Harford County Public Schools (HCPS) is seeking partnerships with accredited Institutions of Higher Education (IHEs) to offer degree programs and certification requirements for HCPS employees. The goal is to support recruitment, development, and retention of qualified educators. The partnership agreements will have an initial term through the spring semester of 2028, with automatic two-year renewals. IHEs must meet specific accreditation standards and be authorized to transact business in Maryland. Proposals will be evaluated based on recognition, program appropriateness, ability to meet scope of services, financial value, and accreditation. Offerors are responsible for all costs associated with developing their RFQu response. Insurance coverage is mandatory. Required documentation includes a conflict of interest disclosure, anti-bribery affidavit, and debarment certification.
The due date and time for submitting proposals is 12:00 PM EST on May 8, 2026.
The bid notice states that the school system's reimbursement rate is **** per three (3) credit course, or current reimbursement rate, to be invoiced by the partner institution.
The agreement, if awarded, will be awarded to the offerors whose proposals are deemed to be the most advantageous to HCPS based on the evaluation criteria, which include recognition and suitability of the offeror, appropriateness of proposed programs and content, overall ability to meet the scope of services, overall financial value, and accreditation standards.
The IHE must meet at least one of the following accreditation standards: accredited by an accrediting commission in one of the regional associations of colleges and schools, participates in the ICC or the NCATE programs, or coursework is accepted by the state in which the institution is located for teacher certification purposes.
The board may terminate this contract for convenience, in whole or in part, if it deems such termination necessary to avoid a conflict of interest. If the contractor was aware of a potential conflict of interest prior to award or discovered an actual or potential conflict after award and did not disclose it or misrepresented relevant information to the procurement agent, the board may terminate the contract for default, suspend the contractor from further board contracts, or pursue such other remedies as may be permitted by law or this contract.
Questions are due by April 3, 2026.