Foster Care Awareness Campaign PWS 3.1.2024.pdf

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH & HUMAN SERVICES

Administration for Children Families

GOVERNMENT CONTRACTING SERVICES

PERFORMANCE WORK STATEMENT (PWS)

ORR Foster Family Awareness, Education and Recruitment Campaign

03/01/2024

1.0 General

1.1 Introduction

The Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) is seeking a contractor to develop a foster family awareness and recruitment campaign in five (5) targeted communities to identify and build relationships with local ethnic community groups. The contractor will identify and partner with local ethic community groups in each of the targeted communities and host awareness, education, and recruitment events for interested new foster families and bi-lingual/bi-cultural families about becoming foster families for ORR unaccompanied children.

1.2 Objective

The purpose of this contract is to secure a community development focused organization to develop a foster family awareness campaign for the following objectives:

Objective One:

Develop foster care Awareness and recruitment campaigns in five target communities by identifying local ethnic community groups, and partner to host well-attended outreach, awareness, education and recruitment events and activities to raise awareness about ORR and a need for foster families and bi-lingual/bi-cultural foster families for unaccompanied children.

Objective Two:

Identify local resources in each of the local target communities available to support foster parenting and develop tool kits catered to the dynamics of each target community to educate and train interested foster families about the ORR and being a foster family for unaccompanied children;

and assisting interested foster families through the application process and preparing to be a foster family for ORR.

Objective Three:

Increase the number of new foster families, including bi-lingual/bi-cultural foster families, trained and approved to serve as foster families for ORR unaccompanied children in each of the five target communities by a minimum of 100 new approved foster families (per period of performance).

1.3 Scope of Work

When children enter the United States unaccompanied and are apprehended by federal agencies (usually by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) immigration officials) they are transferred to the care and custody of ORR. Children who enter the U.S.

unaccompanied have many inter-related reasons for undertaking the difficult journey of traveling to the United States. The age of these children, their separation from parents and relatives, and the hazardous journey they take make them especially vulnerable to human trafficking, exploitation, and abuse. ORR incorporates best child welfare principles when making placement, case management, clinical and release decisions for each individual child. Most children who are unaccompanied are cared for through a network of state licensed care provider organizations funded by ORR through cooperative agreements, with most care provider facilities located near areas where immigration officials apprehend large numbers of immigrants entering the U.S.

The ORR UC Program promptly places unaccompanied children into least restrictive settings that are in the best interest of each child’s unique and individual situations and needs. WITH

THAT, the least restrictive level of care for any child is in a community-based setting. ORR funds community-based transitional, long-term, and therapeutic foster care.

Community Based Care (Transitional; Long-term; and Therapeutic Foster Care):

This continuum of care includes basic and therapeutic foster family settings as well as supervised independent living group home settings for unaccompanied children (UC), which are funded and administered by ORR. It aims to place and support the most vulnerable children in ORR care most effectively. ORR gives priority for community-based care to tender age children, pregnant or parenting UC, and children with special needs, children who are projected to have an extended stay in ORR care or who have no identified sponsor, and children who are moving towards independent living or close to aging out of ORR care. Community-Based Care is a new program model which will eventually phase out the terms long-term foster care (LTFC) and transitional foster care (TFC) provided at 45 CFR § 411.5.

A child is a candidate for long term care when they are expected to have a protracted stay of four months or more in ORR custody because they do not have a viable sponsor and a legal service provider has identified the child or youth as potentially eligible for immigration relief, and the child is under the age of 17 and 6 months at the time of placement. ORR also considers a long-term care placement on a case-by-case basis for an unaccompanied child who will have a longer stay due to other circumstances. ORR considers other circumstances when making decisions for long-term community-based care including: the child’s age and mental, emotional, behavioral, https://gcc02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.law.cornell.edu%2Fcfr%2Ftext%2F45%2F411.5&data=05%7C01%7Cvalerie.pelskohout%40acf.hhs.gov%7Cddbbd071cd6340df0be908db5260f83c%7Cd58addea50534a808499ba4d944910df%7C0%7C0%7C638194348670313571%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=IYPwcb1SL1xIBZcXPIJ9cjQY6lvoF8gX5VDmKOYMOF4%3D&reserved=0 and physical health needs; child’s ability and commitment to live in a family and community-based setting; availability of an appropriate placement to meet the child’s needs.

This contract will be responsible for developing a community engaging approach to assist ORR with identifying and recruiting new foster families across five (5) target communities; to include strategies to identify and recruit new foster families that are also bi-lingual and bi-cultural as foster homes for children in ORR custody. This may include, but not limited to, language, culture, and traditions. The target communities include:

• Los Angeles, California

• Chicago, Illinois

• New York, New York

• Jersey City, New Jersey

• King County, Washington

1.4 Background

On March 1, 2003, Section 462 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002, transferred responsibilities for the care and placement of unaccompanied alien children from the

Commissioner of the Immigration and Naturalization Service to the Director of the ORR.

