Resources

Workforce Investment Act Title 1-B Adult and Dislocated Worker Programs
Washington Families Fund Systems Innovation Grants

General

Workforce Investment Act Title I-B Adult and Dislocated Worker Programs
Washington Families Fund Systems Innovation Grants

Schedule

Responses to the RFP are due no later than 5 pm on April 7, 2011, and there is a mandatory bidder’s conference on March 14, 2011 from 3 – 5 pm in the WDCSC Board Room.

Corrections

On Page 4, Recruitment will be done through the Investing in Families Pilot Project and will not be required of the contractor.

On Page 7, item 2., the executive Summary is not part of the 15 page limit noted in 3.

On Page 7, item 3., the questions are listed in Section III.

Questions & Answers

Q1: How is it that individuals can be served when the grant is specifically for families?

A1: The primary focus is families but WIA funds may be used to serve eligible individuals as well.  WDCSC wanted to leave the option of serving a limited number of individuals open given the feedback about the needs of individuals experiencing homelessness during various community forums.  It is not necessary to apply to serve individuals and any funds expended on individuals will not be matched by WFF resources from Building Changes.

Q2: How would the provider be expected to work with homeless families that are not ready for employment?

A2: The sequence of services should be tailored to meet the needs of the families served.  For those family members not ready for employment, services such as life skills training, pre-employment training, work experiences, job search skills, and other services as appropriate should be provided to prepare them for successfully obtaining and retaining employment.

Q3: What are the other services the 75 families will be receiving?

A3: The successful bidder is expected to be able to work with the Housing Resources Specialist and the Navigator as well as housing, economic opportunity, and tailored service providers to address each family’s unique needs in the following life domains from the Snohomish County Self-Sufficiency Matrix:  Access to Services, Career Resiliency and Training, Childcare, Education, Employment, Financial Life Skills, Legal, Mental Health, Physical Health, Substance Use, Support System, and Transportation.  Information about the Snohomish County Self-Sufficiency Matrix may be found at http://www.worksourceonline.com/js/matrix.htm.

Q4: Can participants expect to access ITA dollars?

A4: It is the intent of WDCSC to make ITA funds available to the successful bidder to meet the needs of participants as available.  It should be noted that the amount of funding to be available in Program Year 2011 for these services is highly uncertain at this point in time and the availability of ITA funds unknown.  Therefore, bidders should plan on addressing how they intend to access non-WIA resources to address the training needs of participants.  Additionally, should a given bidder wish to supplement their services with access to ITA funds, the anticipated amount of ITA funds that the bidder would seek to access should be identified in the answer to Question 6).  Please note that WDCSC generally provides ITA funds for one or two quarters and not for an entire course of study lasting more than 600 hours.

Q5: Give the limited number of organizations that appear to fit the qualifications to lead this project and the numerous client needs expected to be addressed, wouldn’t it be logical to submit a collaborative proposal that brings together the differing expertise of multiple organizations?

A5: This is an option available to bidders.  To facilitate the potential for collaboration, the following entities were represented at the mandatory Bidders’ Conference:  Bridgeways, Housing Hope, Volunteers of America of Western Washington, and YWCA of Seattle-King County-Snohomish County.

Q6: How is this contract different than others that the WDC has put out?

A6: This Request for Proposals is specifically to serve families, and potentially other individuals, experiencing and at risk of homelessness within the framework of the Investing in Families Pilot Project.  It is designed to procure a provider that brings specific housing expertise to the integration of the housing and workforce development systems for the families and individuals served and to enhancing the capacity of all system partners to deliver a comprehensive array of services customized to meet the needs of each family served.

Q7: What is an Adult Employment and Credential Rate?

A7: This is the number of adults who received a training service, were employed in the first quarter after exit and received a certificate/credential by the end of the third quarter after exit divided by the number of adults who exited during the quarter.  The measure excludes adults who did not receive training services, adults who were not employed in the first quarter after exit and did not receive training services, adults who have a documented exclusion at exit (institutionalized, deceased, reservist called to active duty, health/medical or family care issue), and adults who received training services and had a documented exclusion in the first, second, or third quarter following exit.

Q8: How do you demonstrate that your staff is paid a competitive rate for the human services field?

A8: You may utilize the following data to demonstrate this point.

SOC Code

Description

2010 Median Hourly Wage

2010 Avg Hourly Wage

21-1011

Substance abuse and behavioral disorder counselors

$13.72

$14.64

21-1012

Educational, vocational, and school counselors

$21.23

$22.48

21-1013

Marriage and family therapists

$12.61

$13.54

21-1014

Mental health counselors

$15.21

$16.80

21-1015

Rehabilitation counselors

$14.34

$15.57

21-1019

Counselors, all other

$14.67

$16.34

21-1021

Child, family, and school social workers

$15.12

$15.99

21-1022

Medical and public health social workers

$22.06

$21.87

21-1023

Mental health and substance abuse social workers

$16.94

$17.20

21-1029

Social workers, all other

$19.75

$19.42

21-1091

Health educators

$19.05

$19.59

21-1092

Probation officers and correctional treatment specialists

$26.90

$27.06

21-1093

Social and human service assistants

$11.96

$12.47

21-1099

Community and social service specialists, all other

$16.78

$18.31

21-2011

Clergy

$9.05

$10.12

21-2021

Directors, religious activities and education

$8.88

$9.66

21-2099

Religious workers, all other

$10.23

$11.35

 

Total

$15.37

$16.23

Q9: How was the dollar amount available to serve individuals determined?

A9: It was based on funds available in the budget approved by the WDCSC Board of Directors.

