U--VLP FY18 Nationwide

THIS ANNOUNCEMENT IS NOT A NOTICE OF SOLICITATION ISSUANCE. THIS IS A SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE FOR PLANNING PURPOSES ONLY DISCLAIMER This Sources Sought Notice is for informational and planning purposes only and does not constitute a solicitation. All information received in response to this Notice that is marked as proprietary will be handled accordingly. In accordance with FAR 15.201(e), responses to this Notice are not offers and cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract. Responders are solely responsible for all expenses associated with responding to this Notice. Information received as a result of this Notice will become part of our market research and will be used to determine interest and the capability of potential sources. Furthermore, those who respond to this Notice should not anticipate feedback with regard to its submission. INTRODUCTION This is for the second year of the Veterans Legacy Program issued in response to market research conducted under this Sources Sought Notice. The intent of this Notice is to prepare a Request for Proposal from qualified universities partnered with public school (K-12) institutions in engaging in a program of development for research-based educational outreach materials as part of the Department of Veterans Affairs National Cemetery Administration s (NCA) Veterans Legacy Program (VLP). NCA has launched VLP to promote memorialization of the nation s veterans legacy enshrined in national cemeteries. Responses to this Notice will contribute to VLP s Local Legacy, National Heritage program, which seeks to create an experience of learning that builds community and commemoration of veterans legacy, using National Cemeteries as a resource. The American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) is a partner in this program. Responses to this Notice should address in what ways students will research, develop, and share their research on the history of veterans interred at National Cemeteries as well as the products of their research, to include development of digital and in-print learning materials, and digital media products that showcase university students teaching school-level students the stories of service and sacrifice of veterans interred in National Cemeteries, and the cost of each. This research must be conducted under the guidance of qualified instructors (e.g. professors). Proposals should include treatment of veterans interred in National Cemeteries and may include treatment of service members interred at ABMC cemeteries, as appropriate. BACKGROUND The Veterans Legacy Program was launched by the National Cemetery Administration on Memorial Day 2016, and is now preparing for its second full year with the goal of extending memorialization of the veterans legacy enshrined in the national cemeteries. NCA s initial suite of products included in-print lesson plans, digital maps, and other materials written to support the educational outreach needs of two national cemeteries in the pilot program, Riverside (CA) National Cemetery and Beaufort (SC) National Cemetery (http://www.cem.va.gov/legacy/index.asp). NCA s goal is to develop educational outreach materials for all 135 of its national cemeteries, eventually, in media and formats that reflect the latest in research, instructional technology, and best practices. Memorial Day 2018 is the target date for a public launch of the next cycle of VLP materials for schools and public outreach. NCA and ABMC have partnered in the Understanding Sacrifice series of educational programming, which sought to impart the skills required for cemetery research on school teachers with the goal of researching veterans and service members of World War II. This partnership under Local Legacy, National Heritage continues the collaboration between ABMC and NCA but with the focus on engaging undergraduate, graduate, and school-level students in cemetery research related to those form their home states who wore the uniform in service to their nation and are interred in NCA and ABMC cemeteries. REQUIREMENTS NCA seeks a university and public school partnership to focus these efforts on a regional national cemetery. This partnership can include several teachers across several schools and grade-levels in a single school district and can include university faculty members in disciplines such as Education, history, American Studies, graphic design, computer science, or other areas of the humanities, digital humanities, or humanities education who are willing to instruct and mentor their students on the research and development of educational materials for school-level students and the general public on the inherited veterans legacy in the local national cemetery. The scope and depth of this partnership can vary in numbers of contributing teachers, school administrators, and university faculty members in each institution, but NCA will require a formalized partnership between school district and university, demonstrated by a letter of commitment or memorandum of agreement, submitted with the proposal. An illustration of what NCA seeks: via a written agreement, public school teachers working with university faculty on a project that instructs and engages students of all levels in research that leads to commemorating the history of veterans interred in a National Cemetery and presented in variety of publicly accessible digital media formats. University faculty would provide opportunities for students to research veterans history and develop educational outreach materials. School teachers would assist university students in the development of this research into lesson plans and learning materials and then teach these lessons to their students. Please see lesson plans available at Veterans Legacy Program website for examples of the standard of product we seek for lesson plans https://www.cem.va.gov/legacy/index.asp. These lesson plans serve as a template for style, organization, and adherence to Common Core State Standards (CCSS). For states not using CCSS, local standards can be used. In addition to the format and standards, the lessons should be student-centered and designed to engage students with authentic materials, e.g. primary sources, data sets, art or architecture, etc., that allow