Since then, ORR has cared for more than 560,000 children, incorporating child welfare values as well as the principles and provisions established by the Flores Settlement Agreement in

1997, the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 and its reauthorization acts, the William

Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act (TVPRA) of 2005 and 2008.

Unaccompanied children apprehended by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) immigration officials are transferred to the care and custody of ORR. ORR promptly places unaccompanied children in the least restrictive setting that is in the best interest of the child, taking into consideration danger to self, danger to the community, and risk of flight. ORR takes into consideration the unique nature of each child’s situation and incorporates child welfare principles when making placement, clinical, case management, and release decisions that are in the best interest of the child. A major ORR objective is to improve the knowledge, skills and abilities of professionals working with unaccompanied children.

An unaccompanied child:

• Has no lawful immigration status in the United States

• Is under 18 years of age

• Has no parent or legal guardian in the United States or no parent or legal guardian in the United States is available to provide care and physical custody

Overview of Unaccompanied Children Program

ORR assumes the following responsibilities while caring for unaccompanied children entering the United States:

• Making and implementing placement decisions.

• Ensuring best interests of all unaccompanied children are considered in decisions related to care and custody.

• Providing home assessments for certain at-risk categories of unaccompanied children.

• Conducting follow-up services for certain categories of children.

• Overseeing the infrastructure and personnel of ORR-funded care provider facilities.

• Conducting on-site monitoring visits of ORR-funded care provider facilities and ensuring compliance with ORR national care standards.

• Collecting, analyzing, and reporting statistical information on unaccompanied children.

• Providing training to federal, state, and local officials who have substantive contact with unaccompanied children.

• Developing procedures for age determinations and conducting these determinations along with DHS.

• Granting specific consent for state court jurisdiction over children.

• Cooperating with the Department of Justice’s Executive Office for

Immigration Review to ensure that sponsors of unaccompanied children receive legal orientation presentations.

• Ensuring, to the greatest extent practicable, that all unaccompanied children in custody have access to legal representation or counsel.

• Releasing unaccompanied children to qualified sponsors and family members determined capable of providing for the child's physical and mental well-being.

• Collecting, analyzing, and reporting statistical information.

• Developing procedures for age determinations and conducting age determinations along with DHS.

• Granting specific consent for state court jurisdiction over children .

ORR helps unaccompanied children gain access to legal representation through the legal access contract that provides legal services in accordance with the Flores Settlement

Agreement, the TVPRA, and other associated legal documents. Through the legal services contract, children receive presentations about their rights and individualized legal screenings. The project also builds pro bono legal representation capacity. Many unaccompanied children meet conditions that make them eligible for legal relief to remain in the United States. They may qualify for:

• Asylum

• Special visas for children who have been abused, neglected, or abandoned by the parents or guardian

• Special visas for victims of severe forms of trafficking and other types of crime

• Adjustment of status for those who have a legal resident or citizen family member

Following apprehension by a federal agency (usually the DHS), unaccompanied children are transferred to the care and custody of ORR while awaiting immigration proceedings.

Unaccompanied children have many inter-related reasons for undertaking the difficult journey of traveling to the United States, which may include rejoining family already in the U.S., escaping violent communities or abusive family relationships in their home country, or finding work to support their families in home countries. The age of these unaccompanied children, their separation from parents and relatives, and the hazardous journey they take make them especially vulnerable to human trafficking, exploitation, and abuse. Most unaccompanied children are cared for through a network of state licensed

ORR-funded care providers, most of which are located close to areas where immigration officials apprehend large numbers of immigrants entering the U.S. These provider facilities are state licensed and must meet ORR requirements to ensure a high level of quality of care. Most of the care provider organizations currently operate under funding awarded through local cooperative agreements. In addition, ORR may place some unaccompanied children in individual out-of-network agreements, who partner with care provider organizations to provide services for unaccompanied children with special care demands. The Flores Settlement Agreement (FSA) requires ORR to provide certain services to unaccompanied children while they are in government custody. While in ORR custody, unaccompanied children are required to receive an array of services, including residential care and supervision, clothing, food, individual and group counseling, medical/mental health care, legal services, case management, education/English as a Second Language, recreation, vocational education, acculturation, and access to religious services. While most services are available on site, referrals to community-based providers are made when needed.

Services are provided by multilingual staff in a manner that is sensitive to the language and culture of the populations served. Service provision is tailored to each unaccompanied child to maximize opportunities for success both while in care, and upon discharge from the program.

1.5 Type of Purchase Order Contemplated

The government intends to award a firm-fixed contract.

