1

Procurement and Travel Services Young Building, Suite 101

203 West O Street Russellville, AR 72801

479-968-0269

REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL

Enrollment Services

Transfer Student System RFP 18-033

Request for Qualifications must be received by 2:00 p.m., May 15, 2018

Issuing Officer Jessica Holloway, APO

Arkansas Tech University

Phone: 479-968-0269

Email: jholloway@atu.edu

purchasing@atu.edu

2

Purpose:

The purpose and intent of this Request for Proposal (RFP) is to solicit sealed proposals from companies experienced and qualified to provide direct marketing and other enrollment services to support the University’s recruitment and enrollment efforts. Specifically, the goals of the University include:

Increasing the number of qualified prospects that express interest in attending

the University, including high school students at the sophomore, junior, senior,

and transfer levels;

Building a pipeline of parents of prospects who express an interest in the

University;

Increasing the number of qualified applicants for admission;

Increasing the number of right-fit enrolling students including deepening

saturation in current markets and expanding into new markets;

Ensuring entering students are academically qualified to succeed at the

University;

Increasing the quality and diversity of the entering student population; and

Increasing the ease of enrollment for transfer students.

Performance Expectation: Any resulting agreement will be measured as of the 11th class day of each respective fall semester 2019, 2020 and 2021 for increase in new recruitment markets, increased saturation in primary markets, and increase in prospective student inquiries and applications by 9%, 12% and 15% respectively. Fall 2017 freshman class population number of 1,529 will be the starting point. Background: Arkansas Tech is a state-supported, SREB four-year level III, liberal arts institution; the third-largest in the state with an enrollment close to 12,000 students. The Russellville campus, located in the scenic Arkansas River Valley between the Ozark and Ouachita Mountains, is just one hour from the capital city of Little Rock. Offering over 100 undergraduate and more than 25 graduate degree programs across seven academic colleges and two campuses, Arkansas Tech strives to provide a solid educational foundation for life-long learning to a diverse community. Arkansas Tech University-Ozark Campus is the regional provider for technical and career education, offering more than 25 programs with a variety of industry-specific options, as well as certificates of proficiency, technical certificates, associate degrees and general education coursework.

3

Arkansas Tech University is dedicated to student success, access, and excellence as a responsive campus community providing opportunities for progressive intellectual development and civic engagement. Embracing and expanding upon its technological traditions, Tech inspires and empowers members of the community to achieve their goals while striving for the betterment of Arkansas, the nation, and the world. Scope of Services to Be Provided: Proposals should clearly specify the direct marketing strategies, techniques, expertise, and technological tools that will be used to meet the above-stated goals. Through this RFP, the University seeks evidence of the proposer’s experience providing enrollment management services that enable higher education institutions to achieve their student recruitment goals. Proposals should clearly articulate your firm’s capabilities in the following areas: Identification of qualified high school sophomores, juniors, and seniors through the use of multiple channels of available “search” sources. Provision of direct marketing services including message development, publication design and creation, distribution management, digital strategy, communication planning and tracking, and responding to the leads generated by direct marketing campaigns. Communications that are optimized for all devices including mobile phones, tablets, and laptops. Dedicated parent efforts across campaigns designed to build an incremental parent pipeline and deepen engagement overall. Development and delivery of online resources such as electronic inquiry forms and applications for admission. Evidence of assisting institutions with effective prospect funnel management from initiating student search programs, converting the prospects to inquiries, and inquiries to applicants by providing services that include: identifying and purchasing the names of prospective students from multiple channels and maintaining communication with prospective students to encourage them to inquire and apply for admission. Infrastructure for supporting high school guidance counselors with document transfer to facilitate data collection and application completion. Inclusion of technical support for automated daily data loads into our CRM Programs that assess admitted-student opinion, including intention to deposit.

4

Development and delivery of a tool that will ease transfer students in the admissions process, including real-time credit evaluation and progress-to-degree estimates, career/major exploration recommendations, enrollment checklists and connectivity to relevant resources, and a staff interface that monitors transfer prospect progress and enables high-impact outreach. This tool must directly integrate with our SIS and Degree Audit system. Evidence that your company’s recruitment strategies attract best-fit students who are more likely to enroll, persist, and graduate. Development and delivery of analytical reports that demonstrate effectiveness of direct marketing efforts as well as real-time campaign reporting that can be accessed by the University at any time.

