Life Sciences Workforce Development Initiative RFP Info Session Recap

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An information session was held for the Life Sciences Workforce Development Initiative (LSWDI) Request for Proposals (RFP) on Tuesday, June 20, 2023, at 4 p.m. You can find the recording of the session and the Q&As below. The powerpoint presentation can be found here.

Full proposals are due no later than 5 p.m. EST on Friday, July 21, 2023. Proposals must be uploaded as a single PDF document with all relevant attachments included in this link. Please use the naming convention OrgName_LSWDIproposalCY23. It is the sole responsibility of the applicant to ensure their information is complete and submitted on time.

Download the Request for Proposals

Questions regarding this RFP should be submitted in writing to Sarah Soroui, Director of Research, Evaluation and Analytics, via email at sarah.soroui@boston.gov by Friday, July 14, 2023 at 5 p.m. EST. Phone calls will not be accepted. Responses to questions received during the procurement process will be posted on this page. It is the bidders’ responsibility to check the website for updates and postings.

Interested in other funding opportunities? You can sign up online to receive notifications.

Recording

Questions and Answers

How many awards are anticipated to be made for Category 2?

We anticipate selecting 1 intermediary for Category 2 proposals.

$100k plus for Category 1?

Yes, $100k is the minimum award amount for Category 1. We anticipate that awards will range from $100k - $400k, but that can fluctuate depending on the number of proposals received.

Is funding over one year or multiple years?

It is a two-year contract with a start date of October 2, 2023, and an end date of October 2, 2025.

Will the info session powerpoint be available to us?

Yes, you can find the powerpoint presentation here.

If funded through ARPA funds, are there income requirements? What % of Category 1 will be funded by NJT vs. ARPA? How do you decide?

There are no income requirements under ARPA. Although no particular percentage is set for funding under one source or the other, $1.65 million is available under NJT so that a majority will be funded by ARPA. Funding for the intermediary will come from ARPA. All programs should be prepared to collect the required income and residency verification documents from program participants and should design programs that can support those with barriers to employment. OWD staff will make the determination regarding the funding source utilized for each contract based on availability and suitability

How many people are expected to go through the training/placement?

We have not set a number of expected participants. However, we understand that the per capita cost will likely be higher for the life sciences based on the length of training and the skills and credentials earned. The overall goal is to increase the number of residents prepared for careers in life sciences while balancing the anticipated higher per capita cost of these training programs.

Is there a minimum of Boston residents that should be in the training program to be eligible?

No, there is not a minimum number of Boston residents. However, training participants funded under the award must be Boston residents. Participants in the program funded through other sources may be non-boston residents

Does the applicant have to be Boston-based? Does training have to be offered in Boston?

No, the applicant does not have to be based in Boston. However, the training must be available and accessible to Boston residents.

Is the medical field considered STEM? Is Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) training eligible for this program?

Sometimes. There are Life Sciences occupations in healthcare. However, EMT is not typically considered a Life Science occupation.

Is the recruitment of the participants the responsibility of the lead in Category 1 or 2 or another entity?

Recruitment is the responsibility of the training provider. However, we do envision that the intermediary could potentially serve as a centralized recruitment and matching platform. Under Category 1, the program should have all the elements listed in the RFP, including recruitment as part of their program/ training model.

You said $100K is the minimum for Category 1. What is the maximum? Is there a cost-per-participant guideline?

We have not set a maximum, and there is no set cost-per-participant. We are hoping to learn through this process what the cost per is in this sector. The goal is to increase the number of community-based training programs, hoping to fund programs with a balance of the higher per capita cost but also increasing the availability of training programs. Our typical cost per is around 8K-10K, but we anticipate it could be higher in this sector.

Will it be possible for Category 2 to receive an initial payment upon execution of the contract as well as Category 1?

Yes, this is something that can be discussed during the contracting phase.

If non-Boston residents are incumbents within Boston-based employers seeking to upskill, are they eligible, or must they live in Boston?

Participants must live in boston.

For Category 1, does the lead applicant have to be a non-profit?

Yes, the lead applicants must be a 501 c 3 non-profit or institution of higher education.

To elaborate, can a for-profit company apply on its own, or do they need to partner with a non-profit?

The lead applicant must be a non-profit or institution of higher education.

The grant is listed for Life Sciences, I want to confirm engineering and/or green tech programing would not be applicable?

Life Sciences industries include the following:

Scientific Research and Development Services,
Pharmaceutical and Medicine Manufacturing, and
Medical Equipment and Supplies Manufacturing.

What is the best way for employers to get involved?

Email Sarah Soroui at sarah.soroui@boston.gov.

Can you apply to run two training programs with two different employer partners?

You can only apply as the lead applicant on one application, but you could apply in partnership with another agency as a non-lead application for another program. You may also have multiple employer partners and multiple cohorts under a single application with your organization as a lead applicant.

How can services include incumbent worker training given the required outcome of a job or paid internship placement?

In this instance, we would not require a new job placement but rather an outcome based on some kind of advancement or placement in a new role.

Will the crossover Life Science/Healthcare roles be listed on the website?

Email Sarah Soroui at sarah.soroui@boston.gov if you are interested in information about life science occupations in healthcare, but this will not be posted on the website

Would private companies need to have a non-profit partner? Could a partner be a college?

Yes. A college or provider of higher ed can be a lead entity for a private company in addition to a non-profit.

Has an intermediary been identified?

No intermediary has been identified yet, rather we hope that this process will stand up an intermediary. We expect that the training providers identified through this RFP and the intermediary will work together.

How does the 1,000 Life Sciences jobs by 2025 fit with the $4M in funding available? How does this relate to the anticipated per capita cost?

This procurement and the $4M available is only part of this initiative and is not intended to meet the full 1000 jobs with this funding alone. We anticipate there may be additional investments to support this goal from the Mayor, including both financial investments and other initiatives and efforts across the city.

Do you have specific expectations of the intermediary regarding what they will do with the funded training providers?

Since we are forming a new intermediary entity, we expect it to engage Category 1 training providers in a planning process to develop its agenda, activities, and alignment strategies. Once an agenda and strategic plan are developed, we expect Category 1 providers to engage with the intermediary to support the implementation of planned activities.

Are you expecting the intermediary to provide support services that address barriers or find partners to provide them?

We expect the intermediary to remove individual and institutional barriers to training participation and job placement. The intermediary can provide services directly or works through partners to do so.

Is the intermediary expected to work with organizations outside of the Category 1 recipients, and if so, what services are to be provided to these other organizations?

The Life Sciences Workforce Development Initiative represents a small part of the overall Life Sciences workforce development system. We expect the intermediary will provide capacity-building support, labor market analysis, employer engagement, strategic alignment, and (where appropriate) centralized wrap-around support to a wider network of training providers.

Is the intermediary's role with employers to engage them or is every Category 1 funded organization expected to have their own relationships with employers?

Every Category 1 funded organization must have its own employer relationships. As it develops, the intermediary will serve as space for providers to tap into a broader network of employers.

Re: aligning curriculum: is that part of the role of the intermediary? Is this in an advisory capacity or actually working to bring trainers/institutions to recipients?

The Category 1 organizations are working with their own employers and would have their own curriculum in place to do their training. We don't expect the intermediary to support curriculum alignment for programs that already have established employer connections. However, as it develops, the role of the intermediary is to support new partnerships that emerge between employers and providers, so we expect curriculum alignment to be part of that process.