Technical Assistance Collaborative, Inc.pdf

Submitted by:

Technical Assistance Collaborative

15 Court Square, 11th Floor

Boston, MA 02108 July 27, 2026

Nebraska Olmstead Plan Evaluation (RFP 125999 O3)

Corporate Overview & Technical Response

Table of Contents

Corporate Overview Bidder Identification & Information Financial Statements Change of Ownership Office Location Relationships with the State TAC’s Employee Relations to State Contract Performance Summary of TAC’s Corporate Experience Summary of TAC’s Proposed Personnel/Management Approach Project Management Approach Proposed Personnel & Roles Subcontractors

Technical Response Understanding of the Project Requirements Project Description & Scope of Work Proposed Development Approach Technical Requirements Detailed Project Workplan Deliverables & Due Dates

Appendix A – Financial Statements & Required Forms Most recent audited financial statement Banking reference Certificate of Good Standing Signed Original Contractual Agreement Form II. Terms and Conditions III. Vendor Duties with noted exceptions IV. Payment

Appendix B – TAC Staff & Subcontractor Resumes

Appendix C – Work Examples

Technical Assistance Collaborative - Nebraska Olmstead Plan Evaluation (RFP 125999 O3) 3

Corporate Overview

Bidder Identification & Information

The Technical Assistance Collaborative, Inc. (TAC) is pleased to submit this proposal to the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) to provide a Nebraska Olmstead Plan Evaluation. TAC is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization who maintains its company headquarters at 15 Court Square, 11th Floor, Boston, Massachusetts 02108. TAC was incorporated to do business in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in 1992, and works nationally to provide policy leadership, technical assistance, and expert consultation to federal, state, and local government agencies, policymakers, advocates, and service providers in the homelessness, affordable housing, health care, and human services sectors.

Neither TAC’s company name nor form of organization has changed since it was first organized.

Financial Statements

TAC’s audited financial statements for the year end 06/30/2025 are included in Appendix A, along with the required bank reference. No such condition exists relating to judgments, pending or expected litigation, or other real or potential financial reversals that may materially affect the viability or stability of the organization.

Change of Ownership

No change of ownership or control of the company is anticipated during the twelve months following the due date of this solicitation response.

Office Location

TAC’s primary office is located at 15 Court Square, 11th Floor, Boston, Massachusetts 02108, and organized in a manner to support consulting staff who live and work remotely in states across the country. TAC consultants are equipped to provide onsite work anywhere in the country and have the technology to perform fully remote work.

Relationships with the State

Over the past ten years, TAC has had two contracts with DHHS, Division of Developmental Disabilities for the Nebraska Olmstead Plan. The first contract was in effect from July 2018 through March of 2019; however, the contract documents TAC retains do not indicate a contract number. TAC subsequently entered into a second contract (contract number 86151 O4) in May of 2019 to continue support with Nebraska’s Olmstead Plan, including assisting DHHS in the development of a process and infrastructure to implement the Plan. This contract concluded in April of 2022.

Technical Assistance Collaborative - Nebraska Olmstead Plan Evaluation (RFP 125999 O3) 4

TAC’s Employee Relations to State

No party named in TAC’s response to this solicitation is or was an employee of the State of

Nebraska (State) within the past twenty-four months. Furthermore, no employee of any agency of the State is employed by TAC or is a subcontractor to TAC as of the due date for submission of this response.

Contract Performance

Neither TAC nor any proposed subcontractor has had a contract terminated for default, convenience, non-performance, non-allocation of funds, or any other reason during the past ten years.

Summary of TAC’s Corporate Experience

As a leader in the development, implementation, and monitoring of Olmstead plans across the country, TAC is eager to support Nebraska DHHS with the evaluation of its Olmstead Plan and to provide technical assistance (TA) to DHHS and the Olmstead advisory committee in recommending updates and revisions to the plan. TAC has over 30 years of experience providing TA and expert consultation to states on community integration; Olmstead; Medicaid and community-based services; affordable and accessible supportive housing; and other best practices for individuals with disabilities and those who are homeless or at risk, living in institutions, or at risk of institutionalization. TAC is widely recognized by state and federal agencies, national associations, and advocates as a leader in planning, TA, and consultation on Olmstead and on Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

At the state level, government agencies (e.g., disability, Medicaid, housing) regularly engage TAC on disability and Olmstead policy, particularly related to Olmstead planning and the implementation and monitoring of settlement agreements. TAC has recently consulted on Olmstead planning or implementation in Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania, and has consulted on Olmstead in Nebraska, North Dakota, and Oregon in the past five years. Several consultants assigned to this project recently worked with Minnesota on its Olmstead Plan revision process, as well as with both North Carolina and Massachusetts on their Olmstead planning and implementation.