1.6 Period of Performance

Base Period: June 1, 2024 – May 31, 2025

Option Period One: June 1, 2025 – May 31, 2026

Option Period Two: June 1, 2026 – May 31, 2027

Option Period Three: June 1, 2028 – May 31, 2029

1.7 Place of Performance

The work to be performed under this contract shall be performed from the contractor’s worksite and in local communities identified as:

• Los Angeles, California

• Chicago, Illinois

• New York, New York

• Jersey City, New Jersey

• King County, Washington

1.8 Recognized Holidays

The following provides information on recognized holidays for the purpose of the PWS. If submittal of any documentation (e.g., deliverables, submittals, etc.) deadlines fall on a holiday, the workday prior to the holiday shall apply as the deadline for submittal.

United States (US) Federal Holidays

The Contractor is not required to perform requirements of this PWS on Federal Holidays.

US Federal Holidays

New Year’s Day January 1st

Martin Luther King’s Birthday 3rd Monday in January

Presidents’ Day 3rd Monday in February

Memorial Day Last Monday in May

Juneteenth National Independence Day June 19th

Independence Day July 4th

Labor Day 1st Monday in September

Columbus Day 2nd Monday in October

Veterans Day November 11th

Thanksgiving Day 4th Thursday in November

Christmas Day December 25th

In addition to days designated as holidays, the Government observes the following days:

• Any other day designated by Federal Statute

• Any other day designated by Executive Order

• Presidential Inauguration Day

• Any other day designated by the President’s Proclamation

It is understood and agreed between the Government and the Contractor that observance of such days by Government personnel shall not otherwise be a reason for an additional period of performance, or entitlement of compensation except as set forth within the purchase order. If Government personnel are unavailable due to furlough or any other reason, the Contractor shall contact the CO or the COR to receive direction

2.0 Specific Requirements/Tasks

2.1 PARTICIPATE IN CONTRACT POST-AWARD ORIENTATION

The contractor shall participate in a post award orientation meeting that serves as an introduction between the contractor and federal personnel who shall be involved with the contractor’s administration of this purchase order and shall provide an opportunity to discuss technical, management, and security and reporting procedures. The post-award orientation meeting shall be held within five (5) business days after contract award. The post-award orientation meeting shall be for a full half-day and may be scheduled as virtual. The post-award orientation meeting shall provide time to review the contract tasks and deliverables together and discuss key issues impacting the successful launch of the base year of the contract. A list of subject matter items the contractor shall be prepared to discuss during the post-award orientation meeting include, but are not limited to:

• Overview of contract requirements.

• Contractor’s key personnel and any vacancies in key personnel positions.

• Target communities; and contractor’s approach to development of the awareness and recruitment campaign plans.

• Monthly invoice requirements.

2.1.1 POST-AWARD ORIENTATION MEETING REPORT

The Contractor shall submit a draft post-award orientation meeting report summarizing issues discussed, any resolutions or action items resulting from the meeting. The Contractor shall submit a draft post award orientation meeting report to the Contracting Officer Representative

(COR) and Federal Acquisition Lead (FAL) no later than (NLT) five (5) business days after the orientation meeting for review. The COR shall return the draft report to the contractor within three (3) government business days of receipt with any comments, questions, or requests for clarifications. The contractor shall fully address the government’s comments, questions, and requests for clarifications, and submit a final report to the COR and FAL NLT three (3) business days after receiving the draft report with government comments.

2.2 FOSTER FAMILY OUTREACH AND RECRUITMENT PLAN

The contractor shall develop a well-thought-out strategy and outreach plan for community awareness and education about ORR and the need for foster families, and bi-lingual/bi-cultural foster families for unaccompanied children in ORR custody. The plan shall also include , but not limited to, recruitment events and activities which support new interested foster families in the application and approval process to become a foster family for ORR. The plan must include locally designed strategy for identifying local ethnic community groups and organizations to partner with for awareness, education, and recruitment events and activities. The Foster Family

Outreach and Recruitment strategy must include a well-thought out tailored and impactful approach, by using proven public communication theories and marketing best practices, for reaching potentially new foster families. The strategy will include leveraging local partnerships;

and staying engage throughout the community education, awareness and recruitment events and activities with community and families. The outreach plan shall ensure that contact is maintained with all families who express interest in becoming a foster family for ORR, and that they are assisted throughout the entire application and approval process. Each to the five target communities should have locally designed plans tailored to knowledge and information specific to the local communities and obtained from local partnerships with ethnic community groups or organizations about their local communities. The contractor shall include communication deliverables such as community toolkits for potential families (in English, Spanish, + 1 third in each community), and content language for the ORR website and potential marketing materials like a radio script or videos). The approach shall describe plan to identify strong local ethnic community groups and partners and develop formal partnerships. Formal partnerships shall include descriptions of the partnership exchanges to host well-attended outreach, awareness, education and recruitment events and activities designed to raise awareness about ORR and a need for foster families, and bi-lingual/bi-cultural foster families for ORR unaccompanied children. The contractor shall also meet a set benchmark of 100 families (per period of performance) collectively across all the described target communities. The benchmark will be inclusive or outreach, education, following up on potential new foster family interest, and supporting the new parents/family through the state foster care licensing application and approval process in order to be successful.

