In Person Mentoring Services

Connecticut State Colleges and Universities is requesting proposals for in-person mentoring services for first-generation college students across four state universities — Central Connecticut State University, Eastern Connecticut State University, Southern Connecticut State University, and Western Connecticut State University — with proposals due September 21, 2026 at 2:00 p.m.

The contractor must design, coordinate, and deliver targeted onsite interventions addressing four pillars: Academic Success & Navigation, Holistic Health & Wellness, Social-Emotional Development, and Life Skills & Inclusivity. Programming must occur at minimum monthly at each campus with flexible formatting to accommodate student schedules while aligning with individual college academic calendars. The program runs from September 2026 through August 21, 2027, funded by grant money (GEAR UP).

The maximum allowable budget is $225,000. Proposals exceeding this limit will be deemed non-responsive and automatically disqualified. The contractor must provide a clear line-item breakdown by staffing, travel, materials, and administrative overhead. Evaluation criteria include quality of proposed approach, demonstrated experience and qualifications in health and wellness and post-secondary student initiatives, alignment with scope requirements, cost-effectiveness, and three professional references from similar institutional or grant-funded projects.

The contractor must obtain Commercial General Liability insurance of $1 million per occurrence and Worker's Compensation coverage meeting Connecticut statutory requirements before commencing work. The contractor must execute a contract incorporating nondiscrimination, FERPA compliance, campaign contribution restrictions, and state ethics law compliance. Monthly and semester-based reports including student attendance logs disaggregated by cohort, engagement metrics, and satisfaction survey data must be submitted to the GEAR UP Grant Director. Questions are due September 14, 2026 at 12:00 p.m. Proposals must be submitted electronically to Cynthia Shea-Luzik and Sharon Kromas at the CSCU Finance Department with file size not exceeding 25 MB. A public proposal opening is scheduled for September 21, 2026 at 2:00 p.m. via Microsoft Teams.