SOI 1194 Collective Impact Data Researcher and Evaluator

The New York State (NYS) Office of Children & Family Services (OCFS) and the Council on Children and Families (CCF) announces a Solicitation of Interest (SOI) for qualified entities that conduct comprehensive cross-systems needs assessments, develop strategic plans (from a systems change and equity perspective), and conduct performance evaluations that assess the impacts of large system projects. The activities in this SOI are a deliverable requirement of the Preschool Development Birth through Five Renewal Grant (NYSB5, 90TP013001) through the US Department of Health and Human Services. This project is supported by the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) of the United States (U.S.) Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Assistance Listing Number 93.434, as part of a financial assistance award totaling $14,300,000 with $11,000,000 (77 percent) funded by ACF/HHS and $3,300,000 (23 percent) funded by New York State or other sources. The contents are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement by, ACF/HHS, or the U.S. Government. For more information, please visit the ACF website, Administrative and National Policy Requirements. Please see the SOI Eligibility Criteria section for additional information.

This advertisement is public notice that OCFS is seeking to contract with organizations to conduct a Birth through Five (B-5) needs assessment of the NYS early childhood system that incorporates feedback from families using multiple methods and comprehensively addresses all aspects of the needs of children B-5 and their families, ensuring that under served families are heard. The organization will also use the needs assessment findings in collaboration with a statewide audience to develop a strategic plan to address needs assessment findings and the voice of the community, and based upon the Birth through Five initiatives and strategic plan, develop a performance evaluation to measure project impact upon the NYS early childhood system. The vendor will also lead a collective impact innovation network to convene regular meetings of a representative cohort of the early childhood community to explore the conditions in place preventing the adoption and implementation of wellness principles in the field. Finally, the vendor will support the coordination of a collective impact project focused in rural communities of NYS. The vendor will work with the rural communities to identify local policy, practices, etc., to achieve systems level changes to increase child care capacity. Please see the SOI Scope of Work section for additional information.

The purpose of this solicitation is to invite any eligible and interested entities that believe they can satisfy this program’s needs to inform OCFS by a Letter of Interest (LOI). To be considered responsive, your organization’s LOI should be received no later than the deadline specified on the first page of this announcement. Please see the SOI How to Respond section for additional information and submission requirements.

Through this announcement, OCFS is exploring the availability of vendors who have the expertise to provide the services required by OCFS. The results of this announcement will help OCFS determine how best to proceed forward procuring these services.

Eligibility Criteria:

Interested parties who meet the following criteria are eligible to respond:

• Agree to provide the services outlined in the Scope of Work section
• Are eligible to do business with New York State
• At least 10 years of experience supporting equitable systems change
• At least 6 years working in the early childhood realm and supporting the coordination of a rural network that supports equity and a sustainable collaboration
• National expertise in research, systems change, and technical assistance, including:
  o published in national articles, journals and/or for national organizations,
  o experts in systems change as part of your staff with systems change as an area of expertise in your portfolio, and
  o history of providing technical assistance to organizations, either private or public
• At least 3 years of experience working collaboratively with NYS stakeholder groups, working with diverse communities and analyzing data using an equity framework
• Should have and describe a plan to meet the program requirements/deliverables

Please see the SOI document located on the "Documents" tab for additional information and submission requirements.