2.3 OUTREACH AND RECRUITMENT EVENTS AND ACTIVITIES

The Contractor shall be responsible for planning and coordinating in partnership with local ethnic community groups and other relevant organizations at a minimum two local campaign events and activities per month in each of the five target communities. The local campaign events and activities shall be well documented and included in a monthly report to the

Contracting Officer Representative (COR) and assigned Federal Acquisition Lead at ORR.

General Outreach and Recruitment Events and Activities:

General outreach and recruitment events and activities are designed to cast a wide net in a local community and are effective for raising general awareness and education about a program or opportunity. The contractor shall dedicate no more than 15% of program resources to general outreach and recruitment. General outreach and recruitment events and activities are designed to capture a large audience of which there may be potential new foster parents/family households. Organized events or activities may target an industry and services likely to know or be able to share the campaign messages about fostering unaccompanied children. A general outreach and recruitment approach is helpful in reaching a wide variety of potential community groups or organizations that can assist with referring new eligible and interested foster parents/family households and can set the stage for planning of the more targeted events and activities. General recruitment efforts are designed to draw a large response from communities and play a role; however minimal efforts should be committed to general recruitment events and activities. Examples of general outreach, awareness, and recruitment events and activities include but are not limited to:

• Public Service Announcements (PSAs)

• Booths at relevant community events

• Advertising with hospitals, pediatric programs, local school parent organizations, and other mass marketing strategies.

Targeted Outreach and Recruitment Events and Activities:

Targeted outreach and recruitment is a data-driven strategy that requires the contractor to focus resources and efforts in areas that are most likely to yield results. The contractor shall identify local ethnic community groups and child welfare organizations in each of the target communities and build credibility and trust to support joint efforts for outreach and recruitment strategies seeking new foster parents/families. The contractor shall ensure cultural competence, both within agencies and individuals, and focus on community locations that are known to respond well to the need for foster homes.

The contractor shall ensure a minimum of twice monthly in-person targeted community events in each of the five target communities organized for prospective foster parents and families.

Targeted events hosted with contract funds shall ensure the contractor has sufficient time allotted during the event of undivided attention of attendees, and attendees will have open access to the contractor during the whole event to speak directly with the contractor staff and learn more about the opportunity to become a foster parent/family and about the process. The contractor shall dedicate 60% of outreach and recruitment contract resources to targeted recruitment events and activities and 25% on child-focused recruitment events and activities to reach a specific subset of families or communities that are best matched to care for unaccompanied children in need of long-term foster homes. Well-planned out and organized events and activities should capture all interested and eligible new foster parent/family households, as well as dedicate resources and focus on engaging bi-lingual and bi-cultural foster parent/family households. Examples of

Targeted outreach and recruitment events and activities include but are not limited to:

• Contractor or Contractor/Partner hosted event or activity with parents/families in attendance.

• Local community family nights or events designed or dedicated to parents, children, and families.

• Partnering with local ethnic community organizations to join an existing regularly scheduled event or activity with their member base; can include family and child community centers, faith-based organizations, sports programs, and other local organizations to reach a specific subset of families or community best matched to care for unaccompanied children and interest in becoming new foster parents/families.

2.4 KEY PERSONNEL

The following staff positions are identified as key personnel and the Contractor shall ensure that candidates filling key personnel positions are highly qualified and meet the minimum requirements and qualifications to include any subject matter or skill certifications for qualifications to perform the position responsibilities. The Contractor shall ensure the following key personnel job descriptions are contain in signed job descriptions for each key personnel position. Each job description shall include a section on essential functions as mandated by

American with Disabilities Act (ADA). If there is a change in a key personnel position listed below during the period of performance of this contract, the Contractor shall submit notification to the COR and assigned Federal Acquisition Lead (FAL) along with documentation of the credentials and qualifications for any new proposed candidates to fill positions for ORR’s concurrence.

Please Note: The following lists of essential duties are not intended to be all inclusive; there may be other duties that are essential to each position based on this requirement’s published

Objectives and Goals.

Director, Foster Family Awareness, Education and Recruitment Campaign

Leadership Role

• Responsible for the strategy to promote the ORR mission, UC program core beliefs and values, increase public awareness, and need for eligible households to apply to be foster families in their state.