them to think and respond critically about the Veteran experience through the context of the chosen subject-area. Such authentic sources should be included in the lesson plan and prepared for students and teachers with appropriate annotation. Lesson plans should also include sufficient historical background to assist teachers who may be new to the topic. If the research leads to discovery of alumni of the school and/or university interred at a National Cemetery of focus, NCA would be interested in supporting the commemoration of those alumni-veterans at those national cemeteries; NCA would also support memorialization of those alumni-veterans on school/university grounds, such as the construction of memorials or monuments (include in the budget). This illustration is only a rough sketch of what NCA seeks. NCA is supporting and fostering a learning partnership that showcases local history and perspectives, to be featured in the research, and local interest in the forms of commemoration and memorialization. NCA will provide access to its resources; national cemetery personnel will facilitate the research, testing, and implementation of developed materials for teachers, faculty members, and students of all levels by providing data about Veterans interred in national cemeteries. EXPENSES COVERED BY NCA In the proposed budget please indicate in your proposal the cost for each of the items specified below. Note that the following list is neither inclusive nor definitive of costs that will be covered; if the scope and nature of your proposal requires additional items than what is covered here; please include them in the appropriate section (see below). NCA will support the following: reasonable additional compensation for full-time university instructional faculty named in the proposal; indirect costs (IDCs) appropriate for humanities and Education programs; production costs for produced materials; participating students, faculty and staff between host institution and national cemeteries, cost of workforce in direct support of program; transportation expenses for university students and school staff and students between host institution and national cemetery; and costs for extended memorialization, if applicable. Travel for internal meetings, such as conferences between NCA and program partners, will be authorized as well. Details about such meetings will be made available, but for budgeting purposes, please budget for one trip for no more than three team members to travel to a centrally-located city for two full business days. EXPENSES NOT COVERED BY NCA Proposed budget can include any expenses directly related to student-centered events at national cemeteries. The following will not be supported by NCA: ordinary wages and benefits; instructional materials (e.g. textbooks); undergraduate or graduate tuition; acquisition of computer or network hardware or software not used solely for this work; food and beverages; video equipment (cameras, lighting, etc.); and clothing. The goal of this program is to fund time and access to conduct research and the expense of digital production. SUBMITTAL INFORMATION Please respond to the following prompts and questions. I. Narrative Description of Proposed Program: please provide a narrative description of your program (NTE 4 pages). College or University: What academic disciplines do interested faculty members represent? Please name all contributing faculty members, their titles, and their institutional affiliations. How do you plan to encourage and manage student contributions? (I.e. will this be embedded in a coursework experience or through a service organization or club?) What level(s) of students do you plan to involve (e.g. junior, senior, graduate)? How many? Do you envision this as a research opportunity for students or an opportunity to learn in product development? If teacher candidates are to be involved, would they be able to pilot these lessons in their field placement(s)? Describe management staffing structures and project management plan. Public School District Will this partnership involve a single class, be school-wide, or district-wide? Please name the school, administrators and teachers involved. What grade level(s) and subject(s)? As a culminating event, are you willing to visit the local national cemetery on or about Memorial Day 2018, at NCA s expense? What are the curriculum standards that your state uses, e.g. Common Core? II. DELIVERABLES Outreach materials Describe the types of materials you plan to develop with the intention of sharing with the cemetery director(s) 30 days prior to Memorial Day 2018. If you plan to develop materials that cannot be completed or delivered prior to Memorial Day 2018, please describe those. Digital Media Products a. Describe the digital media products you envision, do they include any or all of the following: videos, films, apps, digital exhibits (websites), podcasts, or something else, please specify. III. TIMETABLE Please provide a general timeline with defined benchmarks for each component of your proposal. If you envision any portion of this proposed project going beyond Memorial Day 2018, please describe those, with justification. IV. BUDGET Additional compensation for full-time faculty members named in proposal Institutional indirect costs (IDCs) (please identify the rate) Wages for student-hourly staffing in direct support of program (total number of hours and rate) Production costs of all materials to be delivered prior to Memorial Day 2018 (please itemize by type) Authorized transportation for faculty and students between host institution and national cemetery Production and hosting expense for digital materials and memorialization Honoraria for school partners named in proposal Any additional expenses incurred not addressed in the above criteria that are essential to the implantation of your proposal (please itemize and ensure that it is mentioned and justified in the narrative). Total. It is requested that interested parties submit an electronic response to this RFP to both Points of Contact (POC) listed below. Primary Point of Contact. Secondary Point of Contact: Elizabeth Monohan Bryce Carpenter, Ph.D. Contracting Officer Educational Outreach Programs Officer contact@example.gov contact@example.gov +1 (555) 000-0000 +1 (555) 000-0000