All of TAC’s Olmstead-related engagements have brought together state agencies and other stakeholders to facilitate planning, financing, design, implementation, and evaluation of progress and/or impact. The TAC team is experienced at evaluating Olmstead-related activities through quantitative and qualitative data collection and analyses and facilitating multi-agency and stakeholder processes, workgroups, and advisory structures to facilitate decision-making and generate recommendations and actions, including plan revisions.

Included in Figure 1 is a summary of TAC’s experience with three previous projects similar in size, scope, and complexity to the Scope of Work outlined in this solicitation. These projects showcase our work in states on Olmstead planning, implementation, and evaluation and reflect our strong ability, capacity, and skills to perform this work with Nebraska. Included

Technical Assistance Collaborative - Nebraska Olmstead Plan Evaluation (RFP 125999 O3) 5 for each project is a client reference and contact information (fax numbers were not available.)

Figure 1: TAC’s Experience with Similar Projects

Client & Contact Project Description & Time Period

Planned/Actual Completion & Budget

Aisha Elmquist

Minnesota Olmstead Implementation Office (formerly) aisha.elmquist@gmail.com

(612) 405-4153

Since May 2025, TAC has been the prime contractor with the Minnesota Department of Human Services, providing consultation on updates to the State’s Olmstead Plan. The contract consists of two primary tasks. The first was development of a best practices report on strategies and practices with demonstrated effectiveness in achieving equitable, positive outcomes that promote community integration in 8 topic areas: education; employment; health & health care; home and community-based services; housing;

positive supports; the prevention of abuse and neglect; and transportation. The second task involves the provision of subject matter expertise to teams of state agencies and Inclusion Consultants (individuals living with disabilities) as they co-created new Olmstead Plan goals.

The original contract was for $395,500 through July 2026. The contract was extended through September 2026 with an additional $60,000 added for an expanded scope of work that included in-person and virtual meeting facilitation & drafting & revision of DHS Olmstead plan goals.

Deb Goda

North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services deborah.goda@dhhs.nc.gov

(919) 855-4800

In October 2023, TAC was selected as the prime contractor to assist the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) with a 2024 Olmstead plan update, building on TAC’s earlier work assisting DHHS with developing and implementing its plan in 2020. TAC is currently supporting a more recent plan revision to be completed in August 2026.

The broad plan includes actions related to community integration across disabilities and supports, such as housing, employment, education, and transportation.

TAC identified and shared best practices with the state and stakeholder planning groups and organized and facilitated numerous stakeholder groups, including the disability community, to inform the Plan.

TAC is currently helping the state to routinely monitor progress on the state’s Olmstead goals and activities, and prepares and presents quarterly progress reports to the Olmstead Plan Stakeholder Advisory group. TAC also provides training to providers and managed care plan staff on Olmstead-related activities including best practice service delivery and monitoring under a separate contract.

As part of this Olmstead engagement, HSRI worked as a subcontractor to TAC to evaluate the extent to which the State was adhering to its Olmstead Settlement Agreement to provide services in the least restrictive setting appropriate to individuals’ needs.

The original year-long contract began in October 2023 in the amount of $122,405; it has twice since been annually renewed for $122,405 (for a total of $367,215.)

The current projected end date is October 2026.

mailto:aisha.elmquist@gmail.com mailto:deborah.goda@dhhs.nc.gov

Technical Assistance Collaborative - Nebraska Olmstead Plan Evaluation (RFP 125999 O3) 6

Client & Contact Project Description & Time Period

Planned/Actual Completion & Budget

HSRI analyzed claims/encounter data from Medicaid and state-funded services for individuals transitioning from adult care homes to independent living as part of the state’s Transitions to Community Living Initiative which resulted from the state’s Settlement Agreement, and later for the broader population of people with disabilities in the state.

Linn Torto

Massachusetts Executive Office of Health and Human Services

(617) 974-4366 linntorto@gmail.com

From October 2023 - December 2024, TAC was the prime contractor who completed support for Massachusetts’ Olmstead Plan update. The update built on TAC’s more extensive earlier work (2016 to 2018) updating the state’s 2008 Olmstead Plan. TAC worked with multiple state agencies to create a snapshot of the system as a baseline, identify system strengths and gaps, and prioritize areas to build or improve upon. At TAC’s suggestion, the state formed a Leadership Team of key state agencies representing housing, services, and Medicaid, as well as a broader cross-agency Planning Committee and an external Stakeholder Advisory Committee. TAC assisted the State in the development of an RFI to seek community feedback and to analyze the results. TAC also conducted two sets of public listening sessions, and key informant interviews with individuals receiving disability services. Based on the input received, TAC drafted an updated Olmstead Plan addressing the core components for the system to support community integration of people with disabilities. The draft underwent public review and TAC worked with the Leadership Team to incorporate feedback into the final updated Olmstead plan.

The original end contract end date was June 2024;

however, the state extended TAC’s contract by 6 months to allow for the addition of consumer stories, for which TAC conducted interviews & drafted case studies. This work concluded in December 2024.

The planned and total budget for the work was $157,000.