• Goal: Engage households in five communities throughout the U.S., and members of community organizations in a dialog and educational process regarding foster family awareness, provide communication tools, outreach events, and other means to ultimately place children in ORR’s care in vetted culturally appropriate homes. Communication materials required to be developed will include, but not limited to:

• Community toolkits for each of the five target communities

• Radio PSA scripts - English and Spanish

• Website language content for ORR

• Will increase applications of eligible families applying to be state licensed households by five percent each year in each of the following cities: Los Angeles, Chicago, Jersey City, and New York, and for Unaccompanied Refugee Minors (URM) in the state of

Washington.

• Build and manage a team of three to help carry out the mission and program goals. This includes an Outreach and Marketing Specialist, Child Development Specialist, and a

Management and Data Analyst.

Duties

• Create strategies and action plans for collaborative partnerships and events with key community agencies and stakeholders. Work closely with identified stakeholders in each of the five communities to increase public awareness and applications from families to apply to be foster families for children in ORR care.

• Identify and work with community partners that will help build and foster lasting partnerships to promote the work and mission of ORR. This may include fostering relationships with community-based and faith-based organizations, local radio (Spanish and English), and other venues to get the word out about ORR.

• Conduct outreach presentations to various community groups and educational institutions throughout each city and gain interest from families to apply to be foster parents.

• Attend selected community fairs, career fairs, and other community events to communicate the mission and vision of ORR that are ideal for those interested in becoming a foster family.

• Develop an understanding of the diversity of each city’s landscape and its community organizations to enhance the agency’s understanding of community needs and barriers.

• Ensure close collaboration and coordination with external partners, informing them of the function and mission of ORR.

• Monitor the scheduling of outreach events performed by the team and the ORR public affairs division. Review materials prepared by the division for appropriateness about the

ORR mission and objective.

• Maintain accurate records and prepare reports related to community program activities.

• Maintenance of the public affairs databases of contacts and statistical outreach information.

• Supervise staff and prepare reports about outreach data and statistics to be disseminated to ORR leadership, ORR’s Communication team, and PO team for quarterly reports.

• Develop and implement a strategic plan for community outreach.

• Stay abreast of and advise agency management on relevant news and media coverage of state and community relations issues and report them to the ORR LEA.

• Delegate/coordinate administrative tasks at the direction of ORR’s LEA regarding matters relevant to community outreach. Participate in special projects and new initiatives of the agency.

Qualifications

• Graduation from an accredited college or university with a bachelor’s degree in

Marketing, Public Communications, Public Relations, or related field which focuses on increasing public awareness and action.

• A minimum 15 years of relevant full-time professional or administrative experience.

• Willingness to travel throughout the identified cities and states.

• A valid driver's license is required.

• Preference will be given to candidates possessing a master’s degree in Public Relations, Public Administration, Communications, Social Work, or a related field proven effective at carrying out the goals identified of increasing public awareness and interest in a mission, vision, and/or goal.

Preferred Skills

• Great public speaking skills.

• Excellent communication (written and oral) and interpersonal skills.

• Strong presentation skills.

• Ability to work in a team-oriented environment.

• Detail-oriented.

• Intermediate to Advanced computer skills in: Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Publisher, PowerPoint, and Excel).

• Excellent program development skills.

• Proficient in time management.

Outreach and Marketing Specialist

Duties

• Under direction of the Campaign Director, reach out to and collaborate with community leaders, faith-based organizations, and others to educate the community about the ORR role and need; and identify strong local ethic community groups interested in partnering with ORR on this initiative.

• Identify families, develop, and coordinate events for families interested in becoming foster families for ORR children, focusing on the biggest need in ORR care.

• Identify and monitor community events to participate in or create to increase awareness of ORR mission, foster family needs, and dissimilate communication toolkits, and offer resources to apply to be a state certified foster family.

• Develop and implement plans and goals for families, promote ORR, create, and maintain contact with potential parents/guardians to ensure awareness of children’s needs that are culturally and linguistically appropriate for children in ORR care.

• Confer with families interested in becoming a foster family, respond to program referrals and create events as necessary; refer families to ORR Project Officer and state systems as appropriate, follow up with families and monitor application process to share data with staff analyst and director to assess progress.

• With team, create communication tools to assist with public awareness. This includes design and development of Foster Family Toolkits tailored to informing about local resources available to foster families in their local communities, public service announcements (PSA) via radio, tv or other identified sources, and a contractor website with content for each local community to educate about the Foster Family Awareness and

Recruitment Campaign and provide information about who to contact and where to find out more about ORR. This could also include other communication and marketing materials appropriate for target audiences to families and community resources to promote awareness, need, and notify director of assessment and progress.

