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Approve a Workforce Development Board of Solano County contract with Solano County Office of Education for Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) Youth Program Services beginning June 10, 2019 through March 31, 2021, for a contract amount not to exceed $550,000; and Authorize the President/Executive Director of the Workforce Development Board to sign the contract
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Published Notice Required? Yes ___ No _X _
Public Hearing Required? Yes ___ No _X _
DEPARTMENTAL RECOMMENDATION:
The Workforce Development Board (WDB) of Solano County recommends that the Board of Supervisors:
1. Approve a contract between the Workforce Development Board of Solano County contract and Solano County Office of Education (SCOE) as the WIOA Youth Program Services Provider; and
2. Authorize the President/Executive Director of the WDB to sign the contract.
SUMMARY:
On May 17, 2019, the WDB approved SCOE as the selected service provider for WIOA Youth Services and held a funding hearing to approve staff entering contract negotiations for up to $550,000 with SCOE beginning June 10, 2019 through March 31, 2021.
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
The WDB’s FY2018/9 and FY2019/20 budgets include the necessary funding to cover the cost of this contract.
DISCUSSION:
RFP Process
On March 1, 2019, the Workforce Development Board (WDB) of Solano County published and distributed the Career-In Focus Request for Proposal (RFP) to forty (40) local community partners that provide youth focused employment services; as well as posted the RFP on Solano County’s Public Purchasing website and the WDB website. On March 13, 2019, staff held a Bidders’ Conference, which was attended by nine (9) local youth providers. The deadline for proposal submission was Monday, April 15 by 8:30 a.m.
Staff received four (4) proposals from This Youth Generation, Wake-Up Foundation, Solano County Office of Education, and Healthy Vallejo Inc. & Mass Movement Mentoring Inc. as a consortium. All proposals received a threshold review and met the minimum qualifications for Board Committee consideration. On May 1, the Youth RFP Ad Hoc Committee met to discuss each proposal and make a recommendation for a Youth Program Provider.
For a breakdown of each reviewers score see ATTACHMENT A
The reviewers selected SCOE as the winning bidder based on quality of the proposal, strength of fiscal and administrative capacity, ability to utilize collaborative partnerships, and experience providing successful target population services on a similar scale.
Selected Sub-Recipient Summary
Staff and the Youth RFP Ad Hoc Committee recommend awarding up to $550,000.00 in WIOA Youth funding for a twenty-two (22) month contract to operate from June 10, 2019 through March 31, 2021. The contractor will enroll up to 50 out-of-school youth (OSY) participants in the first year of the program. Each year thereafter, the enrollment measure will be replaced by existing participants. Based on the performance of the contractor, the WDB may renew/extend the contract for up to two (2) years at an anticipated $300,000.00 annually, which is an estimate based upon annual WIOA Youth allocation and is subject to change.
SCOE, in partnership with ten (10) local government and non-profit organizations, proposes to provide OSY education, employment, and support services through the county with a greater concentration in the cities of Fairfield, Suisun and Vallejo. Their focus will include providing direct client services to eligible, enrolled participants from various target groups, with a focus on:
• Justice-Involved Youth, through a current partnership with Solano County Probation
• Foster Care, through a current partnership with Child Welfare Services and First Place for Youth
• Youth who are within the age of compulsory school attendance, but are at risk of dropout, with a focus on Armijo and Vallejo High Schools, as well as Sem Yeto and John Finney Continuation Schools
SCOE’s scope of work will consist of recruitment and outreach strategies to engage targeted youth, process for determining suitability for the program, assessment of barriers and barrier removal, career coaching, supportive services, and work experiences. SCOE will ensure all the 14 Program Elements will be made available to participants. SCOE will leverage their experience providing Work Experiences through their disability programs and each OSY will receive at least one work experience of a minimum of 100 hours. SCOE anticipates services to OSY beginning in July 2019.
ALTERNATIVES:
While not recommended, the Supervisors could direct staff to issue a new RFP for the Youth Program: Career-In Focus services or to recommend a different selection. However, the WDSB’s Youth RFP Ad Hoc Committee has reviewed the proposals in detail and recommended approval. In addition, this approach would not be recommended since it would cause an unnecessary delay in providing OSY with these needed and required WIOA services.
OTHER AGENCY INVOLVEMENT:
No other agency was involved.
CAO RECOMMENDATION:
APPROVE DEPARTMENTAL RECOMMENDATION