Summary of TAC’s Proposed Personnel/Management Approach

Project Management Approach TAC’s approach to the management of this project involves assigning an experienced Project Director who is supported by TAC’s organizational leadership and a strong, multidisciplinary team with the combined experience, knowledge, and skills to successfully perform all contract activities and deliverables.

Rebecca Boss will serve as the Project Director for this work. In this role, she will be the primary point of contact for DHHS and will be responsible for overall workplan execution, communication with DHHS, assignment of subject matter experts to perform contract-related tasks and activities, and for the development of all contract deliverables, in addition to serving as a subject matter expert (SME) on Olmstead and community integration for people with disabilities on the project.

mailto:linntorto@gmail.com

Technical Assistance Collaborative - Nebraska Olmstead Plan Evaluation (RFP 125999 O3) 7

For the purposes of this project, Ms. Boss will report to and take advisement from TAC’s Senior Director for Behavioral Health and Medicaid, Shawn Thiele Sacks. Ms. Thiele Sacks is a nationally recognized leader in community-integrated services and supports and in Medicaid and is a senior leader within the organization. In addition to playing an advisory/SME support role to Ms. Boss and the project team, Ms. Thiele Sacks will be accountable for final review of all contract deliverables, ensuring quality oversight, as well as on time and within budget completion.

TAC Senior Consultants Lisa Sloane and Laura Conrad will serve as project SMEs; Ms. Sloane brings her expertise in Olmstead plan development and key focus areas including the development and implementation of affordable, accessible housing across disability groups and transportation access issues, while Ms. Conrad brings extensive experience in Medicaid, behavioral health, child and family services, and education, and related policy and practice.

Other Key TAC staff include Senior Associate Megan Lee, who will lend her recent experience with Olmstead planning frameworks, facilitating stakeholder engagement and advisory groups, measuring and reporting on implementation progress, and community-integrated services and supports; and Amy Horton, who will provide project management and overall logistical support and SME to Ms. Boss and the team. Communications Director Sara Burke and Communications Designer & Accessibility Manager Jeff Nguyen will produce the communications plan and supporting material, as well as handling editing, production design, and ADA/508 compliance of contract deliverables.

We have also included a core group of key subcontractors/consultants, including HSRI who will lead data collection and evaluation plan activities and contribute their data analytic and disability-related expertise to the drafting of the evaluation plan report, Virginia Selleck who brings decades of experience supporting the integration of supported employment services into states’ Olmstead planning and implementation; and Kelly Nye-Lengerman who is an accomplished researcher, educator, and visionary leader with 25 years of experience driving disability inclusion initiatives through strategic planning, program development, research, and effective organizational management.

Ms. Boss will facilitate weekly internal meetings to ensure coordination across TAC and subcontractor staff on all contract tasks and activities. With the exception of Ms. Thiele Sacks, all project staff and subcontractors will report to Ms. Boss regarding work assigned and performed on this project.

Proposed Personnel & Roles The team assembled for this project includes TAC staff members and identified subcontracting partners who round out our team. Collectively, they are leading experts on community integration and Olmstead, with subject matter expertise in Olmstead planning, implementation and evaluation; best practices in the design, financing, and operation of affordable housing; community-based services, education, and employment programs, and other services and supports (e.g., transportation) that support integration; and ensuring service quality, accountability, and continuous systems improvement. Team members also have extensive experience working with state agency partners, advisory groups, and the disability community, with stakeholder engagement, and in direct services, government, and consulting, making us uniquely qualified for the complexities associated with this project.

Technical Assistance Collaborative - Nebraska Olmstead Plan Evaluation (RFP 125999 O3) 8

Brief bios outlining qualifications for key personnel assigned to the project are included below. The required three-page resumes with references are included in Appendix B.

TAC Staff Rebecca Boss, MA, Senior Consultant, will be TAC’s Project Director for this work and is a highly regarded leader of behavioral health care and developmental disabilities services with special expertise in addiction and recovery solutions. At TAC, she engages with federal, state, and philanthropic organizations to promote effective responses to the evolving needs of the behavioral health care system. She currently leads TAC’s Olmstead planning work in Minnesota, our efforts to evaluate North Carolina’s Olmstead plan progress, and our recent work with the state of Massachusetts to evaluate and update its Olmstead plan. Ms. Boss spent 15 years in state government, including as director of the Rhode Island Department of Behavioral Healthcare, Developmental Disabilities and Hospitals, where she oversaw the state’s publicly funded system for people with mental illness, substance use disorders, and developmental disabilities. Among her achievements was the expansion of employment opportunities and community integration for individuals with intellectual/developmental disabilities (I/DD) and successful compliance with the state’s related Consent Decree.

Wellness, recovery, and parity were consistent themes of her leadership as she advanced efforts to promote inclusion and to eliminate fear and discrimination directed toward individuals living with disabilities.

Ms. Boss’s career has been focused on promoting systems that support continued engagement with family and community for all individuals living with disabilities. In North Carolina, Ms.