• Initiate/receive phone calls and emails; respond to inquiries and provide information concerning potential household applicants and refer to ORR’s subject matter experts.

• Travel, plan, and organize community awareness events in each of the cities (Los

Angeles, Chicago, New York, Jersey City) as needed.

• Translate a variety of documents and provide interpretation for events, in English, Spanish, and a third language of each targeted city for children.

• Perform other related duties as assigned.

• Participate in special projects and new initiatives of the agency.

Qualifications

• Sufficient experience, training and/or education to demonstrate the knowledge and abilities listed above. Prefer but not required a bachelor's degree with coursework in liberal arts, sociology, psychology, or related field and two years of experience in social services or working with at risk children.

• Experience assessing, working, and collaborating with community and family groups related to the behavior and effects of social/economic impact on foster children and families.

• Working with diverse academic, socioeconomic, cultural, disability, and ethnic backgrounds of children.

• Experience working with community and organizational resources, services, and programs serving at-risk children/students.

• Develop and implement organizational operations, policies, and objectives.

• Awareness of foster family laws, codes, regulations, policies, and procedures.

• Interpersonal skills using tact, patience, and courtesy.

• 100% Spanish bilingual (Written, spoken, and cultural awareness of target community)

• Oral and written communication skills.

• Public relations techniques.

Family and Adolescent Specialist (Focus on Foster Care)

Duties

a. Understand the needs of children in ORR care for foster families. This includes, a complete initial and ongoing assessments of needs of the child and family, includes the biopsychosocial, developmental, and emotional areas of functioning and culturally appropriate homes.

b. Experience identifying and monitoring prospective foster family households.

c. Advocate for ORR children and potential families and know how each state system works for foster parent licensing/certification and challenges that need to be addressed.

(i.e., educational, legal, medical, mental health systems, etc.)

d. Ability to understand and explain crisis intervention services, when and why they are needed, and challenges as they arise.

e. Assess potential foster families ideal for ORR children, including protective factors, cultural needs, family strengths, at-risk stressors, and tools to help both the family and child for a successful foster home match.

f. Provide awareness of foster children and offer written family building activities to households to improve and increase family functioning success and help potential homes be aware of child’s needs.

g. Review public records and state systems for any documentation which may hinder potential state foster parent licensing/certification.

h. Provide guidance using child welfare best practices and reasonable and prudent parenting standards.

i. Participate in special projects and new initiatives of the agency.

Qualifications

a. Master’s degree from an accredited program of Social Work, Counseling, or Psychology or a bachelor’s degree from an accredited program of Social Work, Counseling, or

Psychology.

b. Three – Five years of related experience in working with ORR population, target audiences, and state foster parent licensing/certification eligibility requirements.

c. Awareness of family dynamics that include the impact of trauma, mental illness; poverty;

grief and loss; and acculturation dynamics and assimilation.

2.5 PARTICIPATE IN QUALITY ASSURANCE MEETINGS

The Contractor shall participate in regular communication the FAL’s via email correspondence, Teams chat, phone calls, zoom or other video conferencing regarding status of work; and to provide a regular schedule of briefings on progress of the Foster Care Awareness and

Recruitment Campaign. In addition, the Contractor shall meet monthly with the COR to discuss any contract issues, or more frequently as issues or concerns with the purchase order might arise.

These meetings shall contribute to satisfactory delivery of the contract requirements and to mitigate any challenges or concerns early to avoid negative impact of contract deliverables.

2.6 COMMUNICATION, RECORD MANAGEMENT & RETENTION

The Contractor shall ensure a system for communication with COR and Federal Acquisition

Lead (FAL) and for management and retention of all records, data, and information related to carrying out work of the foster care awareness, education, and requirement campaign . Further, all official communication, records, and minutes from official meetings, campaign brochures, flyers, event invitations, sign-in sheets and records, as well as copies of all partnership agreements with local ethnic community groups or organizations shall be maintained and included in standing reports and as part of final annual reports to the Government for each period of performance funded. There must be established administrative and physical controls to prevent unauthorized access to both electronic and paper records related to assisting interested foster care parents and families with their application and approval process and for submitting files of approved new foster families to the ORR federal point of contract. All records related to the work under this requirement shall not be shared with any unauthorized ORR personnel or staff and shall not be shared with any entity outside of ORR, including any draft work written or notes from conference calls or meetings.

2.7 SUBMIT PROBLEM NOTIFICATION REPORTS

The contractor shall notify the COR and the assigned Federal Field Specialists of any problems, or potential problems pertaining to any of the requirements of the PWS immediately or one (1) calendar day of the problem being identified. Notifications shall include at a minimum a description of the problem or pending problem with deliverables, status of services, and include plans or recommendation for resolution. Notification reports shall include any issues related to conducting the audit or working with federal staff on change management, including changes in key personnel assignments identified in the PWS or issues.

