Title IV Student Financial Aid Origination and Disbursement Services

This Request for Information (RFI) is for planning purposes only and shall not be construed as a Request of Proposal or as an obligation on the part of the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Federal Student Aid (FSA) to acquire any products or services. FSA does not intend to award a contract on the basis of this RFI nor pay for the information provided. No entitlement to payment of direct or indirect costs or charges will arise as a result of submission of responses to the RFI and/or FSA's use of such information. The information provided shall be provided at no cost to the Government. ============================================== FSA is conducting market research for Title IV Student Financial Aid Origination and Disbursement Services and Systems. The Title IV programs for which FSA is responsible to administer currently include Direct Loans, Pell Grants, Academic Competitiveness Grants (ACG), National Science and Mathematics Access To Retain Talent Grants (National SMART Grant), and Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grants. In FY2013, FSA originated approximately 33 million grants and loans, totaling over $66 billion in awards. Currently, FSA utilizes the Common Origination and Disbursement (COD) system for the origination and disbursement of all Title IV aid programs mentioned above. It is anticipated that the current contract for the COD system will expire on September 30, 2015. FSA is seeking to obtain market information and industry practices on the services and systems that may support the current and projected volume of Title IV originations and disbursements. These services and systems must allow FSA to process loan and grant originations and disbursements efficiently, in compliance with legislative and regulatory requirements, while maintaining the financial integrity of these critical Title IV programs. Please provide evidence of capabilities, knowledge, and experience demonstrating the ability to expeditiously meet this objective. The information provided may include names and abstracts of similar work completed; identification of any competition barriers; and a possible evaluation criteria for the procurement. FSA anticipates utilizing the two-phase source selection approach for the new Title IV student financial aid origination and disbursement services and systems procurement. The phase 1 solicitation is projected to be posted on FBO on or about February 21, 2014. The information provided for this RFI shall be double-spaced, size 12 font, contain only substantive information, and not exceed seven (7) pages. The information provided shall include the following: (a) company name; (b) address; (c) point of contact; (d) phone, fax, and email; (e) business size; (f) DUNS number; and (g) CAGE code. The information shall be e-mailed in either PDF or MS Word document format by 1 PM ET, January 30, 2014. Please email the information to the points of contacts listed below. Primary point of contact: Raj Kohli Contracting Officer Email: raj.kohli@ed.gov Phone: 202-377-3635 Secondary point of contact: Connie Ginn Sr. Contracting Officer Executive Business Advisor Email: consuela.ginn@ed.gov Phone: 202-377-3589