Boss participates in quarterly Olmstead Plan Stakeholder Advisory meetings, a group of state staff and community members. During these meetings, she is regularly called upon to present the state’s progress on Olmstead goals. In Minnesota, Ms. Boss leads a project that includes development of an Olmstead best practices report, and provision of subject matter expertise to teams of state agencies and Inclusion Consultants (individuals living with disabilities) as they develop new Olmstead Plan goals. She also provides subject matter expertise for staff and Inclusion Consultants to both Minnesota’s Department of Human Services and the Department of Direct Care and Treatment.

Shawn Thiele Sacks, MSW, LCSW, is TAC’s Senior Director for behavioral health and

Medicaid and will have quality oversight responsibility for all contract deliverables and products, in addition to lending her expertise on community-integrated services and supports, and related financing and accountability mechanisms. Shawn has over

30 years of experience in behavioral health program development and service delivery, managed care, and government and Medicaid health care consulting, and is highly skilled at advancing and aligning clinical models, financing approaches, with evidence-based (i.e., ACT, Supported Employment – IPS) and promising (High-fidelity Wraparound) practices, and in strengthening quality management systems to ensure programs achieve intended outcomes for children, youth, and adults across public systems. Ms. Thiele Sacks provides TA and consulting to states and localities on Medicaid behavioral health transformation, including

Section 1115 waiver design, implementation, and performance oversight. Her expertise includes development of clinical practice guidelines, program evaluation, and continuous quality improvement grounded in data and outcomes. Prior to joining TAC, Shawn served as a Principal at Mercer, where

Technical Assistance Collaborative - Nebraska Olmstead Plan Evaluation (RFP 125999 O3) 9 she advised states on behavioral health system design, managed care implementation, and Medicaid policy compliance. She also held executive leadership roles at Magellan

Health Services, where she oversaw child and adult systems of care, spearheaded innovations in recovery-oriented and community-based models and supported

Medicaid-funded service expansions addressing complex populations and social determinants of health.

Lisa Sloane, MPA, is a TAC Senior Housing Consultant who has 40 years of experience working with federal, state, and local governments, as well as nonprofit agencies, to address the supportive housing needs of people with disabilities and of individuals and families experiencing homelessness. At TAC, she manages complex consulting projects for state agencies and collaborates with federal and nonprofit partners to develop and implement affordable and supportive housing programs for people with disabilities and people experiencing homelessness. Ms. Sloane recently contributed subject matter expertise for TAC’s Olmstead plan update work in Minnesota and Massachusetts related to best practices in affordable, accessible housing and transportation which she will similarly lend to this work in Nebraska. She has played a key role in the development of innovative cross-disability housing programs, including a housing locator system, a state housing bond fund, and a state home modification loan program. Ms. Sloane has worked extensively with state and local housing authorities and also has expertise in housing development programs, including the Low Income Housing Tax Credit program. Prior to joining TAC, Ms. Sloane was principal of Sloane Associates, a woman-owned business that provided affordable housing and human services consultation, specializing in the development of housing programs and policies for persons with disabilities, including those experiencing homelessness.

Laura Conrad, MSW, is a TAC Senior Medicaid Consultant and a behavioral health care leader with over 20 years of experience in government administration in child-serving systems including Medicaid and child welfare. She has experience in behavioral health policy and services design, development, and implementation, with extensive experience in Medicaid authority and financing, managed care, and contract and project management, as well as

Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnostic and Treatment (EPSDT) litigation. At TAC, Laura has supported state systems to align, finance, and implement community-based services with housing opportunities, and served as an education and child welfare system expert for the

Minnesota Olmstead plan update work. She will lend similar expertise on this project. Prior to joining TAC, Laura worked for MassHealth, serving as the interim court compliance officer for

Rosie D. v. Romney. Since joining TAC, she has worked on projects focused on designing, operationalizing, and implementing Medicaid Supportive Housing services. Her work also focuses on providing expertise at the state and federal levels identifying policy, programmatic, and financing strategies aimed at improving access to care for youth with behavioral health conditions including those with co-occurring autism.

Megan Lee, MA, LPC, Senior Associate, has nearly 15 years of experience working with federal, state, and local government; providers and community partners; and other stakeholders to address the needs of people with behavioral health conditions. Her work at TAC focuses on supporting state and local agencies to complete system assessments and subsequent implementation planning and execution; supporting states’ Olmstead planning and initiatives; and criminal justice and crisis interoperability and reform. Among other projects, Mrs. Lee has worked with Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania on their Olmstead planning and/or implementation efforts. Most recently she developed a

Technical Assistance Collaborative - Nebraska Olmstead Plan Evaluation (RFP 125999 O3) 10 comprehensive community engagement strategy for North Carolina as they embarked on the second revision to the state’s Olmstead Plan. In Minnesota, she provided meeting facilitation and expertise on range of best practices to the state’s Department of Human Services and Inclusion Consultants with disabilities. Ms. Lee will lend stakeholder engagement and facilitation support on this project, as well as expertise related to ensuring services quality and accountability and workforce support.

