PHPA 3395 Pre-Applicaton Conference Minutes final.pdf

Pre-Application Conference Minutes

OPTIMIZING RAPE CRISIS CENTER SERVICES AND PROGRAMS TO PREVENT SEXUAL VIOLENCE

Solicitation Number: PHPA 3395/BPM054294

Date: December 4, 2025, at 10:00 AM

Vendor Attendance:

Maddy Lacure

Jean Henningsen

Anna Barton

Maryland Department of Health (MDH) Staff:

Jada Ledbetter, MDH

Augustus Woyah, MDH

Greetings/Virtual Rules – Augustus Woyah, MDH

Attendees were advised that the virtual conference was being recorded, and virtual conference rules were reviewed.

Greetings/Introductions – Augustus Woyah, Procurement Officer Augustus Woyah, Procurement Officer, facilitated opening remarks and introductions. MDH staff and attendees introduced themselves. All attendees were asked to sign in using the “Chat” feature within the virtual meeting.

Procurement Overview – Augustus Woyah, Procurement Officer, MDH

The Department intends to make five awards as a result of this RFA. The duration of services to be provided under this Agreement is from April 1, 2026, to January 31, 2026.

The breakdown of service duration and the budget cap:

April 1, 2026 to June 30, 2026 – Budget Cap is S18,150.00 per rape center

Year 2: July 1, 2026 – June 30, 2027 – Budget is $84,702 per reap center

Year 3: July 1, 2027 – June 30, 2028 – Budget is $84,702 per reap center

Year 4 (a partial year) July 1, 2028 – January 31, 2029 -Budget cap is $54,451

It is important to remember that in order to receive a grant award from the Maryland Department of Health, a vendor must be “registered” on the eMaryland Marketplace Advantage (eMMA). Registration is free. Please review Section 1.5 on page 4 of the RFA.

Carefully review Section 1.6 Questions on page 4 regarding how to submit questions subsequent to this Pre-Application Conference. Questions to the Procurement Officer, Augustus Woyah, shall be submitted through the email address listed on the RFA Key Information Summary Sheet.

Please identify the Solicitation Number and Title in the subject line.

Questions should be submitted no later than 2:00 PM EST on January 2, 2026.

The Procurement Officer, based on the availability of time to research and communicate an answer, will decide whether an answer can be given before the application due date. Given that, please try to submit any questions as soon as possible.

If the RFA is revised before the application due date, the Department shall provide an Addendum. Please be sure to check the eMMA website to acknowledge any addenda.

Carefully review Section 2- Mandatory Requirements, beginning with page 6 of the RFA. The Applicant must provide proof with its application that the following Mandatory Requirements have been met:

• The Applicant shall be a social organization as defined per Section 7-402 of the State Finance and Procurement Article of the Annotated Code of Maryland or a local, state government agency, public college, or state university.

• For social organization Applicants (not local, state government agency, public college, or state university), the Applicant must be a nonprofit organization, classified by the IRS as tax-exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Applications must include attachments of the following documentation from the applicant:

REQUIRED DOCUMENTATION: Documentation of the tax-exempt status of the Applicant (i.e., IRS tax-exempt status determination letter).

• The Applicant must be a Rape Crisis Program in Maryland that meets the requirements of

Maryland COMAR regulations under the Governor’s Office of Crime Prevention, Youth, and

Victim Services (see COMAR Chapter 01.04.02. Rape Crisis Program). The directory of programs that meet these regulations is maintained by the Maryland Coalition Against Sexual

Assault (MCASA). As proof of meeting this requirement, the Applicant shall submit a screenshot of their Rape Crisis Center listing on MCASA’s list of member programs.

https://mcasa.org/assets/files/MD-Rape-Crisis-DV-Crime-Vic-Srvcs-Program-Regs2019.pdf https://mcasa.org/survivors/find-a-rape-crisis-center https://mcasa.org/survivors/find-a-rape-crisis-center

POINTS EMPHASIZED:

A. This solicitation requests a Firm Fixed Price. There are several steps involved in this method, so your attention to the solicitation document is crucial to the successful submission of your application.

B. The Grantee’s Requirements: The Scope of Work is listed in Section 3.2, beginning on page 8. This outlines the responsibilities of the Applicant and provides a clear understanding of what the Department expects from the successful Applicant in the provision of services.

Participants were informed that representatives from the program staff would further discuss the Scope of Work during the meeting.

C. Proposal Format Applicants are required to submit their response to the RFA in two parts. Section 4- Application Format, beginning on page 16, clearly lists all submission requirements.

o Volume I – Project Narrative o Volume II – Budget Narrative

No pricing information is to be included in the Project Narrative (Volume 1) and the transmittal letter. Pricing information is to be included only in the Budget Narrative (Volume

II).

D. Section 5 (beginning on page 18) outlines the evaluation committee, evaluation criteria, and selection procedure. Your application will be evaluated by a committee organized for that purpose based on the criteria set forth in the RFA.

Section 5.2 (page 18) lists the project narrative evaluation criteria in descending order of importance, and Section 5.3 (page 18) lists the budget narrative evaluation criteria.

Section 5.4 (page 19) highlights the selection procedures. As noted, the Grant will be awarded according to the Standard Grant Agreement method outlined in the Announcement.

E. RFA Attachments are listed on page 20 with clear descriptions.

F. Other than composing your Project Narrative and Budget Narrative, the most important matter is to have your applications submitted by the date and time listed on the RFA.

Applications are due no later than January 9, 2026, at 2:00 PM EST Local Time and must be submitted to the State's e-procurement system, eMMA, or through the email address listed in Section 1.7 of the RFA. The email address is RFA.PHPA@maryland.gov.

No applications will be accepted after 2:00 PM

Overview of Grantee’s Requirements and Scope of Work – Jada Ledbetter. PowerPoint slides are attached to the minutes.

No Question was asked.

Questions and Answers

Question #1: Under 4.3 Volume I - Project Narrative, it lists Scope of Work/Work Plan in both

4.3.1.2 and 4.3.1.4. I was wondering which section you would prefer I address the scope of work requirements.

Answer#1: 4.3.1.3 references where the score of work requirements, which include the work plan, can be found in the RFA. And 4.3.1.4 outlined what is expected in the project narrative.