RFP-JTAP-046 – PSS-SEL Jordanian Framework Validation Expert(s)- Consultancy Services- USAID/ TAP

REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL (RFP)

To: Offerors

From: Creative Associates International, Inc.

Subject Request for Proposal (RFP) No. RFP-JTAP-046 – PSS-SEL Jordanian Framework Validation Expert(s)- Consultancy Services

Type of Award: Consultancy Agreement -Fixed Term award

Basis of Award: Best Value

RFP Issue Date: 18/04/2024

RFP Closing Date: 09/05/2024

RFP Closing Time: 4:00 PM – Local Time, Amman, Jordan

Reference: USAID Contract No. 72027821C00005

Enclosed is a Request for Proposal (RFP). Creative invites Individuals to submit a proposal for the Jordan- Technical Assistance Program (TAP) under the referenced USAID 72027821C00005, After the evaluation, as described herein, resulting in selecting a winning proposal, the issuance of an award is subject to successful negotiation of the terms and conditions and receiving USAID’s Contracting Officer consent, if required.

The requirements for this activity are described in the “Statement of Work” in Attachment I. Creative encourages individual to indicate its interest in this procurement by submitting a proposal according to the instructions in Attachment II “Instructions to Offerors”. Proposals will be evaluated based on the “Evaluation Criteria” in Attachment III. Creative will make an award to the responsible Offeror(s) submitting an offer which provides best value to the project: technical merit and price will be both considered.

To be considered, Offerors should submit a complete proposal no later than the closing date and time indicated above. Offerors should ensure that the proposals are well-written in English, easy to read, follow the instructions provided and contain only requested information.

Any questions should be submitted via email to [email protected] no later than April 25, 2024. No questions will be entertained if they are received by means other than the specified email address, and any communications to alternate e-mail addresses will result in the disqualification of the bidder. The solicitation number (listed above) should be stated in the subject line. Answers will be compiled and distributed on April 29, 2024.

Proposals must be comprised of one electronic copy of the Technical Proposal and one electronic copy of the Cost/Business proposal, sent in separate e-mails, and labeled with the above-stated RFP number and title. Submissions shall be delivered to:

Creative Operations Department

[email protected]

Sincerely,

Creative Operations Department

Attachments:

Attachment I : Statement of Work

Attachment II : Instructions to Offerors

Attachment III : Evaluation Criteria

Attachment IV : Proposal Cover Letter

ATTACHMENT I: STATEMENT OF WORK

PSS-SEL Jordanian Framework Validation Expert(s)- Consultancy Services

1. PROGRAM SUMMARY

The Technical Assistance Program (TAP), funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), is a five-year education and youth project that seeks to transform the organizational culture and improve the abilities within the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Youth to ensure officials can implement desired reforms. Creative and its partners will provide technical assistance in the development, roll-out, and tracking of policies and procedures to incorporate international best practices for public education and youth programming. Among the many activities in the Jordan Technical Assistance Program, it will support curriculum development, promote inclusive learning techniques, improve the skills of teachers and school managers, and other tangible activities that ultimately support changing the organizational culture within the two ministries and relevant agencies. The program will further support Jordan’s outreach and behavioral change communications initiatives that are aimed at creating a culture of reading, the inclusion of vulnerable children, and increased youth engagement.

2. Jordan PSS-SEL Framework Development Activity:

TAP is Supporting the Ministry of Education in developing a National Framework for Social Emotional Learning (“SEL National Framework”) tailored to the Jordan. The aim of this framework is to unify and integrate efforts across decision-makers, policies, and stakeholders to enhance within Jordan’s education system critical elements of social-emotional learning (SEL), including life skills development, safe school environments, inclusive education, and improved student learning outcomes. The framework targets various stakeholders, including Ministry of Education (MOE) partners, implementers, and key personnel within public schools, and communities. It prioritizes equipping Jordanian students with essential contextualized PSS-SEL competencies, fostering holistic development that benefits individuals, families, schools, communities, and the nation. The framework is rooted in research and tailored to Jordan’s context, ensuring alignment with local needs, and avoiding conflicting global frameworks.

3. Consultancy service Summary:

As part of the development of SEL National Framework, TAP has conducted focus group discussions and key informant interviews (KIIs) to assess the needs of the Jordanian context regarding psychosocial support (PSS) and SEL in public schools. These assessments have involved teachers and students from various grade levels, counselors, principals, and parents. TAP is assisting the MoE in analysis of the collected data and will support a validation process to check assumptions and engage MOE and education stakeholders in determining the suitability of the framework and materials for the Jordanian context. As part of its support to the validation process, TAP requires the expertise of PSS-SEL professionals to assist with key tasks, including data analysis and interpretation, in collaboration with a ministry-led committee of experts and TAP’s own national and international SEL experts.