2.8 ADVANCED TRAVEL REQUESTS

This requirement does require routine travel to participate and monitor local campaign events and activities in the six target communities. In these instances, the contractor shall submit in advance to the COR a request for travel at least fifteen (15) government business days in advance of planned travel. The request shall include the name and associated labor category of the traveler, the purpose of travel, location, and anticipated travel expenses (airfare, transportation, meals & incidental expenses, hotels, and other expenses) for each travel event. All long-distance travel must be approved by the COR prior to performance. There shall not be any cause for emergency travel situations with requirements of this contract.

2.9 ANNUAL REPORT

The contractor shall provide an Annual Report to the CO, COR and FAL that describes the activities and accomplishments that occurred during the 12-month project year and submit the annual report within 30 business days prior to the of the 12-month base period of performance and each 12-month option period of performance thereafter.

3 GENERAL INFORMATION

3.9 Hours of Operation

The Contractor is responsible for conducting business, between the hours of 8:00 AM to 5:00

PM Eastern Time (ET) except Federal holidays or when the Government facility is closed due to local or national emergencies, administrative closings, or similar Government directed facility closings. Further, contractor staff shall be available when hosting foster family awareness, educational and recruitment, events and activities in the evening and on weekends whenever scheduled to accommodate maximum attendance and participation by potential new foster parents and families interested in learning about fostering ORR unaccompanied children.

3.10 Federal Acquisition Lead (FAL)

A FAL will be identified and will work closely with the COR and serve as the federal subject matter expert on foster parent programming within the UC Program operations. The federal FAL will work closely with the COR to ensure performance under this contract.

3.11 Organizational Conflict of Interest

The Contractor or any subcontractor personnel performing work under this contract may have current or subsequent Organizational Conflict of Interests (OCI) as defined in FAR Subpart 9.5.

The Contractor shall notify the Contracting Officer immediately whenever it becomes aware that such access or participation may result in any actual or potential OCI and shall promptly submit a plan to the Contracting Officer to avoid or mitigate any such OCI. The Contractor’s mitigation plan shall be determined to be acceptable solely at the discretion of the Contracting Officer and in the event the Contracting Officer unilaterally determines that any such OCI cannot be satisfactorily avoided or mitigated, the Contracting Officer may affect other remedies as they deem necessary, including prohibiting the contractor from participation in subsequent contracted requirements which may be affected by the OCI.

3.12 Contractor Travel

The Contractor shall be required to travel CONUS and within the National Capital Region

(NCR) during the performance of this purchase order to attend meetings as necessary for accomplishing tasks within this PWS. Contractor shall be authorized travel expenses consistent with the substantive provisions of the Joint Travel Regulation (JTR) and the limitation of funds specified in this purchase order.

3.13 Data Rights:

The Government has unlimited rights to all documents/material produced under this purchase order. All documents and materials, to include the source codes of any software, or produced under this purchase order shall be Government owned and are the property of the Government with all rights and privileges of ownership/copyright belonging exclusively to the Government.

These documents and materials may not be used or sold by the contractor without written permission from the Contracting Officer. All materials supplied to the Government shall be the sole property of the Government and may not be used for any other purpose. This right does not abrogate any other Government rights.

3.14 Security Requirements

Baseline Security Requirements Applicability. The requirements herein apply whether the entire purchase order or portion thereof, includes either or both of the following:

Access (Physical or Logical) to Government Information: A Contractor (and/or any subcontractor) employee will have or will be given the ability to have, routine physical (entry) or logical (electronic) access to government information as required to perform their work. Access is contingent upon positive adjudication of background check.

Operate a Federal System Containing Information: A Contractor (and/or any subcontractor) shall operate a federal system and information technology containing data that supports the ACF mission. In addition to the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) subpart 2.1 definition of

“information technology” (IT), the term as used in this section includes computers, ancillary equipment (including imaging peripherals, input, output, and storage devices necessary for security and surveillance), peripheral equipment designed to be controlled by the central processing unit of a computer, software, firmware and similar procedures, services (including support services), and related resources.

Safeguarding Information and Information Systems: IAW the Federal Inf ormation Processing

Standards Publication (FIPS) 199, Standards for Security Categorization of Federal Information and Information Systems, the Contractor (and/or any subcontractor) shall:

Protect government information and information systems in order to ensure:

a. Confidentiality, which means preserving authorized restrictions on access and disclosure, based on the security terms found in this purchase order, including means for protecting personal privacy and proprietary information.

b. Integrity, which means guarding against improper information modification or destruction, and ensuring information non-repudiation and authenticity; and

c. Availability, which means ensuring timely and reliable access to and use of information.