Prior to joining TAC, Mrs. Lee served in the Colorado Behavioral Health Administration, where she oversaw the development of a multimodal statewide behavioral health crisis system; her focus was on change management through landscape analysis, strategic planning, and TA and problem solving to promote innovation and adherence to evidence-based practices. She was involved in extensive engagement with providers, law enforcement leaders, people with lived experience, and other stakeholders to improve access to care across the state, including in rural and underserved areas. Mrs. Lee has previous experience in community-based settings in program development and management and delivering direct services to individuals and families experiencing serious mental illness; delivering trauma-informed care; addressing the social-economic needs of individuals and families; and promoting stability through meaningful engagement and intervention. Her experience also includes starting Colorado’s first coordinated specialty care team to address the needs of individuals experiencing their first episode of psychosis and provide support and education to their families and communities.

Amy Horton is a TAC Senior Associate who has over 14 years of experience managing TAC’s TA, training, evaluation, and consultative initiatives. Currently, she manages TAC’s Massachusetts Medicaid Children’s Behavioral Health Initiative TA, evaluation and quality improvement contract. She recently supported TAC’s Minnesota Olmstead work with project management and overall coordination of team logistical support and will similarly support the Project Director and team on this project. Ms. Horton is a highly skilled project manager with demonstrated experience in program evaluation, data collection, analysis and reporting, and Continuous Quality Improvement, including the Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) cycle method.

Sara Burke is TAC’s Communications Director and has over 25 years’ experience in nonprofit communications leadership, with specific expertise in the fields of public health, education, and social justice. She is well-versed in meeting the intersecting priorities of funders, constituents, and consumers, and is familiar with the specialized communications requirements of federal, state, and local agencies. Ms. Burke oversees TAC’s outreach and education projects; supervises the Communications Designer & Accessibility Manager;

manages social media accounts; oversees the organization’s website; maintains TAC’s relationship with related vendors; and edits reports, presentations, and a wide range of deliverables.

Jeff Nguyen, MA, is TAC’s Communications Designer & Accessibility Manager. Mr. Nguyen has a decade of experience helping people and institutions clearly communicate their visions by designing with the mission in mind. Through his zeal for language and problem-solving to scale, he collaborates with stakeholders to carry out design solutions that engage new audiences across the print and digital hypersphere while satisfying growing demands for maximal accessibility. Mr. Nguyen manages design, production, and accessibility remediation of TAC’s business-to-business deliverables for federal and state clients in accordance with Section 508 protocols. In addition to consolidating long-form proposals, reports, and data-

Technical Assistance Collaborative - Nebraska Olmstead Plan Evaluation (RFP 125999 O3) 11 rich infographics, he supports the Communications Director with internal publications, brand management, and digital strategy.

Subcontractors

Human Services Research Institute (HSRI) 2336 Massachusetts Ave, Cambridge, MA 02140

(617) 876-0426

HSRI will partner with TAC on this project, lending its evaluation and disability policy expertise, as well as its work with numerous federal agencies, all 50 states and more than 100 cities and counties across all fields of health and human services, including behavioral health, child and family welfare, housing and homelessness, population health, intellectual and developmental disabilities, and aging and physical disabilities. HSRI is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and long-standing TAC partner whose mission is to improve the systems that change lives. They achieve this by crafting community-based, person-driven service systems that rely on their unique model of collaborative, inclusive, and participatory research. HSRI researchers, data scientists, and policy analysts work with government agencies to improve public health services and systems. They will perform approximately 19% of the performance hours on this contract.

HSRI has experience on several projects that inform disability policy development, including its work with ACL and CMS on the National Center on Advancing Person-Centered Practices and Systems (NCAPPS), an initiative that helps states, Tribes, and Territories implement person-centered thinking, planning, and practice in line with U.S. Department of Health and Human Services policy. Through targeted TA, topic-specific learning collaboratives, monthly public webinars, and actionable resources, NCAPPS works to promote system change that makes person-centered principles not just an aspiration but a reality in the lives of people who use LTSS. NCAPPS priorities include promoting cross-system collaboration to promote whole-person supports, and engaging people with lived experience of systems in policy and system design efforts. NCAPPS produced a Person-Centered Practices Self-Assessment for Governmental Agencies That Oversee Human Services, which several states have used to establish baselines and track progress in systems change with HSRI’s support and TA.

