REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS FOR CHILDCARE SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM ADMINISTRATION

Request for Proposals

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS FOR CHILDCARE SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM

ADMINISTRATION

405 Argentine Street

Georgetown, CO 80444

FULL COPY OF RFP

Clear Creek County is soliciting proposals from qualified entities to manage and administer a childcare scholarship program for eligible families within the County. The program administrator will be responsible for designing and managing a fair and transparent scholarship award process, tracking disbursements, and pursuing supplemental funding sources to support and expand the program.

A County Human Services staff member must be seated on the selection committee to ensure alignment with human services goals and policies.

Only applicants who meet the eligibility and selection criteria for administering scholarships may be awarded. The program manager may not award scholarships to its own organization or staff or any affiliated entity.

Clear Creek County is launching a childcare scholarship program to help working families afford high-quality early learning opportunities for their children. The program is funded through a combination of County Lodging Tax revenue and other public funds, and is designed to directly support families by reducing out-of-pocket childcare costs.

The County seeks a qualified administrator to manage this scholarship program. The administrator will be responsible for developing a transparent application process, verifying eligibility, distributing scholarship awards directly to approved providers on behalf of families, and tracking outcomes and spending. Additionally, the administrator is expected to actively seek other funding sources to supplement County dollars, including contributions from participating municipalities, philanthropic organizations, or state/federal sources.

The successful proposer will be responsible for the following activities related to the administration of a childcare scholarship program:

1. Scholarship Program Design:
   • Develop a transparent and fair application process for eligible childcare providers
   • Establish eligibility and selection criteria with input from County staff and community stakeholders
   • Ensure application, award, and compliance processes are accessible and culturally responsive
2. Selection Process & Committee Coordination
   • Assemble and convene a scoring committee composed of no fewer than five members, including one (1) designated representative from the Clear Creek County Human Services Department
   • Ensure all scoring decisions and funding recommendations are based on standardized criteria approved by the County
   • Prohibit any applicant or financially interested entity from serving on the scoring panel
3. Application Solicitation and Evaluation
   • Publicly post a call for applications for childcare support projects
   • Receive, vet, and score proposals according to standardized criteria including:
     1. Equity and inclusion in service delivery
     2. Financial and operational feasibility
     3. Alignment with Clear Creek County strategic priorities
     4. Ability to deliver measurable outcomes
4. Monitoring and Reporting
   • Execute subgrantee agreements (subject to County legal review)
   • Monitor project performance and financial compliance
   • Submit mid-year and end-of-year reports to the County, including disbursement summaries, performance indicators, and qualitative feedback
   • Retain and make available all program records for County audit or inspection for at least three years after program closeout

Eligible administrators must:

• Demonstrate at least 3 years of experience managing scholarship programs or public funding initiatives
• Have expertise in early childhood education or related social equity domains
• Be legally authorized to operate in Colorado and have financial systems capable of tracking and reporting public funds

Preference will be given to applicants with:

• A physical presence in Clear Creek County or adjacent jurisdictions
• Demonstrated experience with public sector grant management

• Familiarity with federal and state reporting requirements to ensure compliance therewith

Your proposal must include:

1. Cover Letter
2. Organizational Overview
   1. Legal status
   2. Mission and relevance to this work
   3. Key staff qualifications
3. Relevant Experience
   1. Three recent examples of grant or program administration
   2. References for each
4. Proposed Approach
   1. Project plan and schedule
   2. Selection process with scoring rubric
   3. Process for Human Services participation
5. Budget
   1. Administrative cost breakdown
   2. Total project fee
6. Conflict of Interest Statement
   1. Disclose any past or current financial interest in potential applicants

SCHEDULE

Any revisions to the above schedule will be posted on the Clear Creek County website “Bid

Postings” link. It is the responsibility of all submitting firms to review this website for scheduling

updates as well as Request-for-Proposal modifications and addendums.

Clear Creek County will not be responsible for any cost associated with the preparation

of the Firms’ responses to this Request-for-Proposal.

Responses shall be submitted in an email attachment package clearly identified in the subject line as follows:

Firms may not contact any team members, staff or employees of Clear Creek County or other parties involved in this project. All communications regarding this project should be directed to: Colton Rohloff, Clear Creek County Deputy County Manager.

Please deliver your responses to:

• Colton Rohloff
• For security reasons, you must enable JavaScript to view this E-mail address.
• 303-679-2312

The deadline for submitting a proposal is 4:00 p.m. MST, Friday, July 18, 2025.

Responses will be time-stamped and logged upon receipt. Responses received after the deadline will NOT be considered. All timely and properly prepared Responses will be considered for evaluation.