Provide security for any Contractor systems, and information contained therein, connected to an

HHS network, or operated by the Contractor on behalf of ACF regardless of location.

Adopt and implement the policies, procedures, controls, and standards required by the HHS

Information Security Program to ensure the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of government information and government information systems for which the Contractor is responsible under this purchase order to which the Contractor may otherwise have access under this purchase order.

Information Security Categorization. IAW FIPS 199 and National Institute of Standards and

Technology (NIST) Special Publication (SP) 800-60, Volume II: Appendices to Guide for

Mapping Types of Information and Information Systems to Security Categories, Appendix C, and based on information provided by the Information System Security Officer (ISSO), Chief

Information Security Officer (CISO), or other security representative, the risk level for each

Security Objective and the Overall Risk Level, which is the highest watermark of the three factors (Confidentiality, Integrity, and Availability) of the information or information system.

The Contractor shall work with the ACF security team to categorize information or information systems. The categorization can change at any time throughout the lifecycle of the system. The contractor shall ensure proper controls are implemented based on the categorization.

Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI). CUI is defined as “information that laws, regulations, or Government-wide policies require to have safeguarding or dissemination controls, excluding classified information.” The Contractor (and/or any subcontractor) shall comply with

Executive Order 13556, Controlled Unclassified Information, (implemented at 3 CFR, part 2002) when handling CUI. 32 C.F.R. 2002.4(aa) As implemented the term “handling” refers to “…any use of CUI, including marking, safeguarding, transporting, disseminating, re-using, and disposing of the information.” 81 Fed. Reg. 63323. All sensitive information that has been identified as CUI by a regulation or statute, handled by this solicitation/award, shall be:

a. marked appropriately

b. disclosed to authorized personnel on a Need-To-Know basis

c. protected IAW NIST SP 800-53, Security and Privacy Controls for Information Systems and

Organizations applicable baseline if handled by a contractor system operated on behalf of the agency, or NIST SP 800- 171, Protecting Controlled Unclassified Information in Nonfederal

Information Systems and Organizations if handled by internal Contractor system; and

d. returned to ACF control, destroyed when no longer needed, or held until otherwise directed.

Destruction of information and/or data shall be accomplished IAW NIST SP 800- 88, Guidelines for Media Sanitization.

Protection of Sensitive Information. For security purposes, information is or may be sensitive because it requires security to protect its confidentiality, integrity, and/or availability. The

Contractor (and/or any subcontractor) shall protect all government information that is or may be sensitive IAW OMB Memorandum M-06-16, Protection of Sensitive Agency Information by securing it with a FIPS 140-2 validated solution.

Confidentiality and Nondisclosure of Information. Any information provided to the Contractor

(and/or any subcontractor) by ACF or collected by the Contractor on behalf of ACF shall be used only for the purpose of carrying out the provisions of this purchase order and shall not be disclosed or made known in any manner to any persons except as may be necessary in the performance of the purchase order. The Contractor assumes responsibility for protection of the confidentiality of Government records and shall ensure that all work performed by its employees and subcontractors shall be under the supervision of the Contractor. Each Contractor employee or any of its subcontractors to whom any ACF records may be made available or disclosed shall be notified in writing by the Contractor that information disclosed to such employee or subcontractor can be used only for that purpose and to the extent authorized herein. The confidentiality, integrity, and availability of such information shall be protected IAW HHS and

ACF policies. Unauthorized disclosure of information shall be subject to the HHS/ACF sanction policies and/or governed by the following laws and regulations:

a. 18 U.S.C. 641 (Criminal Code: Public Money, Property or Records);

b. 18 U.S.C. 1905 (Criminal Code: Disclosure of Confidential Information);

c. 44 U.S.C. Chapter 35, Subchapter I (Paperwork Reduction Act).

Each Contractor (and/or any subcontractor) employee having access to non-public government information under this agreement shall complete the ACF non-disclosure agreement.

Internet Protocol Version 6 (IPv6). All procurements using Internet Protocol shall comply with

OMB Memorandum M-05-22, Transition Planning for Internet Protocol Version 6 (IPv6).

Websites and Digital Services. All new and existing public-facing government websites shall comply with the Integrated Digital Experience Act (IDEA).

Government Websites. All new and existing public-facing government websites shall be securely configured with Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure (HTTPS) using the most recent version of

Transport Layer Security (TLS). In addition, HTTPS shall enable HTTP Strict Transport

Security (HSTS) to instruct compliant browsers to always assume HTTPS to reduce the number of insecure redirects and protect against attacks that attempt to downgrade connections to plain

HTTP. For internal facing websites, the HTTPS is not required, but it is highly recommended.

Standard for Encryption.

The Contractor (and/or any subcontractor) shall:

a. Comply with the HHS…