Scientific Peer Review Support for the Institute of Education Sciences

The Department of Education's Institute of Education Sciences (IES) is seeking integrated scientific peer review support services through this pre-solicitation notice. The contractor will be responsible for managing the full spectrum of IES peer review operations, including administering 25-35 peer review panels annually, operating and maintaining the Peer Review Information Management Online (PRIMO) system, providing helpdesk technical support, recruiting and coordinating external peer reviewers, processing grant applications and report manuscripts, generating peer review reports and scoring statements, and ensuring compliance with federal IT, cybersecurity, accessibility, and privacy standards. Vendors are requested to submit responses to a Request for Information (RFI) addressing their experience with scientific peer review management, web-based platform operations, federal compliance capabilities, and recommendations for the draft Performance Work Statement by February 4, 2026 at 12:00 p.m. ET. Responses should not exceed eight pages and must be submitted to Anastasia Jones, Contract Specialist, at Anastasia.Jones@ed.gov. This RFI serves as market research and does not constitute a binding commitment to conduct a formal solicitation, though it indicates the government's intent to move forward with procurement in this area.

No set-aside designations apply to this procurement, and no incumbent contractor information is provided in the pre-solicitation notice. The contract will be structured as a firm fixed price agreement with a base year running from July 31, 2026 through July 30, 2027, followed by four optional one-year renewal periods extending through July 30, 2031. The contractor will be required to recruit approximately 10 Scientific Review Officers and 20 Technical Assistants to support annual operations processing 950-1,150 research grant applications and 10-15 report manuscripts per fiscal year, with honoraria for external peer reviewers ranging from $200 to $1,800 depending on review type and scope. While the draft Performance Work Statement does not specify an overall contract value, the scope and complexity suggest a substantial procurement. Qualified vendors with relevant experience on existing Department of Education contracts or GSA Schedules are encouraged to submit RFI responses indicating their availability and capability to support these integrated peer review operations.