Chronic Absenteeism Implementation Support

The Vermont Agency of Education is soliciting proposals for chronic absenteeism implementation support services, with proposals due November 18, 2026 at 4:30 p.m. EST. Preference goes first to Vermont resident bidders or products raised or manufactured in the State, then to bidders demonstrating clean energy and climate change mitigation practices.

The contracts will support capacity building for Vermont schools and districts on chronic absenteeism and attendance management, across three objectives: statewide professional learning on consistent data management and early intervention practices; family, caregiver, and youth engagement on draft model attendance procedures; and coaching and facilitation of a pilot for up to three local education agencies (LEAs) to implement, test, and refine model policies. The readiness series of virtual trainings runs December 2026 through June 2027 and covers data systems, multi-tiered systems of support (MTSS), team establishment, and caregiver communication. The pilot emphasizes early warning systems and Tier I practices. Bidders must demonstrate substantial experience delivering statewide or large-scale professional learning, expertise in evidence-based Tier I attendance interventions and early warning systems, capacity to support multiple schools and districts, and familiarity with MTSS and culturally responsive approaches. The listed jurisdictions are Washington County and Newport Center CDP.

The contract period is up to one year, with options to renew for two additional twelve-month periods, and an anticipated start date of December 1, 2026. Bidders must submit pricing on the provided Price Quotation Form with structured, auditable cost breakdowns. For bids exceeding $250,000, bidders must complete worker classification compliance reporting and provide subcontractor information.

Evaluation weights are 40 points for quality of bidder experience and capacity to perform, 40 points for responsiveness to specifications, and 20 points for program cost. Questions are due November 2, 2026 at 4:30 p.m. EST. Proposals must be submitted as a single PDF attachment of 40 MB maximum to aoe.cpteam@vermont.gov with "Chronic Absenteeism Implementation Support" in the subject line, and late bids will not be accepted.