Additionally, all proposals should include the following: A description of how you support campaign success through services such as, but not limited to, up-front strategy development, regular consultation, progress updates, and data analysis. A project plan demonstrating your method/approach to meeting any stated timelines including expectations of our staff. Documentation that supports your track record for increasing enrollment. Justification as to why your firm is uniquely capable of providing greater results than other proposers. Anticipated return on investment in increased tuition revenue based on experience with previous clients. Please include specific examples. Evidence that your company uses research and perspectives from across higher education to support the leadership team in understanding, assessing, and addressing enrollment management challenges. Provide at least three samples of marketing materials produced and used in the execution of prospective student recruitment campaigns at other higher education institutions.

5

Proposal and Selection Criteria: All proposals should provide the following information. Evaluation of proposals will be scored according to the point references provided. General Company Overview (10 points)

Provide a brief background on your company including your vision and

values as a firm.

Introduce your project team and provide a brief biography of each

member including the specific experience that individual would bring to

this project.

Capabilities and Qualifications (55 points) Include a statement of what can be expected during the on-boarding

process of a new client.

Describe in detail your approach and process for brand development from

on-boarding through presentation of deliverables.

Provide examples where your firm provided similar services on a project

with like scope and size.

Submit a detailed timeline of this project including critical milestones with

a start date of July 1, 2018.

Samples of marketing materials produced and used in the execution of

prospective student recruitment campaigns at other higher education

institutions.

Strategy and services provided to guarantee increase in enrollment.

Other Items (10 points) Provide three references that have used your agency for a similar project.

The project should be similar in size and scope. Include a contact name,

address, phone number and email.

List all services provided in-house and services provided by any outside

consultants. If any services are to be provided by outside consultants,

please provide a brief description of the firm, its role, and capabilities.

Cost (25 points) Provide an estimated fee proposal in a separate sealed envelope which

outlines costs associated with each phase of the requested process,

including:

Sophomore/Junior recruitment strategies

Senior search campaign strategies and application design

Freshman yield campaign/survey strategies

Transfer student recruitment strategies and tools

What services may the University expect at no charge? IN A SEPARATE SEALED ENVELOPE, provide a list of charges and/or hourly rates. Please include a separate file on electronic submission of charges.

6

Performance Expectation: Resultant contract will be considered a performance based contract and held to standards of increased primary market saturation and the establishment of new recruitment markets. Performance criteria for this contract include: Satisfactory design of all marketing collateral and advertisements

On-time delivery of all print and digital materials

Demonstrated increase in quality and quality of inquiry pool

Demonstrated increase in quality and quantity of applicant pool

Demonstrated increase in quality and quantity of admit pool

Increases for 2019, 2020 and 2021 by 9%, 12% and 15% respectively per

resulting agreement measures

Other relevant information: Information about the university is available at: http://www.atu.edu/ http://www.atu.edu/marcomm/ http://www.atu.edu/hr/by-the-numbers.php http://www.arkansastechnews.com

Arkansas Tech University is located in Russellville Arkansas, which is grouped

into the 56th market in terms of media market size across the United States.

Arkansas Tech will share with the selected successful vendor its marketing and

research survey results.

Arkansas Tech University will retain ownership rights of all materials developed

during the relationship.

Arkansas Tech University expects that personnel assigned to its account

management team will serve diligently throughout the term of the contract. Any

changes to the account team must be discussed, and any proposed

replacements must be approved in writing by the university.

Any marketing research will become the property of Arkansas Tech University

and may not be shared without prior written consent of the university.

If requested, firm must be willing to make an oral presentation to the University’s evaluation committee.

# Criteria Weighting

1 General Company Overview 10

2 General Capabilities & Qualifications 55

3 Other Items - references 10

4 Cost 25

100

7

Term of Contract: The university anticipates the work will take place in multiple phases. The term of any contract resulting from this RFP (“Term”) will be for a period of two (2) years. The University reserves the option to renew the contract for up to two (2) additional, one-year terms not to exceed an aggregate total of four (4) years if mutually agreed upon in writing by the Contractor and the University. The University may terminate the Agreement without cause, at any time during the Term (including any renewal periods); by giving the other party sixty (60) days advance written notice of termination. Additionally, in the event of non-appropriation of funds necessary to fulfill the terms and conditions of the Agreement during any biennium period of the Term (including any renewal periods), the parties agree that the Agreement shall automatically terminate without notice. Arkansas Tech University seeks to enter into a contract with an enrollment management firm to provide the services described with an anticipated beginning date of July 1, 2018. The University reserves the right to reject any or all proposals, or any portion thereof, and re-advertise if deemed necessary. Awards will be made to the proposer whose proposal conforms to the RFP and, in the sole judgement of the University, will be the most advantageous to the University. Cancellation The University reserves the right to cancel any resulting contract, in part or in whole, without penalty upon 30 days written notice to the Contractor. Any cancellation shall not relieve the Contractor of the obligation to perform on all outstanding accounts placed prior to the effective date of cancellation. Clarification of Bid Solicitation: Any questions requesting clarification of information contained in this Bid Solicitation must be submitted in writing via email by 2:00 p.m., CST on or before May 1, 2018 to the issuing officer as shown on page one (1) of this Bid Solicitation. Answers shall be released in an addendum and posted to the Procurement Website by May 8, 2018, 5:00 p.m. CST. Submittal Instruction: Responses to this Request for Qualifications must be received by 2:00 p.m., May 15, 2018 to be considered.

