Youth Council Coordinator under the Best Practice Tobacco Control Grant

The City of Bridgeport Department of Public Purchases is soliciting proposals for a Youth Council Coordinator position under the Best Practice Tobacco Control Grant, a Request for Proposal (RFP) procurement funded through the Department of Health and Social Services. The selected contractor will implement anti-tobacco strategies targeting middle school students enrolled in the Bridgeport Youth Council (BYC) program, a component of the Lighthouse Program, and will be responsible for training BYC Coordinators at 12 designated Lighthouse After School Sites, facilitating youth council meetings, developing anti-tobacco ad campaigns, coordinating compliance checks, planning an annual summit, and supporting grant objectives across multiple partner organizations including schools, the Lighthouse Program, Sacred Heart University, and the Police Department. The position requires 40 hours per week with occasional evening and weekend availability for statewide meetings and events, with compensation set at $30.00 per hour for the 40-hour weekly position and a contract term running from execution through December 31, 2028. Proposed submissions will be evaluated on a 100-point scale based on four weighted criteria: past experience working within school settings or conducting programs and trainings (30 points), experience facilitating youth council or youth engagement programs (30 points), experience with tobacco cessation programming (20 points), and experience planning and implementing special events (20 points). Respondents must complete mandatory background checks (DCF, State, and Federal), maintain comprehensive insurance coverage including Workers' Compensation, Commercial General Liability ($1,000,000 per occurrence, $2,000,000 aggregate), Automobile Liability ($1,000,000), Professional Liability ($1,000,000), and Sexual Abuse and Molestation coverage, and submit a signed and notarized No Conflicts/Disclosure Form, a Program Proposal Form with resume, and three references. The proposal submission deadline is Tuesday, June 2, 2026 at 2:00 pm Eastern Standard Time, with questions due by May 21, 2026 and responses provided by May 27, 2026.

The RFP documents do not identify any set-aside designations, restrictions on respondent types, or disadvantaged enterprise requirements; however, the procurement is structured to allow individual contractors to serve as independent contractors without any apparent restrictions limiting eligibility to specific organizational categories. No incumbent vendors or current contractors are referenced in the solicitation materials. The contractor will operate as an independent contractor and will not be entitled to employee benefits, including health insurance, workers' compensation, or pension participation; however, the contractor must maintain and pay for all required insurance coverage as specified in the agreement. The compensation is fixed at $30.00 per hour for the 40-hour weekly position, resulting in an estimated annual value of approximately $62,400 (based on 52 weeks), with monthly progress payments made upon submission of payment requisitions detailing hours worked and services completed, contingent upon City approval and fund availability. The City reserves the right to terminate the agreement at any time with fifteen days' written notice and with or without cause, and a non-appropriation clause limits City liability to available and appropriated funds, with funding contingent upon the Department of Health and Social Services' grant availability.