REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL (RFP) Independent Verification ...

1 1 REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL (RFP) Independent Verification & validation (IV&V) Services Solicitation # RFP 2014-03 Issue Date November 14, 2014 Submission Deadline December 01, 2014 4:00 PM EST Parcc Inc. Address Parcc Inc. Attn: Curt Smith, Director of Contract Management 1747 Pennsylvania Ave NW, 6th Floor Washington, DC 20006 Point of Contact Curt Smith Phone: 202-748-8092 c Email: 2 This is a REQUEST for PROPOSAL only. Parcc Inc. is not obligated nor is Parcc Inc. to be construed as obligated to proceed further. Parcc Inc. may at its sole discretion elect not to accept any PROPOSAL for any reason. Table of Contents Table of Contents .. 2 1. General Information and Requested Services .. 4 PARCC .. 4 Objective and Goals .. 4 Contact Person and Submission Deadline .. 5 Terms and Definitions .. 5 PARCC Program Background.

2 6 Summative Assessment Project Status .. 6 PARCC Governing States .. 6 PARCC Governing Board .. 7 PARCC State Leads (K-12) .. 7 Technical Advisory Committee .. 7 Additional PARCC Working Groups / Advisory Groups .. 7 Parcc Inc.. 7 Role of PARCC Vendors .. 8 Summative Assessment Components .. 8 Summative Item Development ..10 Additional Resources: ..10 2. Scope of Services .. 10 IV&V Vendor and Staffing Requirements ..11 Anticipated Tasks and Activities .. 11 Additional Scope Requirements .. 25 3. Deliverables .. 26 Financial Consequences .. 33 4. Scope & Deliverable Assumptions .. 33 5. REQUEST for PROPOSAL Guidelines .. 33 Schedule of Events .. 33 Parcc Inc. Budget Estimate .. 34 Evaluation 34 Technical Evaluation Approach ..35 Management Evaluation Approach ..35 Past Performance Evaluation Approach ..35 Price Evaluation Approach.

3 36 3 Special Instructions .. 36 Oral Instructions/Changes to the RFP (Addenda) ..36 Modifications, Resubmittal and Withdrawal ..36 Confidential, Proprietary, or Trade Secret Material ..36 Subcontracting ..37 Contract Terms and Conditions ..37 Method of Payment ..37 Diversity in Contracting ..37 Costs Incurred in Responding ..37 Submission of Proposals by Subsidiaries or Affiliates ..37 Independent Price Determination .. 38 Liquidated 38 Accessible Electronic Information Technology .. 38 Federal Regulatory Compliance .. 38 Awards .. 38 6. PROPOSAL Preparation and Content .. 40 PROPOSAL Submission .. 40 PROPOSAL Format and 40 Transmittal Letter ..41 Technical PROPOSAL (Volume I) ..41 PROPOSAL (Volume II) ..43 Presenting the Proposals ..44 7. APPENDIX .. 45 A. APPENDIX A Preliminary List of Available Documentation for IV&V Reviews 46 B.

4 APPENDIX B High Level Project Plan 48 C. APPENDIX C Technical Project Terms and Definitions 62 D. APPENDIX D RFP Reference Documentation 68 E. APPENDIX E RFP Pricing Worksheet 69 4 1. General Information and Requested Services PARCC The Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) is a consortium of states working together to develop a common set of K-12 assessments in English Language Arts (ELA)/Literacy and Mathematics aligned to the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), in response to the awarding of a Comprehensive Assessment Systems Grant funded in fiscal year 2010 under the auspices of the Department of Education s 2010 Race to the Top Assessment Program. Authorized under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), the Race to the Top Assessment Program provides funding to consortia of states (at least 15 member states and 5 Governing States as defined in the notice inviting applications (NIA) issued in the Federal Register on April 9, 2010) to develop assessment systems that are anchored in college and career readiness and encourage best practices in instruction and measurement.

