RFP_33201-04526_Amendment%20_1.pdf

This amendment to Request for Proposals #33201-04526 issued by the Tennessee Higher Education Commission updates the schedule of events for the procurement of an Articulation and Transfer Statewide System. The RFP, originally issued on March 20, 2026, solicits design, development, implementation, and ongoing maintenance of a comprehensive online platform to evaluate and translate prior learning into academic credit across Tennessee's public colleges and universities. The system must support credit by examination, prior learning assessment, military training recognition, reverse transfer, and degree audits while providing accessible information to students regarding credit eligibility. The amended schedule establishes the following key dates: Disability Accommodation Request Deadline of March 25, 2026; Notice of Intent to Respond Deadline of March 27, 2026; Written Questions and Comments Deadline of April 3, 2026; State Response to Questions by April 17, 2026; Response Deadline of May 1, 2026 at 2:00 p.m. central time; Technical Response Evaluations completion by May 11, 2026; Product Demonstrations on May 18-20, 2026; Cost Proposal Opening and Scoring on May 21, 2026; optional negotiations on May 26-28, 2026; Notice of Intent to Award on May 29, 2026; protest period ending June 5, 2026 at 4:30 p.m.; contract submission to contractor on June 9, 2026; and contractor signature deadline of June 11, 2026 at 2:00 p.m. central time. The contract term is five years (60 months) with warranty requirements equal to or greater than the contract duration.

Evaluation of proposals will be based on general qualifications and experience (10 points maximum), technical qualifications, experience and approach (70 points maximum), product demonstrations (10 points maximum), and cost proposal (10 points maximum). Cost proposals must include separate line items for implementation, training, annual hosting costs, annual license fees, annual system maintenance, and annual client support services across the full contract period. The RFP contains no set-aside designations or restrictions limiting eligible respondents and identifies no incumbent vendors. Contractors must maintain cyber liability insurance of $3 million per occurrence and $5 million annual aggregate. No specific budget range or award value is disclosed in the solicitation materials, and the state retains the right to terminate the contract for convenience with 30 days' notice. The state will not reimburse travel expenses or proposal preparation costs, and contract performance is subject to fund availability.