The County reserves the right to reject any and all Responses and to waive any informality, technical defects or clerical errors in any Reponses as the best interest of the County may require. Selection procedures will be conducted in conformance with all applicable qualifications-based selection requirements.

A sample template of the County’s proposed agreement relating to the services contemplated in this RFP is attached hereto as Exhibit A. This contract will be tendered to the successful firm providing a reasonable time within which to execute and return it to the County, failing which, the County will proceed to other contractors.

EXHIBIT A

This Agreement in Support of Childcare in Clear Creek County (“Agreement”) is made and entered into by and between Clear Creek County, a political subdivision of the State of Colorado, by and through its Board of County Commissioners (“County”), and Selected Vendor (“VENDOR”). County and Vendor shall be referred to collectively herein as the “Parties.”

WHEREAS, pursuant to C.R.S. § 30-11-101(d), a county has the authority to make contracts and do all other acts in relation to the concerns of the county necessary to the exercise of its corporate and administrative powers; and

WHEREAS, pursuant to C.R.S. § 30-11-107.5, a board of county commissioners may direct revenue derived from a county’s lodging tax to support childcare for workers in the community; and

WHEREAS, County believes that public support of childcare is an important investment in the community and that quality early childcare benefits families, children, employers and the community at large; and

WHEREAS, VENDOR (insert description and what VENDOR does); and

WHEREAS, County desires to utilize a portion of its lodging tax revenue to support childcare in the County; and

WHEREAS, County further desires for VENDOR to administer those funds to support various childcare initiatives in the County; and

WHEREAS, VENDOR agrees to administer those funds for that purpose; and

WHEREAS, the Parties desire to set forth herein the terms and conditions of this Agreement and their relationship.

NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the covenants and conditions set forth herein, and for other good and valuable consideration, the sufficiency of which is hereby acknowledged, County and VENDOR agree as follows:

1. Term: The term of this Agreement (“Term”) shall commence on the date that the Agreement is fully executed by the Parties and shall terminate one year therefrom. This Agreement shall automatically renew for up to four, additional one-year terms if the original funds remain undisbursed or additional funds are provided by County to VENDOR for the purposes described in this Agreement.

1. Payment  of  the  Funds: County shall pay VENDOR a one-time payment of

$ (“Funds”) to be used and expended for the purposes described in this Agreement. Payment of the Funds shall be made within 15 days of full execution of this Agreement. Funding pursuant to this Agreement, whether in whole or in part, is subject to and contingent upon the continuing availability of the Funds for the purposes set forth herein. Should the Funds, or any part thereof, become unavailable as determined solely by County, County may immediately terminate this Agreement or amend it accordingly.

1. Performance by VENDOR: For the Term of the Agreement, in addition to any and all obligations required by law or stated elsewhere in this Agreement or in any attachments hereto, VENDOR shall comply with the following requirements:

1. Limit on Administrative Expenses. No more than   % of the Funds allocated for the scholarship program shall be spent on VENDOR Administrative Expenses in any year. For purposes of this limitation, “Administrative Expenses" shall mean salaries and office expenses related to any contractors of VENDOR; any expenses reimbursed to members of the VENDOR Board of Trustees; routine business expenses such as insurance, accounting and legal expenses; and any similar overhead expenses incurred by VENDOR.

1. Expenditure of the Funds. The Funds issued in the first Term, less applicable Administrative Expenses, shall be used for the following purposes and directed in the following manner only:

1. $                                derived from County lodging tax revenue shall be directed toward a scholarship program to allow the children of workers in the community to attend childcare that the workers would not otherwise be able to afford. VENDOR shall select scholarship recipient families, utilizing the criteria set forth in Exhibit “A” of this Agreement. Any scholarship awards must be paid to the childcare provider directly on behalf of the recipient families. Under no circumstances shall Funds be paid directly to recipient families. Childcare providers shall be a childcare center, private, in-home childcare home or preschool program. All providers shall

be vetted by the VENDOR scholarship review committee, utilizing the

criteria set forth in Exhibit “B” of this Agreement.

1. $                                    derived from County lodging tax revenue shall be directed toward  .

Any of the Funds that remain unused within the first Term of this Agreement shall carry over for the same use and purpose set forth above in the second and subsequent Terms of this Agreement until all Funds are used; except that, if this Agreement is terminated by either Party, any unused Funds shall be returned to the County in accordance with Section 10 of this Agreement.

