Attend kickoff meeting

C.3.2 July 9, 2014, 8:00am - 5:30pm: Attend symposium

July 10, 2014, 8:00am - 1:30pm: Attend symposium

C.3.3 August 7, 2014: Submit first draft report, executive summary, and appendices

C.3.4 August 7, 2014: Begin performing fact-checking of direct quotations in report, hold meetings or conference call if needed to discuss draft, perform additional research as requested

C.3.5 August 28, 2014: Receive feedback from NEA and working group participants on the first draft to incorporate, hold meeting or conference call if needed to discuss feedback. Incorporate feedback and any fact checking corrections in draft.

C.3.6 September 10, 2014: Submit second draft report, executive summary and appendices

C.3.7 September 24, 2014: Receive final edits from NEA to incorporate

C.3.8 October 8, 2014: Submit final report, executive summary, and appendices

SECTION F

DELIVERABLES

DELIVERY SCHEDULE:

The contractor shall adhere to this deliverables schedule.

DELIVERABLES DUE DATE

C.3.1

Kick off Meeting

Within 2 weeks of award

C.3.2

Attend Symposium

July 9-10, 2014

C.3.3

Submit first draft: report, executive summary, appendices

August 7, 2014

C.3.4

Perform fact-checking of direct quotations in report, hold meeting or conference call if needed to discuss draft, perform additional research as requested

August 7-28, 2014

C.3.5

Receive feedback from NEA and working group participants on first draft to incorporate, hold meeting or conference call if needed to discuss feedback / incorporate any fact-checking corrections

August 28, 2014

C.3.6

Submit second draft: report, executive summary, appendices

September 10, 2014

C.3.7

Receive final edits from NEA to incorporate

September 24, 2014

C.3.8

Submit final report, executive summary, and appendices

October 8, 2014

SECTION L

INSTRUCTIONS, CONDITIONS AND NOTICES TO OFFERORS

Contractors shall provide 2-3 examples of previous work included with their proposals.

Contractors shall provide phone and email contact info for coordinating possible interviews.

QUESTIONS & QUOTES:

All questions must be submitted no later than 12 PM EST, Monday, 30 June 2014 via email to Usmaan Chaudhry at chaudhryu@arts.gov. Faxed questions will not be accepted.

All proposals must be submitted no later than 5 PM EST, Tuesday, 1 July 2014 via email to

Usmaan Chaudhry at chaudhryu@arts.gov. Faxed proposals will not be accepted.

SECTION M

EVALUATION FACTORS FOR AWARD

The following evaluation factors shall be used to evaluate offers with the indicated weighting given to each respective factor:

1. Description of Personnel Qualifications and Work Samples (40%)

2. Work Plan (20%)

3. Overview of the Contractor’s Understanding of Project and Proposed Approach (20%)

4. Price (20%)

For each evaluation factor, a point scoring system will be used to rank all proposals, using a rating scale of 100%.

In order to select the winning offeror, NEA will rank offerors from best to worst by making paired comparisons, trading off the marginal differences in capability and price. If one offeror has both the better capability and the lower price, then that offeror will be the better value. If one offeror has the better capability and the higher price, then the technical evaluation panel will decide whether the marginal difference in capability is worth the marginal difference in price. If the technical evaluation panel considers the better capability to be worth the higher price, then the more capable, higher-priced offeror will be the better value. If not, then the less capable, lower-priced offeror will be the better value. If more than two proposals are received, the technical evaluation panel will continue to make paired comparisons until s/he decided which offeror represents the best value.

Below is an explanation for how each evaluation factor will be used to evaluate submitted proposals

1. Description of Personnel Qualifications and Work Samples (40%)

The proposal provides evidence of the specific qualifications and skills of the person(s) assigned to this project. Evidence of related assignments should be detailed, including: experience in producing highly readable summaries and/or analyses of meetings and/or other events to discuss research and policy; representing faithfully and artfully the different strands of thought articulated at workshops or symposia, to integrate them with empirical evidence, and to frame general conclusions and/or recommendations based on the questions or issues discussed; the ability to work with speakers and participants at such venues to fact-check and/or corroborate their statements and to follow up with any inquiries, as needed, to produce an accurate and absorbing account of the proceedings. The proposal provides 2-3 examples of previous work.

2. Work Plan (20%)

Proposal provides a detailed work plan that addresses the successful completion of the tasks enumerated above. The work plan describes how the tasks will be completed and provides examples of related work the contractor has previously created. A timeline showing proposed beginning and ending dates for each task is included, as well as the name(s) of the person(s) responsible for each task. The proposal clearly identifies key personnel and includes a table outlining the number of days by tasks for each of the key personnel. Plans and schedules to assure cooperation with the NEA staff are evident.

3. Overview of the Contractor’s Understanding of Project and Proposed Approach (20%)

Proposal demonstrates clear understanding of relevant studies and concepts in the fields of the arts, neuroscience, and creativity and/or cognate disciplines. Brief interviews may be conducted to determine suitability for meeting the project requirements.

4. Price (20%)

The proposed budget is appropriate to the administration of the project. The Government will evaluate the contractor’s proposed prices to make a determination that the costs are fair and reasonable in relation to the services provided. The contractor shall provide a reasonable breakdown of their costs to allow the Government to make an assessment of the various components of the overall price.

SECTION J

ATTACHMENTS

Attachment: Meeting Agenda & Discussion Topics.

END OF DOCUMENT