8

Send one original hard copy, one (1) electronic copy and one (1) redacted electronic copy of the response on a flash drive. Pricing may be included on the same flash drive as long as it is in a separate folder. Submittals are to be delivered to: Procurement Office Young Building, Suite 101 203 West O Street Russellville, AR 72801 Attn: Jessica Holloway, APO, Director RFP 18-033 Late responses, responses en route, or those left at locations other than the Procurement Office will not be considered. Questions regarding this request for qualifications can be directed Jessica Holloway, Director of Procurement, Tel. (479) 968-0269, Email jholloway@atu.edu. ALL Respondents will be required to complete the following forms: Contract and Grant Disclosure and Certification Form EEO Policy Letter Illegal Immigrant Certification Form Restriction of Boycott of Israel Certification

Forms are available on our web site. www.atu.edu/purchasing Failure to provide the completed forms may result in rejection of response. MINORITY BUSINESS POLICY: It is the policy of the State of Arkansas and this university that Minority Business Enterprises shall have the maximum opportunity to participate in the State Procurement process. Therefore, the University encourages all minority businesses to compete for, win, and receive contracts for goods, services, and construction. Also, the State encourages all companies to subcontract portions of any state contract to Minority Business Enterprises. If contractors are unable to include minority owned businesses as subcontractors, they may explain the circumstances preventing minority exclusion. Funding Out Clause: Following is the Arkansas Office of State Procurement’s policy for multiple year contracts: “In the event that the anticipated term of this contract extends beyond the current biennial period, the contract will be terminable on the part of the University without cause at the end of the current biennial period. However, the University may agree to continue the contract, but in no case will any renewal, automatic or

9

otherwise, cause the contract to continue beyond a biennial period for which the contract is renewed. Any services or products on contract accepted by the University must be paid but does not obligate the University to continue the contract beyond the end of a biennial period.” CONTRACT GOVERNANCE AND INDEMNIFICATION. The contract will incorporate the contents of the RFP as well as any negotiated terms and conditions. Vendors should note the following regarding the State’s contracting authority and amend their documents accordingly. Failure to conform to these standards will result in rejection of the proposal. This contract shall be governed by and constructed in accordance with the laws of the state of Arkansas. Arkansas Tech University is an agency of the state of Arkansas and the state and its agencies are protected from suit by sovereign immunity. Nothing in this contract is intended to nor shall it waive this sovereign immunity. Any provision of this contract in conflict with the laws of the state of Arkansas is null and void. The Vendor shall indemnify and hold harmless the University, its officers, and its employees from all claims, suits, actions, damages, and costs of every nature and description arising out of or resulting from the contract or the provision of services thereunder. The University will cooperate with the Vendor in the defense of any action or claim brought against the Vendor seeking damages or relief for any loss, expense, damage, liability, claim, or demand either at law or in equity for actual or alleged injuries to persons or property arising from any negligent act or omission by the University or its employees or agents in performance of this contract. The University also will cooperate in good faith with the Vendor should the Vendor present any claims of the aforementioned nature against the University to the Arkansas State Claims Commission and will make reasonable effort to expedite any hearing or other action before the Commission. However, the University reserves the right to assert in good faith any and all claims and defenses available to it in any such proceedings before the Commission or other appropriate forum. Additionally: The State of Arkansas may not contract with another party to: Indemnify and defend that party for any liability and damages. However, the University may agree to hold other party harmless from any loss or claim resulting directly from and attributable to the University’s use or possession of

10

equipment or software and reimburse the party for the loss caused solely by the University’s use or possession. Upon default, to pay all sums to become due under the contract. Pay damages, legal expenses or other costs and expenses of any party. A party wishing to contract with Arkansas Tech University must: Remove any language from its contract that grants remedies other than: The right to possession. The right to accrued payment. Include in its contract language specifying that the laws of the State of Arkansas govern the contract. Acknowledge in writing that contracts with the University become effective when awarded.