1. Reports and Records:

1. First Term Progress Report. No later than                                                                                           , VENDOR shall submit a first Term progress report in a form approved by County describing in detail VENDOR’s compliance with Section 3 of this Agreement and all work done to satisfy the requirements under this Agreement, including but not limited to: the number of families that received scholarships as part of the scholarship program, the nature and scope of outreach efforts conducted for the scholarship program, an itemized description by expense category of the amount of all Funds expended by VENDOR since commencement of the Agreement, and other information as may be reasonably requested by County.

1. Annual Reports. Beginning on or before  , and on or before   of each year thereafter, VENDOR shall provide to County in a public meeting a report describing in detail VENDOR’s compliance with Section 3 of this Agreement and all work done to satisfy the requirements under this Agreement since the commencement of the Agreement, including but not limited to: the number of families that received scholarships as part of the scholarship program, the nature and scope of outreach efforts conducted for the scholarship program, an itemized description by expense category of the amount of all Funds expended by VENDOR since commencement of the Agreement, a description of anticipated future efforts to accomplish the goals of this Agreement, and other information as may be reasonably requested by County.

1. Records. VENDOR shall maintain comprehensive, complete and accurate records and accounts of its performance relating to this Agreement for a period of three years following final payment of Funds hereunder, which period shall be extended at County’s reasonable request. County shall have the right within such period to inspect such books, records and documents upon demand, with reasonable notice and at a reasonable time, for the purpose of determining, in accordance with acceptable accounting and

auditing standards, compliance with the requirements of this Agreement and the law.

1. Independent Contractor: It is expressly acknowledged and understood by the Parties that nothing contained in this Agreement shall result in, or be construed as establishing, an employment relationship. VENDOR shall be, and shall perform as, an independent contractor and an independent, nonprofit corporation. No agent, employee or officer of VENDOR shall be, or shall be deemed to be, an agent, employee or officer of County. VENDOR shall be solely and entirely responsible for its acts and for the acts of VENDOR’s agents, employees, officers and subcontractors during the performance of this Agreement.

1. No Assignment: The Parties recognize that performance under this Agreement is professional in nature and that by entering into this Agreement County is relying upon the personal services and reputation of VENDOR. Therefore, the VENDOR may not assign its interest in the Agreement, including the assignment of any rights or delegation of any obligations provided therein, without the prior written consent of County, which consent County may withhold in its sole discretion. Except as so provided, this Agreement shall be binding on and inure to the benefit of the Parties, and their respective successors and assigns, and shall not be deemed to be for the benefit of or enforceable by any third party. Unless specifically stated to the contrary in any written consent to an assignment, no assignment will release or discharge the assignor from any duty or responsibility under the Agreement.

1. Confidentiality: VENDOR acknowledges that it may receive confidential information from County for use in connection with its performance under the Agreement. VENDOR further acknowledges that it may in its performance under the Agreement develop information, including facts, data, and opinions, which are, or in County’s judgment should be, confidential or limited in terms of dissemination. VENDOR shall take all precautions necessary to maintain and protect the confidentiality of any such information and to ensure that it shall be used only for the purposes of performing under the Agreement. All facts, data, and opinions developed by VENDOR in the course of its performance under the Agreement shall be deemed to belong to County and no such facts, data, or opinions shall be disseminated to anyone for any purpose without County’s express written consent unless required by law.

1. VENDOR’s Insurance: VENDOR shall purchase and maintain throughout the course of its performance under this Agreement such insurance as will protect VENDOR and County from claims which may arise out of or result from VENDOR’s operations under the Agreement, whether those operations be by VENDOR or by any subcontractor or by anyone directly or indirectly employed by any of them or by anyone for whose acts any of them may be liable. For liability insurance coverages, before VENDOR may commence any performance under this Agreement, VENDOR must provide a certificate in a form satisfactory to County showing that County is named as an additional insured and that the coverage will not expire or be terminated without first giving County thirty days’ notice thereof.

The insurance required shall be written for not less than any limits of liability required by law or by those set forth below, whichever are greater. All such insurance shall be written by companies authorized to do insurance business in the State of Colorado.

1. Commercial General Liability Insurance. VENDOR shall maintain a Commercial General Liability Form of insurance with bodily injury and property damage liability limits of the greater of (I) $424,000 for any one person in any one occurrence and

$1,195,000 for two or more persons in any one occurrence, or (II) the maximum government liability under the Colorado Governmental Immunity Act, C.R.S. § 24-10-101, et seq.

