Notice of intent to award a sole source

PUBLIC NOTICE OF INTENT TO AWARD A SOLE SOURCE ORDER

Contracting Office Address

Department of Commerce, NOAA, National Marine Fisheries Service, Auke Bay Laboratories, Ted Stevens Marine Research Institute, 17109 Pt. Lena Loop Rd, Juneau, AK 99801.

Description

The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) intends to issue a sole source award utilizing Simplified Acquisition Procedures to acquire urgent maintenance and repair services for the primary saltwater pumps for the Ted Stevens Marine Research Institute in Juneau, AK.

SINGLE SOURCE DETERMINATION USING
SIMPLIFIED ACQUISITION PROCEDURES (SAP)
FOR AN ACTION NOT EXCEEDING THE SIMPLIFIED ACQUISITION THRESHOLD
(AUTHORITY: FAR 13.106-1(b)(1))

Description of supplies or services required to meet agency needs

• Coordination and administration of the 2019 NOAA Science Camp - two one-week sessions.
• Coordinate a two-week Junior Leadership program to run concurrently with the two weeks of NOAA Science Camp.
• Coordinate a three day Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) workshop in collaboration with Atlantis STEAM.
• Coordinate the logistics of the camp:

- provide a NOAA Science Camp project manager (based at WA Sea Grant)
- administer an online camper registration system
- maintain the NOAA Science Camp website
- hire the positions of Camp Director, Junior Leadership Program Director, and Camp Coordinator, and supervise their performance
- recruit campers, junior leadership candidates, and ROV workshop participants
- recruit and hire educators and assistants for the camp
- provide human resources support for all summer camp employees
- maintain administrative records
- update and implement the camp risk management plan
- provide administration of the camp budget to produce and purchase necessary supplies and materials for camp activities
- work with NOAA Science Camp committee to coordinate the NOAA Science Camp ROV workshop with Atlantis STEAM and NOAA staff, providing logistical support and large group activities
- work with local media to publicize the camp
- produce a summary report of the camp within 2 months of the end of the camp

The NOAA Science Camp project manager, NOAA Science Camp director, Junior Leadership Program director and coordinator of the camp will work with the NOAA Science Camp committee and NOAA staff to make final decisions about the camp schedule, science activities and teacher orientation training.
Necessary skills include:

- Must have specific knowledge of the organizational structure of NOAA offices in the NOAA Western Regional Center, each office's mission, and how to implement hands-on activities to demonstrate each NOAA office's work
- Must have specific knowledge of the structure of NOAA Science Camp and its goals, history, and how its objectives align with NOAA education goals.
- Ability to provide in-kind resources to the project.
- Ability to recruit highly qualified local educational personnel as well as university students and hire them for short term (3-6 weeks) with low administrative overhead.
- Program evaluation capabilities
- Communication resources (e.g., website, ability to create press releases, web stories, and other communications products)

Identification of the single source
University of Washington Sea Grant Program 3716 Brooklyn Ave NE, Seattle, WA 98105

Supporting rationale
Only one source is capable:

From 2004 through 2018, WA Sea Grant collaborated with AFSC and several other NOAA offices to successfully conduct NOAA Science Camp programs for middle-school-aged youth and high school students. WA Sea Grant has had the primary responsibility of coordinating camp logistics and provides payroll and human resources processing, as well as communications specialists to promote NOAA Science Camp. WA Sea Grant also provides critical continuity in overseeing the NOAA Science Camp director, Junior Leadership Program director and coordinator in conjunction with the NOAA Science Camp liaison at AFSC, and works closely with NOAA staff and the NOAA Science Camp Steering Committee to guide the long-term direction of the camp program.

A critical need for the operation of NOAA Science Camp is specific knowledge of the organizational structure of the NOAA offices in the NOAA Western Regional Center and in the Puget Sound Region, each office's mission, and how to implement hands-on activities to demonstrate each NOAA office's work. WA Sea Grant has worked closely with NOAA offices at the Western Regional Center and at the Northwest Fisheries Science Center on best practices of how to communicate their research and mission through hands-on activities, and has detailed knowledge of the work that each NOAA office does. In addition, WA Sea Grant has in-depth knowledge of the structure of NOAA Science Camp and its goals and history, as well as how its objectives align with larger NOAA education strategic goals, which is needed to work with NOAA on the development and implementation of the camp.

