SFY27 RFR Workforce Enhancement, Collaboration, Safety and Resiliency Services.

The Massachusetts Executive Office of Aging & Independence (AGE) is requesting responses for an integrated workforce enhancement initiative focused on the Adult Protective Services Network, with proposals due November 13, 2026 at 5:00 p.m. via COMMBUYS and a single contract award intended. A mandatory Supplier Diversity Program commitment of at least 1 percent of contract sales applies, with additional evaluation points for higher commitments.

The scope encompasses workforce development, de-escalation and crisis response training, worker safety and resiliency programming, technical assistance, interagency collaboration, and workforce evaluation across the Massachusetts APS Network with potential expansion to additional AGE-designated workforces. Year One deliverables include a statewide training plan with foundational and applied learning pathways for investigatory staff, workforce wellbeing and resiliency programming, at least two facilitated stakeholder forums and one joint cross-agency learning activity, baseline evaluation measures, and an Annual Workforce Impact Report with recommendations for Year Two. Year Two may expand services to additional populations such as home care staff, outreach workers, and case managers if funding and AGE authorization permit. The contractor must maintain qualified staffing with expertise in de-escalation, crisis response, worker safety, resiliency programming, adult learning, human services, evaluation, and project management.

Year One expenditures are anticipated to remain below $200,000. The estimated total contract value is $2.75 million if all three optional one-year renewal periods are exercised through FY32, with annual expenditures increasing from less than $200,000 in Year One to $550,000 or more in Years Three through Five. The initial contract term is two years and six months (6 months in FY27 plus two full years through FY29), with three optional one-year extensions available, for a maximum potential duration of five years and six months. The estimated contract start date is January 4, 2027. Funding is conditioned upon receipt of state funds and subject to appropriation. Minimum qualifications include experience in workforce development, professional training program design, statewide service delivery capability, and organizational capacity throughout the contract term. Preferred qualifications include APS or aging-services experience, de-escalation and crisis-response expertise, workforce assessment and evaluation competency, and demonstrated capacity to scale programs while maintaining quality.