Procurement Services Terms & Conditions may be found at: https://www.atu.edu/purchasing/

11

Company Name: __________________________________________________ Contact Person: ___________________________________________________ (Name & Title) Mailing Address: __________________________________________________ City, State & Zip: __________________________________________________ Telephone No: _____________________________ Fax No: ____________ E-mail Address: ___________________________________________________ Names and Titles of Agency’s Principals:

NAME

TITLE

Name and title of person who would be our primary account representative: Name: _______________________________Title: _______________________ List other employees who would work on our account and the skills/expertise they would bring:

NAME & TITLE

SKILLS & EXPERTISE

12

Attachment A

Additionally, any resultant contract/agreement will include the following:

1. Nothing in this Agreement shall be deemed to waive the sovereign immunity of the

State of Arkansas, Arkansas Tech University, the Arkansas Tech University Board of

Trustees, or Arkansas Tech University administrators, officers, faculty, staff,

employees or agents.

2. This Agreement shall be governed by the laws of the State of Arkansas. The

exclusive jurisdiction for any dispute by Company regarding this agreement shall,

pursuant to A.C.A. §19-10-204, shall be the Arkansas State Claims Commission.

3. Company agrees that it is solely responsible for complying with all laws as well as

obtaining all required permission, licenses, or other authority for all items, services,

goods, products, or activities that it performs or provides. Further, Company states

that it is in compliance with all applicable laws and further, that it has or will obtain

all required and necessary rights, licenses, titles, and permits necessary for all items,

services, goods, products, or activities to be performed or provided. Company

further agrees to fully indemnify and hold harmless Arkansas Tech University from

any and all copyright, copyright infringement, license, royalties, title or other claims

that arise or are made as a result of Company’s service, goods, product, or activity on

the campus of, or provided to, Arkansas Tech University.

4. Company agrees that it will be solely responsible for any harm, damage or injury that

it, its product, its equipment, its goods, its service, or its employees, agents or guests

cause or permit to occur to any person or their real or personal property as the result

of Company’s actions or failure to act. Company further agrees to fully indemnify

and hold harmless Arkansas Tech University from any and all losses, damages, or

expenses, including reasonable attorney’s fees, arising out of or resulting from claims

or actions for bodily injury, death, sickness, property damage, financial loss, or other

injury or damage caused by Company’s product, goods, service or otherwise, as well

as all claims alleging any negligent act or omission of Company, its employees,

subcontractors, or agents.

5. The parties shall comply with all federal, state and local laws as required in

connection with the performance of their obligations under this Agreement, including

but not limited to, Executive Order 11246, as amended, Section 503 of the

Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, and the Vietnam Era Veteran’s

Readjustment Act of 1974, as amended. The parties hereby incorporate the

requirements of 41 C.F.R. §60-1.4(a)(7), 60-250.5 and 60-741.5, if applicable.

6. Upon the signing of this Agreement by all parties, terms of the Agreement shall

become available to the public, pursuant to the provisions of A.C.A. §25-18-501.

7. Licensor shall obtain and maintain in force and effect at all times during the term of

this contract, at its sole expense, a general commercial liability insurance policy

which policy shall have minimum limits of one million dollars ($1,000,000.00) per

occurrence and two millions dollars ($2,000,000.00) in the aggregate.

13

8. Company will not assign or otherwise transfer its duties under this contract to another

person or entity without Arkansas Tech University’s express written permission.

Further, this agreement shall be binding upon the Company’s successors and assigns.

9. Company agrees that it will not allow any of its employees, subcontractors or agents

to engage in behavior that constitutes sexual harassment.

10. The parties agree and understand that approval of this Agreement or any amendments

to this Agreement are subject to review and/or approval by the Arkansas General

Assembly and/or any committee or sub-committee of the Arkansas General

Assembly in its or their sole discretion. The parties further agree that in the event

such legislative review or approval is not granted or is otherwise withheld, this

Agreement shall terminate automatically with no penalty to Arkansas Tech

University.