4. Scope of Work:

Tasks and Responsibilities of the PSS-SEL Jordanian Framework Validation Experts:

1.Reviewing analysis reports for the Parents and students’ groups/the principals, teachers, and counselors’ groups, including:

• Need analysis based on conducted focus group discussions and Key Informative Interviews (KIIs). to identify SEL needs and priorities.
• Analysis of previous and current PSS-SEL programs endorsed by MOE and implemented in Jordanian public schools.

2. Delivering a thorough feedback and recommendations report that clearly outlines priorities and recommendations for improving the clarity, coherence, and comprehensiveness of the mapping analysis regarding SEL needs and programs.

3. Ensuring alignment with international SEL frameworks and best practices during the development of the SEL National Framework.

4. Collaborating with TAP’s experts and the MoE’s committee of experts to engage in discussions regarding recommendations and progress in the development of the framework.

5. Adhering to established timelines and deliverables while maintaining open communication with the project team to ensure the timely completion of the framework.

6. Providing insights into the specific needs of the Jordanian educational system regarding SEL, and how these needs can be addressed within the SEL National Framework.

7. Collaborating with the second PSS-SEL Jordanian Framework Validation Experts in presenting the validated SEL framework to MOE and NCCD decision-makers for endorsement, ensuring that it adequately addresses the SEL needs and priorities of Jordanian students and schools.

RESULTS AND/OR DELIVERABLE/MILESTONE SCHEDULE:

The performance benchmark will be based on the following task:

• Expected report for the Parents and students FDGs and KIIs / principals, teachers, and counselors FDGs and KIIs includes:
• Demonstrating an examination of the alignment between the proposed SEL National Framework with the international SEL frameworks of the mapping frameworks and best practices, with specific references and justifications for Parents’ and students’ data analysis.
• Recommendations document outlining actionable steps to improve the clarity, coherence, and comprehensiveness of the mapping analysis for Parents’ and students’ data analysis.
• Detailed feedback highlighting strengths and weaknesses of the mapping analysis for SEL needs and programs.
• Insights highlighting key findings regarding the specific SEL needs for Parents’ and students’ data / the principals’, teachers’, and counselors’ data within the Jordanian educational system and community.
• Recommendations suggesting how these needs can be effectively addressed within the SEL national framework.
• Present the validation report to the MoE and NCCD decision makers, highlighting the key aspects of the validation report.

Deliverable table for Expert 1:

Task # 1

Performance Benchmarks /Deliverables #1:

Analysis Report including all the above points for Parents’ and students’ data analysis.

Estimated LOE: 6 days

Estimated Timeline: 20th of June

Task # 2

Performance Benchmarks /Deliverables #2:

Presentation of the validation report to the MoE and NCCD decision makers

Estimated LOE: 2 days

Estimated Timeline: 25th of June

Task # 3

Performance Benchmarks /Deliverables #3:

Meetings with TAP team

Estimated LOE: 1 day

Estimated Timeline: 30th June

TOTAL Estimated LOE: 9 days

Deliverable table for Expert 2:

Task # 1

Performance Benchmarks /Deliverables 1:

Analysis Report including all the above points the principals’, teachers’, and counselors’ data analysis.

Estimated LOE : 6 days

Estimated Timeline: 20th of June

Task # 2

Performance Benchmarks /Deliverables 2:

Presentation of the validation report to the MoE and NCCD decision makers

Estimated LOE : 2 days

Estimated Timeline: 25th of June

Task # 3

Performance Benchmarks /Deliverables 3:

Meetings with TAP team

Estimated LOE : 1 day

Estimated Timeline: 30th June

TOTAL Estimated LOE: 9 Days

5. Required Qualifications:

PSS-SEL Jordanian Framework Validation expert should be able to demonstrate the following qualifications.

• Hold Minimum bachelor’s degree in psychology or any related field.
• Extensive professional experience in education policy development for at least 10 years,
• Recent experience working on the design, development, and/or implementation of SEL within an education system (including but not limited to life skills development, safe school environments, inclusive education, and improved student learning outcomes).
• Experience leading or contributing to the development of SEL PSS-SEL frameworks or policies.
• Knowledge of international education standards, preferably as related to PSS-SEL.
• Experience in Jordan or similar contexts with diverse stakeholders.
• Proficiency in English and Arabic.

6. ESTIMATED PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE and LEVEL OF EFFORT (LOE)

• ESTIMATED PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE: 3 Months.

* Creative anticipates issuing a Consultancy Agreement (CA) valid for a Period of Performance for approximately 3 Months for each consultant.

• LEVEL OF EFFORT (LOE): 9 Days for each consultant.