HSRI Staff

Bevin Croft, MPP, PhD, is Director of Behavioral Health Research at HSRI and will support

TAC with evaluation plan activities and lend her 20 years of experience in the behavioral health field, with subject matter expertise in person-centered practices, peer-delivered services, quality improvement, and workforce development. She recently co-directed the

National Center on Advancing Person-Centered Practices and Systems (NCAPPS), funded by the Administration for Community Living (ACL), and conducts research on self-direction with a focus on how to adapt a model to meet the needs of individuals with behavioral health conditions. Bevin works closely with state and county behavioral health leadership to engage in rigorous systems analysis to support system transformation, with a focus on increasing the system’s capacity to understand and respond to the needs and preferences of people with lived experience. In all of these projects, Bevin has used qualitative research (e.g., focus groups, listening sessions) and quantitative research (e.g., claims data analysis, analysis of https://www.google.com/search?q=HSRI&rlz=1C1GCEU_enUS1094US1094&oq=HSRI&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUyBggAEEUYOTIGCAEQRRg7MhAIAhAuGK8BGMcBGIAEGI4FMgcIAxAAGIAEMgcIBBAAGIAEMgkIBRAAGAoYgAQyBggGEEUYPDIGCAcQRRg80gEIMTYyMGowajeoAgCwAgA&sourceid=chrome&source=chrome.ob&ie=UTF-8

Technical Assistance Collaborative - Nebraska Olmstead Plan Evaluation (RFP 125999 O3) 12 national datasets) to generate information to drive programmatic changes and support policy decision-making.

Rachael Gerber, MPH, is a data specialist and director of operations for HSRI’s behavioral health team, who will serve as a data analyst and subject matter expert on this project.

Rachael brings over 15 years of experience in the behavioral health field as a data analyst and mixed methods researcher. She has served as lead data analyst on projects funded by federal, state, and local agencies. She has led analysis of Medicaid claims data to examine service utilization patterns for state-level system assessments in New Hampshire, South Dakota, and

North Dakota, as well as for Olmstead-related projects in North Carolina and Louisiana. As lead analyst, she develops evaluation plans, data collection tools, and protocols; drafts and coordinates data requests; conducts and synthesizes quantitative and qualitative analyses;

and adapts data into visuals for reporting. In her role as director of operations for HSRI’s behavioral health team, she oversees standard operating procedures to ensure data quality control and the delivery of high-quality products.

Kristin Battis, MPH, is a data scientist at HSRI and will provide additional data analytic support on this project. Kristin has more than 18 years of research and data analysis experience supporting federal, state, and local health initiatives. She is skilled in collecting, managing, and analyzing quantitative data; conducting quality assurance activities;

performance reporting; and disseminating findings through written reports and data visualizations. She also has experience developing data collection protocols and tools and creating materials for training and TA. Kristin has 10 years of claims-based analytics experience with public and private health insurance data. She has served as a health data analyst for Maine and Colorado’s All Payer Claims Databases and for the Colorado Behavioral

Health Service Gap Analysis, the latter in which she examined demographics, behavioral and physical health diagnoses, service utilization (including telehealth), and provider network adequacy across counties and geographies. She analyzed Medicaid claims for Olmstead-related projects in North Carolina and Louisiana.

Virginia M. Selleck, PhD

2510 N Glencoe St., Denver, CO 80207

(612) 616-0666

Virginia Selleck, PhD, has worked in psychiatric rehabilitation for over 40 years and has experience in recovery systems reform, program development and implementation, funding issues, legislation, and policy. She has held leadership positions in state government in Minnesota and Missouri, and with community mental health providers in rural Illinois, urban Chicago, and St. Louis. She has extensive speaking, training, and consulting experience in a number of states about issues germane to psychiatric rehabilitation — employment in particular — and systems change. Dr. Selleck has provided consultation and subject matter expertise to states under the Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Programs. Her consulting work with TAC includes supporting the integration of supported employment services for the State of Washington under its Medicaid 1115 Demonstration Waiver, and for the State of Louisiana on a U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) settlement agreement target population with serious mental illness. Ms. Selleck served as lead author for the Employment Section of TAC’s Olmstead Best Practices Report for Minnesota and provided policy consultation to the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development and assigned Inclusion Consultants with disabilities. Virginia will serve as a subject matter

Technical Assistance Collaborative - Nebraska Olmstead Plan Evaluation (RFP 125999 O3) 13 expert on competitive, integrated employment and will perform approximately 3% of the performance hours on this contract.

Kelly Nye-Lengerman 2 Lancaster Street Dover NH 03820

(507) 319-2489

Kelly Nye-Lengerman, PhD, MSW, specializes in disability policy and services in employment and community living for people with disabilities. Her work is focused on building evidence to ensure public policies and systems work for people. Kelly’s work has focused on improving health and human service systems to advance whole person well-being, community participation, and economic mobility. This includes planning, design, and implementation of state and provider level actions to improve Medicaid Home and Community Based Services, as well as state level Olmstead Plan implementation. Kelly is skilled at navigating system, provider, and individual level nuances to collectively advance system improvement that enhance quality and compliance. Additionally, her expertise includes service development and delivery for transition-age youth with disabilities, individuals with Autism and Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, and those who experience mental health challenges and substance use disorder. She has provided thousands of hours of professional training and TA in person centered service delivery, family centered supports, disability system navigation, organizational transformation and competitive integrated employment. Kelly previously served as a Research Professor and director of the Institute on Disability at the University of New Hampshire and directed the Community Living and Employment area at the Institute on Community Integration at the University of Minnesota. She has a diverse publication record across a spectrum of human and social service topics and is national and international speaker on disability policy and service design. She will perform approximately 3% of the performance hours on this contract.

