Department of the Air Force: Justification for Other Than Full and Open Competition

This document is a Department of the Air Force justification for awarding a contract on a sole source basis under 10 U.S.C. 3204(a)(1), which permits acquisitions when only one responsible source exists and no other supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements.

Contract Award Details: The 772 Enterprise Sourcing Squadron (AFMC) intends to award a contract to Cengage Learning, Inc. (CAGE: 72B3G/GVF9XNR1HF79) for an online kindergarten readiness curriculum under the Miss Humblebee's Academy platform. The contract supports the Department of Defense Libraries' Military Morale, Welfare, and Recreation Programs. The base period runs from September 30, 2026 to September 29, 2027, with three optional 12-month periods through September 29, 2030. The acquisition dollar value is less than $10M and is classified as an Individual basis justification. The curriculum includes hundreds of guided lessons with sound and visual cues across Art, Language & Literacy, Math, Music, and Science & Social Studies, complemented by weekly progress reports and proficiency assessments, a mobile application, account administration features, industry-standard authentication for multi-branch library access, and TLS 1.3 security with RSA 2048-bit certificates.

Rationale for Sole Source: Cengage Learning, Inc. is identified as the only responsible source capable of fulfilling this requirement. Market research and a Sources Sought Notice (July 16–28, 2026) confirmed that only Cengage Learning possesses authorized access to Miss Humblebee's Academy's proprietary curriculum through the Cengage platform. While two vendors responded to the solicitation, only Cengage demonstrated the ability to provide the required curriculum and compatibility with existing Department of Defense Libraries' Cengage Learning platform infrastructure. The remaining respondent proposed an alternative kindergarten program but could not verify proprietary curriculum access or platform compatibility, rendering competition infeasible.