7. Ordering Procedure

Purchases may only be made by Creative via written Fixed Price Level of Effort (LOE) Consultant Agreement.

Daily rates are based on an 8-hour working day. Any hours worked in excess of 8 hours will not be paid. Working days consisting of less than 8 hours shall be prorated accordingly.

8. Key Working Relationships:

• The consultants will administratively report to the Operations and Security Manager and technically report to SEL activity lead in TAP.

9. PLACE OF PERFORMANCE Amman – Jordan

The above LOE/Working days are tentative and subject to decrease depending on program needs.

Confidentiality Requirements:

The Consultant acknowledges the sensitive nature of the information they may encounter during this engagement and agrees to maintain strict confidentiality regarding all proprietary or confidential information disclosed by the Client. This includes, but is not limited to, any data, reports, documents, or discussions related to the project.

How to apply

Attachment II

INSTRUCTIONS TO OFFERORS

1. General Instructions

These Instructions to Offerors will not form part of the offer or of the Agreement. They are intended solely to aid Offerors in the preparation of their proposals. Read and follow these instructions carefully.

1. The proposal and all corresponding documents related to the proposal must be written in the English language, unless otherwise explicitly allowed. Additionally, all proposals should be single-spaced with clear section headings, and be presented in the order specified in Attachment III – Evaluation Criteria.
2. Proposals must include only the Offeror’s own work. No text should be copied from sources outside of your organization, unless those sources are adequately cited and credited. If Creative determines that any part of the proposal is plagiarized from outside sources, the Offeror will be automatically disqualified.
3. Proposals and all cost and price figures must be presented in local currency or USD. All prices should be gross of tax.
4. The Offeror must state in their Proposal the validity period of their offer. The minimum offer acceptance period for this RFP is 90 days after the closing date of the RFP. If an Offeror has provided a validity period of less than 90 days, they will be asked to revise this. If the Offeror does not extend the validity period, their proposal will be rejected. Creative reserves the right not to make an award.
5. The Technical Proposal and Cost Proposal must be kept separate from each other. Technical Proposals must not make reference to cost or pricing information at any point. This will enable in order the technical evaluation to be made strictly on the basis of technical merit.
6. No costs incurred by the Offerors in preparing and submitting the proposal are reimbursable by Creative. All such costs will be at the Offeror’s expense.
7. Responsibility Determination: Award shall only be made to “responsive” vendors. To enable Creative to make this determination, the Offeror must provide a cover letter, as provided in Attachment IV.
8. Late Offers: Offerors are wholly responsible for ensuring that their Offers are received in accordance with the instructions stated herein. A late Offer will be recommended for rejection, even if it was late as a result of circumstances beyond the Offeror’s control. Late offers will only be considered at Creative’s Procurement Department’s discretion.
9. Modification/Withdrawal of Offers: Offerors have the right to withdraw, modify or correct their offer after it has been delivered to Creative at the address stated above, and provided that the request is made before the RFP closing date.
10. Disposition of Proposals: Proposals submitted in response to this RFP will not be returned. Reasonable effort will be made to ensure confidentiality of proposals received from all Offerors. This RFP does not seek information of a highly proprietary nature, but if such information is included in the Offeror’s proposal, the Offeror must alert Creative and must annotate the material by marking it “Confidential and Proprietary” so that these sections can be treated appropriately.
11. Clarifications and Amendments to the RFP: Any questions regarding this solicitation must be emailed to [email protected]. No questions/clarifications will be entertained if they are received by another means. The solicitation number should be stated in the subject. Responses will be complied and emailed to the requesting potential Offeror and will be sent to all offerors that requested this RFP or re-posted publicly if offered as a full and open competition.
12. Creative anticipates that discussions with Offerors will be conducted; however, Creative reserves the right to make an award without discussions. It is strongly recommended that Offerors present their best offer.

Failure to agree and comply with any of the above specifications will result in the Offeror being considered unresponsive and the proposal may be rejected.

B. Submission of Proposal:

Proposals must be submitted in two separate e-mails:

• E-mail 1 – Technical Proposal
• E-mail 2 – Cost proposal
• Each e-mail should be clearly labeled with the RFP number and project title.
• Proposals must be delivered no later than the specified date/time.

Offerors who do not submit their technical and cost proposals separately may be automatically disqualified.

C. Content of Proposal:

The proposal shall be comprised of Three sections:

i. The Cover Letter (Attachment IV)

ii. The Technical Proposal

iii. The Cost/Business Proposal

The Cover Letter: should be on the Offeror’s letterhead and MUST contain the information requested in Attachment IV.