The total percentage of performance hours across all subcontractors is approximately 25%.

Technical Assistance Collaborative - Nebraska Olmstead Plan Evaluation (RFP 125999 O3) 14

Technical Response

Understanding of the Project Requirements

Project Description & Scope of Work

Project Background

TAC understands that the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), through the Division of Developmental Disabilities, seeks an experienced evaluation and technical assistance (TA) partner to assess implementation of Nebraska’s Olmstead Plan and support the State’s continued refinement of a practical, measurable, and stakeholder-informed roadmap for community integration. The RFP calls for a two-year services contract to conduct a Nebraska Olmstead Plan Evaluation, including evaluation of successes, identification of barriers, recommendations for plan revisions, TA to DHHS and the Olmstead

Advisory Committee, and development of communication materials to share findings with stakeholders.

This work is situated within Nebraska’s longstanding commitment to the principles of

Olmstead v. L.C. and the State’s vision that people with disabilities should be able to live, learn, work, and participate fully in community life in the most integrated settings appropriate to their needs and preferences. Nebraska’s updated SFY 2026–2031 Olmstead

Plan, Strengthening Pathways to Access, advances this vision through five focus areas—

Community Supports, Education, Employment, Housing, and Transportation—each with goals, activities, key partners, and data measures designed to strengthen access, accountability, and cross-system coordination.

TAC also understands that Nebraska’s Olmstead work is grounded in statutory requirements.

LB570 established the State’s obligation to develop a comprehensive strategic plan for providing services to qualified persons with disabilities in the most integrated community-based settings, consistent with Olmstead, and directed DHHS to collaborate with multiple state agencies, convene a stakeholder advisory committee, consult with an independent consultant as needed for continued analysis and revision, assess whether benchmarks, deadlines, and timeframes are in substantial compliance with the strategic plan, and submit reports and the completed plan electronically to the Legislature every three years (next due

December 2027).

TAC further understands that LB737 and AM2986 reinforce legislative oversight and public accountability by requiring the Health and Human Services Committee and Urban Affairs

Committee of the Legislature to hold an annual joint public hearing, on or before October 1, to assess progress of the Olmstead Plan during the previous calendar year in the areas of housing, employment, education, community supports, and transportation, and to consider potential legislative solutions, with findings reported electronically to the Clerk of the

Legislature by December 31. TAC will design evaluation activities and reporting products with these legislative expectations in mind, so that findings can support DHHS’s statutory reporting responsibilities and help inform the Legislature’s annual review of progress and policy needs.

Technical Assistance Collaborative - Nebraska Olmstead Plan Evaluation (RFP 125999 O3) 15

Scope of Work

TAC understands that the Scope of Work for this solicitation requires both rigorous evaluation and hands-on TA. The selected vendor must work in consultation with Nebraska DHHS to develop an evaluation plan; collect and monitor qualitative and quantitative indicators;

design or refine survey and assessment tools; conduct interviews and focus groups with program staff, partner agencies, stakeholders, and people with lived experience; review program records and subrecipient reports; prepare a draft and final evaluation report;

recommend updates to outcomes, benchmarks, structure, and language; develop communication materials; and facilitate meetings and monthly touchpoints with DHHS throughout the contract period.

We understand that this evaluation must do more than describe activity. It must assess whether Nebraska’s Olmstead implementation is producing meaningful progress toward community integration, person-centered access, service continuity, timely supports, accessible housing, competitive integrated employment, inclusive education, and transportation access. The evaluation should surface implementation strengths, identify barriers that cut across systems, assess whether current measures are feasible and meaningful, and translate findings into actionable recommendations that DHHS, the Olmstead

Advisory Committee, workgroups, and partner agencies can use.

Workplan

TAC’s workplan organizes the project into connected phases that align with the RFP deliverables and will support steady progress over the two-year contract period. We anticipate beginning with project initiation and document review, including review of the SFY

2026–2031 Olmstead Plan, prior evaluations, available administrative data, workgroup materials, legislative reporting requirements, and relevant program records. This phase will establish a shared understanding of evaluation questions, data sources, stakeholder engagement priorities, timelines, roles, and decision points.

The next phase will focus on evaluation design and data collection. TAC will work with DHHS to develop a practical evaluation plan that identifies indicators, data collection methods, interview and focus group protocols, survey tools, analytic approaches, and reporting formats. Data collection will include both quantitative review of available outcomes and benchmarks and qualitative engagement with DHHS staff, partner agencies, Advisory

Committee members, workgroups, providers, advocates, and stakeholders with lived experience. TAC will then synthesize findings into an evaluation report and recommendations that are clear, evidence-informed, and implementation-oriented. Detailed steps with a proposed timeline by deliverable may be found in the latter sections of this proposal titled

Detailed Project Work Plan and Deliverables and Due Dates.