11. Any information of Arkansas Tech University or relating to Arkansas Tech

University’s business, including student information, which Company obtains as a

result of the services contemplated by this Agreement, which information is not

generally available to the public or subject to the Arkansas Freedom of Information

Act, shall be considered Confidential Information. All requests for Confidential

Information shall be directed to Arkansas Tech University’s representative, who will

determine in his/her sole discretion whether disclosure of the requested Confidential

Information is necessary to enable Company to perform the service under this

Agreement. Regardless of how it is obtained, Company shall not disclose to any

third party or parties, or use, except expressly for the sole purpose of performing its

obligations under this Agreement, any Confidential Information given to Company

by Arkansas Tech University or learned or developed during the course of the

services under this Agreement, except that that Company may disclose such

Confidential Information in order for Company to perform its obligations under this

Agreement. Company shall cause all of its representatives to comply with the

provision of this paragraph and shall be responsible for any breach by such

representatives.

12. When Company handles or possesses personal and confidential Arkansas Tech

University student, employee, faculty, staff or other individual’s data such as, but not

limited to, home addresses, banking information, health information (including but

not limited to medical records), social security numbers, credit card numbers, birth

dates, or medical information, Company must have procedures in place to ensure that

the confidential information is protected against unauthorized disclosure or theft.

Company agrees to keep secure all information or data that it receives under this

Agreement. Company further agrees that if it determines that the security of this

information or data has been breached, it will notify Arkansas Tech University within

24 hours of when it had notice of the breach. In the event Company fails in its

responsibility to keep secure all information or data that it receives under this

agreement, Company agrees to be fully responsible for all damages to any person or

entity that result from the breach in security.

13. Company agrees that any data provided to it by Arkansas Tech University under or

pursuant to this Agreement: (a) will be used by Company only for the purpose of

performing this contract; (b) will be treated as confidential information; and (c) will

not be used, sold or shared with any third party inconsistent with this provision.

14

14. Upon termination of this Agreement Company shall, upon request, aid and assist

Arkansas Tech University in the retrieval or return of any or all of the University’s

data or records that are in the possession of Company.

15. If any local, state or federal government or government agency changes or amends

any laws, rules, or regulations affecting the rights, requirements, or relationships

contemplated herein, Arkansas Tech University reserves the right to amend this

Agreement in order to bring it into compliance with such changes.

16. Pursuant to A.C.A. §21-1-503, Company certifies that it is not currently engaged in,

and further, hereby agrees that for the duration of the contract, not to engage in, a

boycott of Israel.

17. The parties agree that pursuant to A.C.A. §19-11-247, before a contract is ratified and

affirmed under subdivision (c)(1)(A) of A.C.A. §19-11-247, it shall be presented to

the Legislative Council or, if the General Assembly is in session, to the Joint Budget

Committee, for review if the contact is required to be submitted for review under

A.C.A. §19-11-1006.

18. Pursuant to Act 557 of 2015, and A.C.A. §19-11-267, the service criteria for this

Agreement is as follows: to provide competent services in the area of advertising as

well performing all items set forth in paragraph one (“The Services”) of the

Agreement.

Acceptable performance of this Agreement shall be measured as follows: The Company shall

perform its services consistent with the professional skill, quality, timeliness and care of other

entities that perform/provide the same or similar advertising and public relations services.

Neither the University’s review, approval, or acceptance of, nor payment for, the services

required under this contract shall be construed to operate as a waiver of any rights under this

contract or of any cause of action arising out of the performance of this contract, and the

Company shall be and remain liable to the University in accordance with applicable laws for all

damages to the University caused by the Company’s negligent performance of any of the services

rendered under this Agreement.

In the event that the Company shall fail to maintain or keep in force any of the terms and

conditions of this Agreement, the University may notify the Company in writing of such failure

and demand that the same be remedied within 10 days. Should the Company fail to remedy the

same within said period, the University shall then, in its sole discretion, have the right to

immediately terminated this agreement without penalty.

19. Company hereby approves all strikethroughs and deletions made by the University to

the face of the Agreement, and further agrees that the terms of this Addendum

supersede and are controlling over any conflicting terms set forth in the Agreement.

15

Performance Based Standards: Arkansas Code 19-11-267 requires the use of performance based standards on any resultant contract by the university.

Milestone Payment Contracts

Standards Remedies

Milestone deadlines are met Vendor must provide an acceptable

remediation plan

Work products are professional &

comprehensive

Payment may be withheld in part or in

whole until milestones are met or

acceptable work products are

produced

Replacement resources acceptable to

Arkansas Tech University may be

required

Contract may be cancelled

Time & Materials Contracts

Standards Remedies

Services are provided in a timely and

professional manner

Vendor must provide an acceptable

remediation plan

Work products are professional,

comprehensive and consistent with

the contracted skill level

Payment may be withheld in part or in

whole until acceptable work products

are produced

Replacement resources acceptable to

Arkansas Tech University may be

required

Contract may be cancelled