5 The new PARCC K-12 assessments will build a pathway to college and career readiness by the end of high school and mark students progress toward this goal from third grade up. Between late March and early June 2014, more than 1 million students in roughly 16,000 schools in more than a dozen states participated in the PARCC field test. The primary purposes of the PARCC field test was to 1) examine the quality of test questions and tasks to allow the PARCC states to build assessment forms for the 2014-15 school year; 2) evaluate assessment training materials and administration procedures; and 3) conduct research on topics such as comparability, psychometrics, and feasibility. The PARCC assessments will be ready for states to administer during the 2014-15 school year, when 5 million students will be taking the actual test. Some of the most anticipated tools in the assessment system such as diagnostic assessments, mid-year/interim assessments and professional online learning will be available during or immediately after 2014-15.

6 Parcc Inc. is a 501(c) 3 non-profit corporation established to support the PARCC consortium. Under an agreement with the State of Maryland, which acts as fiscal agent for the Department of Education grant to the PARCC consortium, Parcc Inc. is authorized to conduct procurements and enter into contracts that will be funded under the grant, including any contract(s) to be awarded under this RFP. At the end of the grant period, this contract will end. As used herein, PARCC may refer to the consortium, the Parcc Inc. corporate entity, or both, depending on the context. Any contract awarded pursuant to this RFP will be paid for exclusively from the grant funds. Regardless, Parcc Inc. shall have no financial obligation under any contract awarded pursuant to this RFP beyond funds available under the grant. Objective and Goals The objective of this RFP is to solicit proposals from vendors interested in providing Independent validation and Verification (IV&V) services for the PARCC consortium.

7 PARCC seeks a vendor with extensive experience conducting Independent Verification and validation activities for complex projects involving design of large-scale business processes and the development, testing, and deployment of 5 technology across large organizations to support those processes. While there are several components that comprise the comprehensive PARCC program, the IV&V activities being sought as part of this RFP are for vendors and activities related to the Summative Assessments only. The PARCC consortium, procured through Parcc Inc., seeks to partner with a vendor to assist in minimizing the inherent risks associated with software systems development through the application of industry standards and best practices. IV&V efforts to review software development processes, procedures and output will result in increased, and early detection of risks, and provide the program with opportunities for proactive strategies to mitigate such risks.

8 The enhanced management insight will result in additional confidence by the States that the implemented solution will satisfy the business needs and associated requirements for security, availability, quality, and maintainability. Parcc Inc. reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to accept or reject any or all proposals, in whole or in part, to reject or negotiate modifications to a Offeror s PROPOSAL , or parts thereof; to make award(s) based on the expertise of the Offeror and their capabilities to satisfy all of PARCC s needs. Parcc Inc. is not obligated to award a contract based on this RFP. The responses to this RFP will serve as the basis for any agreement. Parcc Inc. intends to award one or more contracts following the receipt and review of proposals in response to this RFP. The Offeror s cost associated with developing a PROPOSAL and any subsequent meetings, presentations, and other activities shall be borne solely by the Offeror and shall not be reimbursable by Parcc Inc.

9 Materials submitted by the Offeror will not be returned and will become the property of Parcc Inc. Offerors are expected to examine this RFP in its entirety. Responses shall follow the format specified in this RFP. Failure to do so may result in the rejection of the Offeror s PROPOSAL from any further consideration. Contact Person and Submission Deadline Proposals shall be directed exclusively to the following contact person ( Contact Person ): Curt Smith Direct: 202-748-8092 Email: Except where expressly provided in this RFP, any contact with Parcc Inc., or the PARCC consortium member states employees regarding the procurement being conducted pursuant to this RFP is strictly prohibited. Failure to comply may lead to the Offeror s exclusion from this procurement process. Each Offeror shall submit proposals via email to Curt Smith no later than 4:00 (EST) on December 01, 2014.

10 Terms and Definitions Terms used in this RFP are defined as follows, unless inconsistent with the subject matter or context: Term Definition 6 Contract The agreement between Parcc Inc. and the Contractor awarded pursuant to this RFP. Contractor The Offeror that is awarded the contract. All directions for the Contractor refer to the period after contract award Offeror A potential Contractor acting on its own behalf and on behalf of those individuals, partnerships, firms, or corporations comprising the Offeror s team. PROPOSAL The complete response of the Offeror to the RFP, including properly completed forms and supporting documentation. RFP This REQUEST for PROPOSAL document in its entirety, inclusive of attachments, appendices and any addenda that may be issued by Parcc Inc. Solution The Offeror s proposed technical and management approaches for meeting the requirements of the work to be contracted, as established by Parcc Inc.