WA Sea Grant has provided significant in-kind resources to NOAA Science Camp to cover staff benefits and costs over and above the funding provided by NOAA. In addition, WA Sea Grant works with the NOAA Teacher At Sea program, which provides in-kind funding for a NOAA Teacher At Sea educator to participate in camp, reducing costs for hiring group leaders. Details on in-kind funding for NOAA Science Camp provided by WA Sea Grant from 2009-18, as documented in NOAA Science Camp biennial reports.

In addition, WA Sea Grant provides low overhead (2%) administration of the NOAA Science Camp budget. This overhead is lower than similar services at the University of Washington. Based on in-kind contribution, static year-to-year costs, low overhead, and comparison to other similar camps, the anticipated cost to the Government is fair and reasonable.
WA Sea Grant has a history of involvement with Marine Science education and environmental literacy in the Puget Sound area, and possesses the experience and connections in the local education community that are critical for a successful Science Camp. By coordinating educational events such as Orea Bowl (Washington state's National Ocean Sciences Bowl for high school students), WA Sea Grant's connection with the education community at the University of Washington and the wider Seattle-area environmental education community, as well as through the NOAA Teacher at Sea Program, provides access to high school and undergraduate students (recruited as camp assistants), graduate students and informal educators (recruited for the director, coordinator, and camp educator positions). WA Sea Grant also has the ability to hire staff for short term periods (3-6 weeks) with low administrative overhead (2%).

One of NOAA's priorities in educational programs is to recruit participants from underserved communities. WA Sea Grant has successful partnerships with several local organizations such as Seattle Math, Engineering, and Science Achievement; Solid Ground; and Rainier Scholars to recruit participants from underserved communities for NOAA Science Camp, and has a close partnership with the University of Washington's Joint Institute for the Study of the Atmosphere and Ocean to provide scholarships for them. These local partnerships are essential in reaching out to underserved communities to raise awareness of NOAA science, careers, and opportunities for students. WA Sea Grant has also worked with the Alaska Fisheries Science Center and the Aleut Community of St. Paul Island Tribal Government to support students from Alaska to come to NOAA Science Camp in 2013, 2016, and 2018, and has worked with the family of a disabled student from California to facilitate him to attend NOAA Science Camp in 2015 and 2017.

WA Sea Grant also has the unique capability of providing both short-term and long-term evaluation of program outcomes for NOAA Science Camp, because of its history of working with NOAA on this program. No other program has the baseline data to perform long-term evaluation of NOAA Science Camp at this time. In addition, WA Sea Grant's communication office provides support for a NOAA Science Camp website, web stories, videos, and press releases associated with NOAA Science Camp. WA Sea Grant's media connections and its relationship with the College of Ocean and Fishery Sciences also provide good exposure for NOAA Science Camp.
A key component of NOAA Science Camp is its place-based education. From camp evaluation surveys, NOAA scientists leading activities, educators at the camp, campers and their families all felt that having the camp at the research offices on the NOAA Western Regional Center campus in Seattle, Washington, provided a real-world experience that could not be replicated off-site. The identity of the camp as a NOAA­based camp (as opposed to a camp at another location that simply provided NOAA-related material) is considered to be an essential part of the camp. WA Sea Grant provides critical support to the camp without requiring that the camp be moved off-site. Other similar science-based camps (see Market Research for NOAA Science Camp) are located at the site of the operator; operating a camp at the NOAA campus with another organization may incur additional logistical costs that are not required with WA Sea Grant.

WA Sea Grant has experience with NOAA Science Camp needs, structure and direction, in addition to in­depth knowledge of NOAA offices in the Puget Sound area, knowledge of how to communicate their work through hands-on activities, and how NOAA Science Camp goals promote NOAA's strategic education goals. These factors, in addition to WA Sea Grant's unique background, partnerships, and long-term evaluation resources, make it the only organization capable of performing these services. No other organization has the specialized background or resources that are necessary for NOAA Science Camp. WA Sea Grant provides the best value, quality, and technical expertise for the funding provided, with its combination of an in-depth of knowledge about NOAA organization and mission, and the ability to cost-effectively coordinate the logistics of NOAA Science Camp.

This Notice of Intent is not a Request for Quotes. This notice of intent is for information purposes only, therefore, no solicitation will result from this announcement. All sources eligible to provide this supply must respond in writing, response must be supported by clear and convincing evidence to clearly be able to provide services for products outlined above. A request for documentation will not be considered an affirmative response. Award to University of Washington, as detailed above, is anticipated immediately. Response to this award is to be sent to heather.mahle@noaa.gov.

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