Religious & Independent School Educators (RISE) Conference Vendor

The RFP and other documents are posted on NYSED's Funding Opportunities webpage. The New York State Education Department’s (NYSED) Office of Religious and Independent School Support (ORISS) is seeking proposals for a Religious & Independent School Educators (RISE) Conference Vendor to plan, organize, and host the annual Religious & Independent School Educators (RISE) Conference. The selected vendor will be responsible for managing all aspects of the event, ensuring a high-quality and professionally executed conference experience for participants. The RISE Conference vendor shall work in collaboration with the Professional Development Resource Center (PDRC) vendor and in consultation with NYSED to provide a two-day conference each fall throughout the duration of the contract. The conference will highlight professional development opportunities for religious and independent schoolteachers and leaders statewide, ensuring a comprehensive and high-quality experience for all participants. This contract will be funded by state-level Title II Part A and Title IV Part A funds, and funding in each year will be contingent upon the availability of those funds, as appropriated by the federal government and allocated through the U.S. Department of Education. Currently, there are approximately 1,799 religious and independent school buildings that are known by NYSED that serve approximately 383,453 students in grades K through 12. These numbers may change due to school openings/closings. A comprehensive list of religious and independent schools with Basic Educational Data System (BEDS) codes, along with their reported enrollment to the New York State Education Department, is available at the Nonpublic School Enrollment website. Service Area: The RISE Conference vendor will serve religious and independent schools in the entire State of New York by organizing and hosting the Religious & Independent School Educators (RISE) Conference in Albany. Subcontracting will be limited to thirty percent (30%) of the total contract budget. Subcontracting is defined as non-employee direct personal services and related incidental expenses, including travel. NYSED will award 1 contract pursuant to this RFP. The contract resulting from this RFP will be for a term anticipated to begin September 1, 2026, and to end August 31, 2031. Bidders are required to comply with NYSED’s Minority and Women-Owned Business Enterprises (M/WBE) participation goals for this RFP through one of three methods. Compliance methods are discussed in detail in the Minority/Women-Owned Business Enterprise (M/WBE) Participation Goals section below. Business enterprises awarded an identical or substantially similar procurement contract within the past five years: Fordham University Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Business (SDVOB) SDVOB Goal: 6.00% Minority / Women Business Enterprise contracting goals (MWBE) MBE Goal: 17.00% WBE Goal: 13.00%