RFP_33201-04526_Amendment_2.pdf

This is Amendment 2 to a Request for Proposals (RFP #33201-04526) issued by the Tennessee Higher Education Commission (THEC) on March 20, 2026, for the design, development, implementation, and ongoing maintenance of a comprehensive Articulation and Transfer Statewide System. The amendment updates the RFP schedule of events with revised dates for key milestones. The Notice of Intent to Respond deadline is March 27, 2026, at 2:00 p.m. central time, with written questions and comments due by April 3, 2026, at 2:00 p.m. The state will respond to written questions and comments by April 27, 2026. The proposal response deadline is May 4, 2026, at 2:00 p.m. central time. Product demonstrations are scheduled for May 18-20, 2026, followed by state completion of technical response evaluations by May 11, 2026, and opening and scoring of cost proposals on May 21, 2026. Optional negotiations are scheduled for May 26-28, 2026. The state will release a Notice of Intent to Award on May 29, 2026, with the protest period ending June 5, 2026, at 4:30 p.m. The contractor signature deadline for the contract is June 11, 2026, at 2:00 p.m. central time. The contract term is five years (60 months) with a warranty period equal to or greater than the contract duration.

The amendment confirms that all other terms and conditions of the original RFP remain in full force and effect. The RFP does not specify set-aside designations, incumbent vendors, or a disclosed budget range. The cost proposal must include separate line items for implementation, training, annual hosting costs, annual license fees, annual system maintenance, and annual client support services. Evaluation criteria include general qualifications and experience (10 points maximum), technical qualifications and approach (70 points maximum), product demonstrations (10 points maximum), and cost proposal (10 points maximum). The contractor must maintain cyber liability insurance of $3 million per occurrence and $5 million annual aggregate and will serve 54 anticipated institutions at go-live, including 24 technical colleges, 13 community colleges, 6 locally governed institutions, and 11 public four-year universities.