Contract 26-2 Financial Aid Back Office RFP 2026

Delaware County Community College is issuing a Request for Proposal (RFP) for outsourced financial aid back office services under Contract #26-2. The procurement seeks a qualified vendor to deliver comprehensive financial aid operations serving approximately 8,000 students across the institution's six locations in Delaware County, Pennsylvania. Required services include FAFSA intake and processing, verification document collection and review, aid packaging and awarding, disbursement coordination for Pell Grants, SEOG, Direct Loans, and Plus Loans, Return of Title IV (R2T4) calculations, Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) monitoring, monthly and annual reconciliation with the U.S. Department of Education's COD system, and management of Pennsylvania state grant programs including RTSS, GROW PA, PA TIP, National Guard, and EAP. The contractor must also provide front-facing student interactions including email support, phone assistance, loan change processing, and attendance at College events and community FAFSA completion activities. Vendors must demonstrate a minimum of three years of continuous operation under the same company name, provide at least three references from similar services performed within the previous twenty-four months, and ensure all contractor representatives obtain three mandatory Pennsylvania background clearances (PA Criminal Background under Act 34, PA Child Abuse History under Act 151, and FBI Fingerprinting via IdentoGO under Act 114) at an estimated cost of $60.25 per individual. The College will evaluate proposals based on greatest benefit to the institution rather than lowest price alone, and vendors will not be disadvantaged for proposing solutions that do not provide all required system functionality. Questions must be submitted by April 15, 2026, and sealed bid proposals are due April 29, 2026 at 2:00 p.m. via the PennBid portal; award decisions are anticipated by May 13, 2026, with contract commencement targeted for July 1, 2026.

The RFP does not specify set-aside designations or organizational restrictions, and Delaware County Community College is identified as an equal opportunity institution that does not discriminate based on race, color, national origin, sex, or disability. The current incumbent contractor manages all aspects of the financial aid back office operation with staffing consisting of a Director, Assistant Director, three full-time and two part-time Financial Aid Advisors, and two Specialist positions, suggesting the College seeks continuity in service delivery while potentially reducing internal staffing costs. The initial contract term is three fiscal years (2026-2027 through 2028-2029) with options to extend for up to four additional one-year terms, providing a maximum contract period of seven years before recompetition. The RFP does not request pricing in a traditional line-item format; instead, vendors are invited to propose pricing within their technical proposals, and no specific award value or budget range has been disclosed in available documentation. All contract documents, including detailed specifications and instructions to bidders, are available through PennBid at http://pennbid.bonfirehub.com, and vendor presentations may be requested to demonstrate system capabilities and address proposal questions.