Q10: How does the $22,400 relate to the total dollar amount?

A10: The total funds available includes the $22,400 in WFF dollars being made available by Building Changes.  The budget developed should include the total funds available.  The successful bidder will be awarded two contracts, one from WDCSC for WIA Adult and Dislocated Worker Program funds and one from Building Changes for WFF dollars.  WDCSC and Building Changes will determine which portion of the funds from each will support specific budget items.

Q11: What would the dollar amount available be if an organization proposed to serve only families?

A11: It would be 20 percent of $140,000 which is $28,000.

Q12: When may an indirect cost rate be used?

A12: A bidder may include a single indirect cost in its budget when it has a negotiated indirect cost agreement with a cognizant federal or state agency.  A copy of the agreement should be included in the proposal.  In instances where an entity does not have an indirect cost agreement, it must itemize all costs budgeted.  Please note the following limitation provided in the Terms and Conditions for WDCSC service delivery contracts:

“Costs other than those costs associated with the direct delivery of the services in this Agreement are limited to no more than 10% of direct service delivery staff salaries and benefits.  Only entities with an indirect cost rate negotiated with a federal or state cognizant agency or an audited rate may have indirect costs, and may charge either their negotiated indirect cost rate or 10% of direct service delivery staff salaries and benefits, whichever is lower.  Documentation of the indirect cost rate must be provided on an annual basis.  If an agency does not have a negotiated or audited indirect cost rate, no indirect costs may be charged.”

Q13: Must individuals who are, and are anticipated to remain, unable to work but are identified by Coordinated Entry for the Investing in Families Pilot Project be enrolled in WIA and served through this program?

A13: Every individual who comes through Coordinated Entry and is referred to the program by the Navigator must be assessed for employability and enrolled into WIA if it is determined that s/he could benefit from workforce development services.  The Navigator will not refer individuals who are and are anticipated to remain unable to work.  It is anticipated that the number of individuals in the Investing in Families Pilot Project who are determined to meet this criterion will be small.  In such instances, the contractor will receive additional referrals through Coordinated Entry to ensure the ability to serve at least 75 families.

Q14: If a bidder chooses to serve only families, how much money would be available and would the bidder lose 15 points on question #4?

A14: The amount available would be $140,000 in WIA funds plus $28,000 in Washington Family Fund dollars for a total of $168,000. Points would not be lost on bidding to serve families exclusively.

Q15: Will you please clarify the answer in the Q&A section for Question #11?

A15: System Innovation Funds will be provided by Building Changes from the Washington Families Fund to match those WIA funds committed to serving families as defined by The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.  System Innovation Funds will not be provided to match those WIA funds committed to serving individuals who are not members of families.  Therefore, if a bidder chooses to bid to spend 80% of the $140,000 (which is $112,000) on families and 20% of the $140,000 (which is $28,000) on individuals who are not members of families, Building Changes will only provide System Innovation Funds to match $112,000 which, at 20%, is $22,400.  (The other 20% will be incorporated into the Investing in Families Flex Fund).  If a bidder chooses to bid for all $140,000 to serve families, Building Changes will provide System Innovation Funds to match all $140,000 which, at 20%, is $28,000.

Q16: How will non-families participating (single adults as well as dislocated workers) be selected?

A16: Many dislocated workers are members of families and will be counted as such (please see the following question and answer).  Bidders proposing to serve single adults should describe how they propose to recruit those single adults in their answer to Question 5) in Section III of the RFP.

Q17: Are WIA Title I-B Dislocated Worker funds strictly limited for use with those individuals [single adults]?  If so, would this apply to $14,000 or $28,000?

A17: Dislocated Worker funds are to be used to serve individuals who meet the WIA definition of a dislocated worker as interpreted by WDCSC in its policies and they may be members of families or single adults, depending on the composition of their family unit.  If members of families, they will be considered as such and any funds spent on them will be matched by Building Changes.  If single adults, they will be considered as such and any funds spent on them will not be matched by Building Changes.  Whether members of families or single adults, it is anticipated that no more than $14,000 in WIA funding will be spent on individuals who are dislocated workers with the majority of WIA funding being spent on other WIA-eligible individuals.

Q18: We have two more questions to ask about the RFP, Section III – Questions, p.6.
  #4 – “Describe the number of participants you are proposing to enroll into the WIA Title I-B Adult and Dislocated Worker Programs.”
I see two ways to interpret this question:  1) Will the bidder’s project will serve a greater number of families and individuals beyond the 75 + 15 described in the RFP?  OR   2) Does the bidder plan to serve only the 75 families or the set of 75 families + 15 individuals?

A18: The bidder must propose to serve the 75 families in the Investing in Families Pilot Project.  The bidder may propose to serve additional individuals or families as well.  The bidder should describe the total number that it proposes to serve and, if it proposes to serve more than 75, who the additional individuals  or families will be.

Q19: How much specific detail do you want for the ‘description of our partners’?

A19: The name of the partner, the service or services it will delivery, and the source and amount of leveraged resources is adequate.  This can be presented in chart format.

Q20: Question number 1 in Section III – Questions, asks: “Identify the number you are proposing to serve from each of these two populations." Can you explain which populations are intended with the phrase “these two populations?"

A20: If a bidder were proposing to serve both (1) heads of households of families with minor children and (2) individuals at risk of and experiencing homelessness, the bidder would include the number in category (1) and the number in category (2).  If a bidder were proposing to serve heads of households of families with minor children exclusively, the bidder would so indicate.

 

If you have further questions, please contact Trisha Terhar, Service Delivery Coordinator.

Information on important dates for all upcoming Request for Proposal processes