1. Professional Liability or Management Liability (Errors and Omissions Liability) Insurance. At all times, VENDOR shall maintain Professional Liability or Management Liability Insurance covering against liability for professional misconduct or lack of ordinary skill in the performance of professional or managerial duties in the performance of the Agreement by any entity and person for whom professional liability or managerial liability coverage is commonly available. In the event that the insurance is written on a claims-made basis, VENDOR warrants that any retroactive date under the policy shall precede the effective date of this Agreement; and that either continuous coverage will be maintained for an extended discovery period will be exercised for a period of two years beginning at the time the performance under the Agreement is completed. The insurance will have minimum limits of $1 million per loss/aggregate.

1. VENDOR’s Indemnity: VENDOR shall indemnify and hold harmless County, and its elected officials and employees, and the agents of any of them, from and against claims, damages, losses and expenses, including but not limited to attorneys’ fees, arising out of or resulting from VENDOR’s performance under this Agreement, including performance by anyone directly or indirectly employed by VENDOR or anyone for whose acts VENDOR may be liable. Notwithstanding the foregoing, each Party is responsible for its own negligence as it relates to the provisions of this Agreement.

1. Conflicts of Interest: VENDOR shall not knowingly perform any act that would conflict in any manner with the performance of this Agreement. VENDOR certifies that it is not engaged in any current project or business transaction, directly or indirectly, nor has it any interest, direct or indirect, with any person or business that might result in a conflict of interest in the performance of this Agreement.

County acknowledges that various members of the Board of Trustees of VENDOR may have professional or business positions that require them to deal with County on matters unrelated to this Agreement, and County confirms that such unrelated activity will not constitute a conflict contemplated under this Section 9. Additionally, County acknowledges and agrees that in discharging their fiduciary duties as members of the VENDOR Board of Trustees, those members shall be free to take such action as they determine is in the best interest of VENDOR or is necessary and reasonable in discharging their fiduciary duties as Board members.

1. Termination of Agreement: Either Party may terminate this Agreement at any time by giving the other Party notice of not less than 90 days, in the manner described in Section 11 of this Agreement. Upon termination, the Parties shall be responsible only for performance satisfactorily completed prior to the notice and for unavoidable expenses directly incurred for performance that has been satisfactorily completed. Any Funds provided to VENDOR by County pursuant to this Agreement that remain unused shall be returned to County within 30 days of termination.

1. Notices:

1. Key Notices. “Key Notices” under this Agreement are notices regarding Agreement default, contractual dispute, or termination of the Agreement. Key Notices shall be given in writing and shall be deemed received if given by: (I) electronic mail (as set forth in subsection b, below) when transmitted, if transmitted on a business day and during normal business hours of the recipient, and otherwise on the next business day following transmission; (II) certified mail, return receipt requested, postage prepaid, three (3) business days after being deposited in the United States mail; or (III) overnight carrier service or personal delivery, when received. For Key Notices, the Parties will follow up any electronic mail with a hard copy of the communication by the means described in subsection (A)(II) or (A)(III) above. The requirement for following up a Key Notice made by electronic mail with a hard copy shall be deemed waived by the receiving party upon acknowledgement, via electronic mail, within three business day of transmission of the Key Notice, that the Key Notice has been received. All other communications or notices between the Parties that are not Key Notices may be done via electronic mail. Notice shall be given to the Parties at the following addresses:

VENDOR:

VENDOR

Tel:   E-mail:

County:

Clear Creek County Manager

P.O. Box 2000

Georgetown, CO 80444

Tel: 303-679-2490

E-mail: For security reasons, you must enable JavaScript to view this E-mail address.

With a copy to:

Clear Creek County Attorney

P.O. Box 2000

Georgetown, CO 80444

Tel: 303-903-2454

E-Mail: For security reasons, you must enable JavaScript to view this E-mail address.

All Key Notices to County shall include a reference to the Agreement.

1. Electronic Mail. The Parties agree that: (I) any notice or communication transmitted by electronic mail shall be treated in all manner and respects as an original written document; (II) any such notice or communication shall be considered to have the same binding and legal effect as an original document; and (III) at the request of either Party, any such notice or communication shall be re-delivered or re-executed, as appropriate, by the Party in its original form. The Parties further agree that they shall not raise the transmission of a notice or communication, except for Key Notices, by electronic mail as a defense in any proceeding or action in which the validity of such notice or communication is at issue and hereby forever waive such defense. For purposes of this Agreement, the term “electronic mail” means email.

1. Choice of Law: This Agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the internal laws of the State of Colorado, without reference to choice of law rules. The Parties agree that venue in any action to enforce or interpret this Agreement shall be in the District Court for Clear Creek County in the 5th District for the State of Colorado.

