Direct Certification Platform

The Tennessee Department of Education is soliciting proposals through the Central Procurement Office for a Direct Certification Platform software solution covering fiscal years 2027 through 2032, with a pre-response conference on November 5, 2026, written questions due November 12, 2026, and responses due by 2:00 p.m. Central Time on January 26, 2027. The solicitation seeks one contractor and identifies no set-asides or preference programs.

The system must generate direct certification matches for approximately 205 School Food Authorities and support up to 550 active users. It must apply USDA eligibility hierarchies and produce federal reports FNS-742 (School Food Authority Verification Collection) and FNS-834 (State Agency Direct Certification Rate Data Element). The platform must ingest data from the Tennessee Department of Human Services (SNAP and TANF), the Department of Children's Services (foster care), TennCare (Medicaid), and neighboring Kentucky counties (SNAP). Respondents must comply with Tennessee's Enterprise Information Security Policies, possess or obtain one of the IT security requirements specified in the pro forma contract, and demonstrate accessibility across common browsers and devices. Mandatory submittals include a Statement of Certifications and Assurances, current bank and vendor credit references, attestations of capacity and accessibility compliance, and three references from similar projects completed within the past five years.

The estimated maximum liability for the initial term is $1.125 million over a 64-month term. Evaluation weights 60 points on technical qualifications, experience, and approach; 10 points on general qualifications and experience; and 30 points on cost, scored against the lowest-cost proposal received.

The State completes technical evaluations by February 12, 2027, issues a Notice of Intent to Award on February 22, 2027, and sets a contract signature deadline of March 4, 2027. Genell Jordan, Sourcing Account Specialist, is the designated contact at 615-532-7202 or Genell.Jordan@tn.gov.