Shepel Alexander

Shepel Alexander, a Bethesda, Maryland-based sole proprietorship, provides Ukrainian and Russian language interpretation and translation services to the Department of State Bureau of Administration exclusively as a prime contractor under blanket purchase agreements, with no subcontract footprint and no set-aside designations across its federal portfolio.

Shepel Alexander's customer concentration is absolute: the Department of State Bureau of Administration accounts for all 95 awards in the source (combined potential value $1.2 million), with a single outlier award from the Department of State proper for $824. The vendor operates entirely within the State Department's language-services BPA framework, drawing task orders ranging from $753 to $25,738 to support diplomatic operations, international agreements, and cross-cultural exchanges. Concrete recent work includes a $12,000 firm fixed-price BPA call (October 2023) for general language services supporting the Bureau of Administration; a $18,072 call (October 2021) for Ukrainian interpretation services for the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; and a $21,006 call (October 2022) for translation and interpretation across the Bureau's operations. The vendor's capability portfolio centers on in-person and virtual interpretation and translation, with Ukrainian and Russian as primary languages, supplemented by unspecified other languages for high-level engagements involving senior officials including the National Security Council and the International Visitor Leadership Program.

Vehicle position is granular and time-limited. Shepel Alexander holds task-order positions on five rolling BPA IDVs issued by the Department of State Bureau of Administration: the current vehicle (BPA 190PRL25A0252, $250,000 ceiling, October 2024 through September 2026) carries 16 task orders for $51 thousand; the prior fiscal year vehicle (BPA 190PRL24A0252, October 2023 through September 2024) generated 26 task orders for $77 thousand; the FY2023 vehicle (BPA 190PRL23A0252) produced 17 task orders for $149 thousand; the FY2022 vehicle (BPA 190PRL22A0252) supported 20 task orders for $131 thousand; and the FY2021 vehicle (BPA 190PRL21A0252) generated 4 task orders for $6 thousand. Each BPA cycles annually on October 1, with increasing ceiling values suggesting growing utilization.

Activity has contracted sharply. The vendor averaged 21 awards per year over 2021–2023 (peaking at 27 in 2023), dropped to 16 in 2024, and shows only one award in 2025 year-to-date. The decline reflects the cyclical nature of annual BPA issuance: prior-year BPAs expire on September 30 and are replaced with new IDVs carrying the same structure but new ceiling values and task-order allocations. The portfolio shows obligated dollars of $533 thousand against $1.2 million in combined potential value (45% realization rate), typical for language-services contracting where ceiling values often exceed actual spend within a fiscal year. With the current BPA running through September 2026, recompete risk surfaces at that date unless the vendor is reawarded to a successor IDV.

Shepel Alexander competes entirely full-and-open; no set-aside categories apply to any award. The sole proprietorship structure, Bethesda headquarters, and exclusive focus on diplomatic-language services position the vendor as a specialized single-source provider for Ukrainian and Russian interpretation rather than a broad-based professional-services contractor. The portfolio reflects sustained but narrowly scoped federal engagement confined to State Department Bureau of Administration language procurement via rolling annual BPA vehicles. Lack of subcontracting activity and absence of prime vehicle positions on GWACs or multi-agency IDIQs limit teaming leverage and cross-agency pipeline.