1. No Discrimination: VENDOR shall not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment to be employed in the performance of this Agreement on the basis of race, color, religion/creed, national origin, sex/gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, ancestry, disability, pregnancy, age, veteran status, marital status, family status or political affiliation. VENDOR shall require all subcontractors to agree to the provisions of this paragraph. Additionally, VENDOR agrees not to discriminate against any person or applicant for scholarship program tuition on the basis of the afore-mentioned categories.

1. No Third-Party Beneficiaries: This Agreement does not and shall not be deemed to confer upon or grant to any third party any right enforceable at law or equity arising out of any term, covenant or condition herein or the breach thereof.

1. Compliance with Laws: VENDOR shall comply with all federal, State and local laws, statutes, ordinances, building codes, rules and regulations applicable to the performance of this Agreement.

1. Severability: It is understood and agreed by the Parties hereto that if any part, term or provision of this Agreement is held by the courts to be illegal or in conflict with any law of the State of Colorado, the validity of the remaining portions or provisions shall not be affected, and the rights and obligations of the Parties shall be construed and enforced as if the Agreement did not contain the particular part, term, or provision held to be invalid.

1. Governmental Immunity. Nothing herein shall be deemed to waive any of the immunities, liability limitations or other provisions of the Colorado Governmental Immunity Act, C.R.S. § 24- 10-101, et seq., all of which expressly are reserved by County. In addition, anything in this Agreement which purports to create a contractual obligation by County to do an act or be liable

for something for which County is immune, or has limited liability, in the absence of a contractual obligation, shall be deemed void.

1. Electronic Signatures: The Parties approve the use of electronic signatures for execution of this Agreement. All documents must be properly notarized, if applicable. All use of electronic signatures shall be governed by the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act, C.R.S. §§ 24-71.3-101 to -121.

1. Accessibility Statement. VENDOR acknowledges that, pursuant to the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”), as amended (42 U.S.C. Sec. 1201, et seq.), programs, services and other activities provided by a public entity to the public, whether directly or through a vendor, must be accessible to people with disabilities. VENDOR shall make good faith efforts to provide the services specified in this Agreement in a manner that complies with the ADA and any and all other applicable federal, state and local disability rights legislation at all times and at no additional cost to County including, but not limited, to the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, 42 U.S.C. § 12101, et. seq.; Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, 29 U.S.C § 701, et. seq.; the Colorado Anti-Discrimination Act, C.R.S. 24-34-401, et. seq., as amended; and, the Colorado Accessibility Standards for Individuals with a Disability, C.R.S. 24-85-101, et. seq. Such compliance may include, but not be limited to, supporting assistive software or devices such as large print interfaces, text-to-speech output, voice activated input, refreshable braille displays, and alternative keyboard or pointer interfaces, in a manner that, at minimum, is consistent with version

2.1  Level  AA  of                     the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines ( https://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG21/#background-on-wcag-2 ) or its successor standard as updated and adopted by any regulatory entity of competent jurisdiction. VENDOR shall ensure that product maintenance and upgrades are implemented in a manner that does not compromise product accessibility at any time. The only exception to the WCAG 2.1 Level AA compliance requirement is if making such modifications would fundamentally alter the nature of the service, program, or activity or present an undue financial, technical, or administrative burden.

1. Budget Appropriation: Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in this Agreement, County shall have no obligations under this Agreement, nor shall any payment be made to VENDOR with respect to any performance under this Agreement, after any December 31 of each calendar year during the term of this Agreement, without an appropriation therefor by County in accordance with a budget adopted by the Board of County Commissioners in compliance with the provisions of Article 25 of Title 30 of the Colorado Revised Statutes, the Local Government Budget Law (C.R.S. § 29-1-101, et seq.), and the TABOR Amendment (Constitution, Article X, Sec. 20).

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties have executed this Agreement on the day and year written below.

“COUNTY”

COUNTY OF CLEAR CREEK, STATE OF

COLORADO, By and Through its

BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS         ATTEST:

By:                           Enter name and title of signor Deputy Clerk and Recorder

for Brenda L. Corbett

Clear Creek County Clerk and Recorder

Date:

Approved as to form and legal sufficiency:

“VENDOR”

Enter Consultant’s Name.

Peter A. Lichtman County Attorney

By:

Enter Signor’s Name. Enter Signor’s Title.

STATE OF COLORADO                   )

) ss County of             )

The foregoing instrument was acknowledged before me this                                                                                                                    day of

, 20 , by  .

S E A L

Notary Public

My Commission Expires:

(Criteria for Selection of Scholarship Recipient Families)

(Criteria for Vetting Childcare Providers)

•        Colton Rohloff
•        crohloff@clearcreekcounty.us
•        303-679-2312