2)Technical Proposal:

1. The Technical Proposal is the opportunity for the Offeror to demonstrate that the Individual is “technically capable” of implementing the activity and should demonstrate the Offeror’s understanding of and capabilities to carry out the work, and address the key issues described in the Evaluation Criteria in Attachment III.
2. The Technical Proposal should be divided into clearly separate sections following the same order of the Evaluation Criteria in Attachment III. A mis-ordered proposal that makes information hard to find will result in lower scores.
3. If an Offeror submits a proposal that fails to respond to the majority of the information requested in this RFP, as outlined specifically in the statement of work and the evaluation criteria, the Offeror’s proposal will be automatically disqualified.

3) The Cost Proposal: must be submitted separately from the technical proposal and will primarily indicate the cost for performing the work, Daily rate subject to 5% income tax deduction.

Failure to comply with any of the above points will result in the Offeror being considered “unresponsive” and the proposal may be rejected.

If an Offeror provides insufficient information in their technical and/or cost proposal, Creative reserves the right to request additional information, or to request a revised proposal from the Offeror, if necessary.

Creative reserves the right to make no award, or multiple awards, under this RFP.

Attachment III

EVALUATION CRITERIA

A. BASIS OF AWARD:

1.A Creative will evaluate proposals on a best value basis, in accordance with the Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) Subpart 15.1 – Source Selection Processes and Techniques. In all solicitations, Creative will consider and conduct an evaluation on the basis of both technical and cost submissions. The relative importance of these two factors places technically above cost. In rare cases, Creative may also award to an offeror other than the highest technically rated Offeror or the lowest price Offeror, in accordance with FAR 15.101-1.

2. The award will be made to the Offeror whose offer presents the Best Value which is the optimal combination of technical merits and reasonable cost and does not exceed the internal budget established for this effort. Proposals will be scored on technical factors first. Only the Cost/Business proposals of those offers that surpass the minimum qualifying score of 70 points in the technical evaluation will have their Cost Proposal reviewed. Those that do not reach this qualifying score in the Technical Evaluation will be considered non-competitive and their Cost/Business proposals will not be considered , the shortlisted offeror may require to deliver a PP presentation and interview .

B. EVALUATION CRITERIA

Technical Competence – presented in the Technical Proposal.

The award will be given to the person who achieves the highest score within the following competitive criteria.

A. Qualifications and Experience: 70 points

B. Professional References: 30 points

As described in table below: The evaluation will be done according to the criteria shown in the table:

Item# 1: Qualifications and Experience : 70 Points

Requirement:

The applicant must attach his/her CV.

• Hold Minimum bachelor’s degree in psychology or any related field. (10 points)
• Extensive professional experience in education policy development for at least 10 years, (15 points)
• Recent experience working on the design, development, and/or implementation of SEL within an education system (including but not limited to life skills development, safe school environments, inclusive education, and improved student learning outcomes). (15 points)
• Experience leading or contributing to the development of SEL PSS-SEL frameworks or policies. (15 points)
• Knowledge of international education standards, preferably as related to PSS-SEL. (10 points)
• Experience in Jordan or similar contexts with diverse stakeholders. (5 points)

Item# 2: Professional References – points Available: 30 Points

Requirement:

Enlist three professional referees with contact information, preferably with NGOs, USAID and/or UN agencies using table below “Past Performance /Reference check” (10 points/ referee)

Total points :100 Points

If an Offeror submits a proposal that fails to respond to the majority of the information requested

in this RFP, as outlined specifically in the statement of work and the evaluation criteria, the Offeror’s proposal will be automatically disqualified.

C. Past Performance /Reference check : Enlist three professional referees

(a) Activity Title

(b) Location(s) of activity

(c) Synopsis of the activity and its relevance to this RFP

(d) Performance period (date, duration and if completed on schedule)

(e) Prime or Subcontractor?

(f) Amount for the activity

(g) Name & Contact Info (E-mail and phone) of client

Cost Reasonableness & Financial Capability – presented in Cost Proposal. Not Scored.

Submit fully burdened rates for each category, including illustrative consultant rates Creative’s review of the Cost Proposal shall determine if the overall costs proposed are realistic for the work to be performed, reflect a correct understanding of the project requirements, and are consistent with the Offeror’s Technical Proposal. Creative will also review individual line items and determine if they are allowable, allocable, and reasonable.

If an Offeror submits a proposal that fails to respond to the majority of the information requested in this RFP, as outlined specifically in the statement of work and the evaluation criteria, the Offeror’s proposal will be automatically disqualified.

Creative reserves the right to request additional supporting documentation or a revised proposal from an Offeror if insufficient information has been provided in the Offeror’s technical and/or cost proposal. If the requested information is not provided, Creative has the right to disqualify the firm from further consideration.