Nursing Instructional and Assessment Program

Project Overview Minnesota State Colleges and Universities (“Minnesota State”) seeks proposals from qualified vendors to provide a comprehensive, modular nursing education solution that supports student learning, assessment, clinical simulation, analytics, and faculty development. Minnesota State intends to establish a master agreement that allows participating campuses to purchase modules individually or as bundled packages. Campuses operate with varying program models and curriculum approaches; therefore, the solution must: Use standard nursing education terminology Be interoperable with common campus systems Support varying levels of faculty adoption Be configurable across multiple campuses and cohorts Objectives Improve student outcomes through robust learning resources, practice assessments, remediation pathways, and NCLEX® preparation tools. Provide simulation capabilities—including virtual scenarios and a simulated electronic health record (EHR)—that develop clinical judgment and align with current nursing competencies. Offer faculty development and program support, including training, continuing education (CE), item-writing resources, and curriculum alignment assistance. Deliver actionable analytics for students, faculty, and program administrators, including progress tracking and early identification of at-risk learners. Support multi-campus contracting flexibility through tiered pricing, volume discounts, per-student or per-module pricing, and cross-campus purchasing options. Systemwide Availability Clause The contract resulting from this solicitation may be made available for use by all colleges and universities within the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system, as well as the system office. By responding to this solicitation, the responder acknowledges and agrees that, if awarded, the contract may be utilized by any Minnesota State institution, at its discretion, under the same terms, conditions, and pricing as specified in the awarded agreement. Scope of Services 1: Student Learning Resources Digital content aligned to nursing curricula and AACN, CNEA, ACEN, and other accreditations standards Searchable, device-agnostic content library Question banks with rationales and multiple difficulty levels Adaptive practice options Skills videos with associated checklists Interactive case studies supporting clinical reasoning Remediation pathways automatically assigned based on performance E-books integrated within the LMS; optional physical materials with transparent pricing 2: Assessment & NCLEX® Preparation Formative and summative testing tools Secure exam delivery with item randomization, time limits, accommodations, and proctoring integrations Flexible test banks with faculty customization Item authoring tools with blueprinting, tagging, version control, and psychometric reporting Adaptive quizzing functionality Predictive analytics and readiness indicators Structured remediation plans linked to assessment performance Comprehensive NCLEX preparation including: Self-paced and guided review options Live or virtual review sessions Practice and proctored exams Structured support for repeat test takers 3: Simulation Virtual, screen-based simulations with branching scenarios Faculty debrief guides and measurable learning outcomes Simulated EHR with realistic documentation workflows (orders, medications, notes, vitals) Configurable cases and customizable rubrics Integration with campus simulation labs where feasible 4: Analytics & Reporting Role-based dashboards (student, faculty, program administrator) Drill-down reporting from program level to item level Early alert indicators with configurable thresholds Longitudinal tracking across courses and terms LMS gradebook integration Data export capabilities and documented APIs for institutional research 5: Faculty Development & Program Support Ongoing training (live, virtual, and self-paced) Continuing education opportunities with certificate tracking Curriculum mapping and alignment support Program evaluation and systematic review assistance Dedicated account or program manager Regular business reviews with documented action plans 6: Technical Requirements & Integration Integration Integration with D2L Brightspace (primary LMS across the system) Support for LTI 1.3 (or current standard) for embedded access Single sign-on (SSO) via SAML or OpenID Connect Grade synchronization and export functionality Hosting & Reliability Cloud-hosted solution Minimum 99.9% monthly uptime target Published maintenance windows Disaster recovery documentation including RTO/RPO Security Encryption in transit and at rest Role-based access control (RBAC) Annual security testing and vulnerability management Incident response procedures and notification protocols Accessibility Conformance with WCAG 2.2 AA standards Assistive technology compatibility Current VPAT documentation Ongoing accessibility improvement process Scalability Support for multiple campuses, programs, and cohorts Configurable branding and entitlements by campus Data Governance & Ownership Minnesota