Community-Based Mentoring for Justice-Involved Youth

The Maine Department of Corrections Division of Juvenile Services is issuing a Request for Proposals (RFP #202603063) to procure community-based mentoring services for justice-involved youth across all three juvenile regions in Maine. The procurement seeks qualified vendors to provide peer and near-peer mentoring, lived experience adult-to-youth mentoring, and advocacy mentoring for youth ages 11-21, with services delivered at Long Creek Youth Development Center (LCYDC) beginning a minimum of 90 days before release and continuing in community settings. Bidders must identify their programming as an Evidence-Based Program, Evidence-Based Practice, or Promising Practice per the Model Programs Guide, and all mentors must complete required training, attend team meetings and court hearings as requested, support education and vocational opportunities, and engage personnel with lived experience. The evaluation criteria consists of organizational qualifications and experience (20 points), proposed services including scope of work not exceeding 12 pages double-spaced with implementation timeline (55 points), technical assessment demonstrating security and compliance capabilities including NIST standards for handling high-impact personally identifiable information (unspecified points), and cost proposal presented as a fixed amount for the initial 18-month period with the lowest bid receiving 25 points and higher bids receiving proportionally fewer points based on a mathematical formula. Questions must be submitted by April 17, 2026 at 4:00 p.m. local time, with proposals due by May 8, 2026 at 4:00 p.m. local time via the Vendor Self Service (VSS) system. The initial contract period runs from January 1, 2027 to June 30, 2028, with two optional renewal periods extending through June 30, 2031.

Eligible bidders must maintain current 501(c)(3) nonprofit status and may submit separate proposals for one or more counties within a region, although preference is given to bidders serving entire regions. Background checks must be conducted on all personnel with costs identified in the proposal, and bidders must demonstrate appropriate security controls and compliance with State of Maine and federal data protection requirements. No incumbent vendors or current contractors are identified in the RFP materials, and no specific budget range is disclosed; however, the cost proposal will be evaluated on a relative basis with the lowest bid receiving maximum points. The Department reserves the right to make one or multiple awards based on best value to the State, and all submissions are considered public records under Maine's Freedom of Access Act with no best and final offers to be solicited. The RFP Coordinator is Sonja Charest, Manager of Juvenile Programming & Grants.