Throughout the project, TAC will provide TA to DHHS and the Olmstead Advisory Committee to interpret findings, consider revisions to the plan, refine performance measures, and prepare for dissemination. Monthly touch-base meetings will provide a consistent structure for sharing progress, raising issues early, coordinating stakeholder engagement, and ensuring that deliverables remain responsive to DHHS expectations.

Because LB737 contemplates annual legislative hearings focused on the five current Olmstead focus areas, TAC will organize data collection, interim findings, and TA in a way that can

Technical Assistance Collaborative - Nebraska Olmstead Plan Evaluation (RFP 125999 O3) 16 generate timely, focus-area-specific information on implementation progress, barriers, and potential policy solutions. This alignment will help ensure that the evaluation is not only retrospective, but also useful for annual legislative review, stakeholder engagement, and ongoing plan refinement.

Technical Requirements

TAC understands that our technical response must demonstrate a clear command of evaluation design, disability policy, Olmstead implementation, stakeholder engagement, data analysis, facilitation, TA, and accessible communications. Our approach integrates mixed-methods evaluation with practical implementation support. Quantitative analysis will focus on available outcome and performance measures, service utilization trends, benchmarks, and progress indicators. Qualitative analysis will capture the experience of implementation, including barriers, promising practices, cross-system coordination challenges, and opportunities for strengthening the plan.

TAC will also ensure that engagement methods are accessible, trauma-informed, and respectful of the expertise of people with disabilities, families, self-advocates, providers, and state agency partners. Because Nebraska’s current plan embeds data considerations across all five focus areas, TAC will assess not only whether activities are underway, but whether measures are defined, collectible, useful for decision-making, and aligned with the plan’s broader goals. Where measures are not yet mature or data are incomplete, TAC will identify practical recommendations for strengthening definitions, collection processes, reporting, and accountability.

Our TA will be grounded in TAC’s national experience with housing, behavioral health, Medicaid, disability services, community integration, and systems transformation. TAC will bring an implementation lens to the evaluation, helping Nebraska translate findings into usable recommendations that support plan revisions, legislative reporting, stakeholder communication, and ongoing workgroup action. The Technical Requirements section below provides additional information via detailed responses to each of the questions posed in

Attachment A.

Deliverables

TAC understands the RFP requires five primary deliverables, supported by meeting facilitation, monthly coordination with DHHS, and ongoing TA. In all deliverables, TAC will prioritize clarity, usefulness, accessibility, and alignment with Nebraska’s implementation context. Our goal is to produce an evaluation process and set of products that help DHHS document progress, understand barriers, strengthen accountability, and continue advancing the State’s vision that Nebraskans with disabilities can live, learn, work, and thrive in the communities of their choice. The Deliverables and Due Dates section below further outlines

TAC’s approach to each deliverable and the proposed associated due dates.

Proposed Development Approach

Overall Approach TAC proposes to provide a development approach that builds on the work and evolution of

Nebraska DHHS’s Olmstead Plan and previous evaluations, leveraging TA experience in

Technical Assistance Collaborative - Nebraska Olmstead Plan Evaluation (RFP 125999 O3) 17 community integration and Olmstead via a phased approach, represented in Figure 2, consistent with the approach TAC has used in other states involving:

• System assessment and analysis: working with the state to understand system strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities to serve people with disabilities in integrated settings;

• Olmstead Plan development/modification: using the system analysis to develop and/or revise, with the state and key stakeholders, actionable and measurable activities and goals, as well as a performance improvement process to measure plan performance and progress toward outcome achievement;

• Implementation: carrying out the specific activities identified in the plan designed to serve people in integrated settings; and

• Performance evaluation and outcomes: evaluating the state’s performance in carrying out plan activities and achieving stated goals.

Figure 2. Cycle of Olmstead Planning

Community Integration

System Analysis

Olmstead Plan Development/ Modification

Implementation

Performance Measurement

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Tailored for Nebraska TAC understands that DHHS is seeking a consultant to perform work related to the system assessment and analysis and development of modification recommendations to advance and implement a comprehensive, effective working plan for people with disabilities who are currently receiving or are eligible for services. TAC has extensive experience engaging and involving stakeholders across disabilities, including service recipients and family members, and views this activity as critical to each phase of this work. Further, TAC’s involvement in

Olmstead implementation and settlement monitoring work has also made us keenly aware of measurable goals and objectives that signify real systems change related to community integration and how to assist states to develop and/or adapt quality management systems to evaluate and adjust implementation activities to achieve Olmstead integration goals.

TAC will approach the work with particular attention to the current plan’s emphasis on data-informed decision-making, cross-agency alignment, rural access, transitions across the lifespan, workforce capacity, communication access, and public transparency.