State retains ownership of institutional and student data. Vendors must provide full data export upon request or contract termination. Student data may not be monetized or used beyond contractual purposes. User Experience and Interface Intuitive User Experience for Faculty and Students: A user-friendly interface that facilitates ease of use for both faculty and students. Platform Adaptability and Mobile Accessibility: Compatibility with mobile devices to support flexible learning and accessibility. Artificial Intelligence Transparency (If Applicable) If AI or automated decision-making tools are used within the platform, vendors must disclose: Where AI is used (e.g., item generation, scoring, remediation recommendations) Human oversight processes Bias mitigation practices Data privacy safeguards Selection Process The selection process includes Accounting Officer, Administrative Assistant, Associate Vice President of Finance, Buyer, Dean of Health Services, Deans of Nursing, Director of Business Services, Director of Finance, Director of Procurement, Nursing Faculty, Purchasing Supervisor, and Vice President of Information Technology. This group will evaluate the proposals and make the final decision. Evaluation Factors The following factors and their identified weight will be used to evaluate the responses: Topic Factor Weight Adherence to Minnesota State Terms and Conditions. A statement of the objectives, goals, and tasks to show or demonstrate its view and understanding of the nature of the contract 5 Work Plan. A description of the deliverables to be provided by the Responder along with a detailed work plan that identifies the major tasks to be accomplished and be used as a scheduling and managing tool, as well as the basis for invoicing. Functional Capabilities Inegration & Security Analytics Implementation & Support Faculty Development 40 Cost/Value. Identify the level of the participation of Minnesota State in the contract, as well as any other services to be provided by Minnesota State, and details of cost allowances for this participation. 30 Qualifications of Respondent and its personnel. An outline of the Responder’s background and experience with examples of similar work complete by the Responder and a list of personnel who will conduct the project, detailing their training, and work experience. Resumes or other information about project personnel should not, if possible, contain personal telephone numbers, home addresses or home email addresses. If it is necessary to include personal contact information, please clearly indicate in the proposal that personal contact information is being provided. 5 Completeness, thoroughness and detail of the response Completeness, thoroughness and detail of the response as reflected by the proposal's discussions and coverage of all elements of work listed above 5 Accessibility A completed response to the linked Voluntary Product/Service Accessibility Template(s)®(VPAT) for all software, hardware, and websites as applicable (guidance available in the ‘Products’ tab). The response must contain adequate information to evaluate the responsiveness to the accessibility standards (e.g., a completed VPAT or equivalent). 15 Total: 100 Contract Terms Minnesota State desires to enter into a contract with the successful Respondent(s) effective by July 1, 2026 or on the date the last recognized signature is obtained, whichever occurs later. The length of such contract(s) will be 5 Years with the option to renew two one-year extentions. If Minnesota State and Respondent are unable to negotiate and sign a contract by June 1, 2026, then Minnesota State reserves the right to seek an alternative Respondent(s). Minnesota State reserves the right to name a date which all responding Respondents will be invited to present demonstrations or participate in an interview. Minnesota State does not agree to reach a decision by any certain date although it is hoped the evaluation and selection will be completed by the contract terms date identified. Inquiries and Submission Instructions Minnesota State accepts all questions and bid submissions exclusively through Minnesota State's e-procurement system. Hard copy submissions, emails, or submissions through any other medium will not be considered. Each Respondent is solely responsible for the timely delivery of its questions and bids by the RFx date and time deadlines. Failure to meet the deadlines shall be grounds for rejection. Oral Presentations & Demonstrations After evaluation of written proposals, Minnesota State will shortlist responders for oral presentations and demonstrations. Shortlisted responders will be notified in writing and provided with scheduling instructions. Demonstrations are intended to validate proposed solutions and allow clarification of responses. Responders should ensure that key personnel and subject matter experts are available for the presentation on Thursday May 7, 2026. Minnesota State will make reasonable efforts to accommodate each responder’s scheduling preferences; however, Minnesota State reserves the right to assign dates and times at its discretion.