San Luis Valley Region 18 Opioid Settlement Governance Council

Request for Proposals (“RFP”)

RFP No. 2023-01

Overview:

The Colorado Attorney General’s Office (the “AG”) was part of a national lawsuit suing pharmaceutical companies over the opioid epidemic and each state was awarded Opioid Settlement Funds to deal with the opioid epidemic. The AG worked with local governments to develop regions in which the Opioid Settlement Funds would be disbursed each year. The guidelines for services that can be provided with the Opioid Settlement Funds come from the

terms of the national settlement. See https://coag.gov/opioids/colorado-opioid-abatement-council/ for more information. Region 18 is composed of board members of six (6) counties in the San Luis Valley: Alamosa, Conejos, Costilla, Mineral, Rio Grande, and Saguache. There is a governing Board, called the Region 18 Opioid Settlement Governance Council which is the decision-maker over how the Opioid Settlement Funds will be distributed within the region.

Goals and Objectives:

Region 18’s goals are to focus on prevention, peer support professionals and recovery housing related to the Opioid Epidemic in the first two years of funding. The region is rural, so access to services and resources for those affected by opioid use disorder and misuse is the ultimate focus goal and objective. A priority for Region 18 is providing services in all 6 counties within the region.

The region will utilize this RFP process to provide grant money to providers for training and supervision (during/after the certification process) and coordination of peer support professionals, as well as providing peer support programming for the six counties. Region 18 is mindful of not duplicating behavioral health services but leveraging this funding to go further in their communities. Quarterly reports to the Region 18 Board shall be required as a condition of accepting the grant.

Timeline:

Proposals will be accepted until May 31, 2023, at 5:00 pm. No proposals received after the deadline will be considered or accepted.

Grant:

The award will not exceed $30,000 per year, for two years from July to June, starting from FY 2023 - FY2024. This will be prorated the first year. Possible awards may be awarded after the two years depending on needs, success, and Regional 18 council’s 2-year plan.

Place of Delivery:

To be eligible, all proposal documents must be submitted to Lori Laske, Region 18, Chair, via email at:This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. by the above deadline.

Evaluation:

Region 18, through its fiscal agent, Rio Grande County, shall award the contract to an Applicant based on the evaluation criteria contained within this RFP. The RFP Review Committee, composed of designated voting members of the Region 18 Board, may request additional

information from Applicant(s) through follow-up questions and/or a formal interview before recommending contract awards to the Region 18 Board.

Reservation of Rights:

Region 18 and its fiscal agent, Rio Grande County, reserves the right to accept or reject any or all proposals, to waive informalities, and to reserve any request for proposals. Region 18 and its fiscal agent, Rio Grande County, also reserves the right to award the contract as it deems fit to best serve its interest, including partial awards. Any unexpended funds awarded shall be returned to Region 18, through its fiscal agent, Rio Grande County. All decisions made are final.

Required Information:

1) Name of the Organization;

2) Mailing Address;

3) Applicant Contact Name and Title;

4) Applicant Contact email and phone number;

5) Applicants are encouraged to submit a most recently approved audit or financial review for the past year.

6) No more than 2 Letters of Support;

7) RFP’s must contain the following language, signed by the Applicant or Applicant’s Representative: “Applicant hereby certifies and warrants that all statements and representations, including all sources and uses of funds, made in this RFP are true and correct and may be relied upon by the Region 18 Board.”

8) Proposed annual budget

Questions to be addressed by the RFP:

1) Brief description of your proposed program and how it meets the unique needs of the San Luis Valley region.

2) For existing programs, please explain how your program will be expanded, the amount of funding requested and why additional funding is required.

3) How does your organization plan to champion the peer support professionals? 4) What is the preliminary timeline estimate for your program?

5) How does your plan address the diverse needs of populations specific to Region 18 (LGBTQ+, BIPOC, immigrants, rural communities, low income, youth etc.)?

6) Will this program be utilizing “braided” funding streams (utilizing funds from other sources in conjunction with the Opioid Settlement Funds)? If so, please explain.

7) What are the anticipated outcomes of your program after applying this funding? How will you measure those outcomes? What does success look like?

8) Provide evidence of a proven track record providing existing or similar services.

9) Are there potential challenges that may hinder your ability to implement the program/project? If so, how will you address those?

10) Please provide a description of the number of peer professionals you anticipate working with, the programming for peer support outreach/activities in each county, the frequency of peer events, etc.

Evaluation Criteria:

All RFP responses shall be evaluated based on the answers to the questions provided above and the following criteria:

1) Length of time providing the service.

2) Your successes in providing your current services.

3) Ability to serve all 6 counties.

4) Timeline for providing the service.

5) Ability to address the diverse needs of Region 18.

6) Existing infrastructure.

7) Anticipated outcomes.

8) Financial stability of the organization and program.

9) Ability to braid funding.

10) Sustainability of the program.

11) Proposed budget.

12) Ability to further the goals of the 2-year plan, as described in the “Goals and Objectives” section above.

13) Understanding of the unique needs of communities in the region

Region 18 Opioid Settlement Governance Council

Part-Time Coordinator

Job Title:                    Part-time Coordinator

Reports To:                Region 18 Governance Council (Chair/Steering Committee)

Prepared Date:          3/14/2023

Hours:                       This is a contracted position, 0.5 FTE, up to 20 hours per week,

Wage:                        $23.00 per hour, no benefits

SUMMARY:   The Position will perform professional work coordinating and implementing the priorities of the Region 18 Opioid Settlement Governance Council (Regional Council and their current two-year plan.   This includes working with subcommittees and ad hock committees.

This position includes planning and implementation, partnership development, and resource mobilization.  The position requires excellent communication skills as the successful candidate will be responsible for community outreach and organizing as well as group facilitation. Other responsibilities include gathering data and analyzing project budget management, and evaluating of the project.   The position will exemplify the characteristics of a collaborative, innovative, and resilient work culture along with the Council, and models the appropriate behavior. 

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES include the following. Other duties may be assigned:

1. Plan and facilitate all meetings both full council and subcommittees including agendas, proper notice, audio/video meeting technology, and recording of minutes.
2. Prepares purchase requests and processes invoices with the fiscal agent as assigned.
3. Assures the programs are performed within budget and monitors expenditures to assure sound fiscal control.
4. Keeps records and prepares required reports.
5. Monitors the progress of projects to meet the time frame.
6. Prepares correspondence for the Regional Council and subcommittees.
7. Assists in the preparation of grant proposals and grant budget development reports, concept papers, and other materials needed to obtain funding.
8. The position will implement new and amended strategies for program effectiveness as necessary.
9. Recommends and implements modifications to policies and procedures.
10. Create, convene, support, and evaluate strategic partnerships.
11. Work with partners to identify community assets.
12. The position is responsible for effectively managing their workload to achieve Regional Council goals.
13. Advises council of potential problems or concerns.
14. Facilitate strategic planning and implementation process.

REQUIREMENTS:

• Demonstrated ability to speak effectively and professionally in public to a variety of audiences. Must possess a professional demeanor. Must be able to write clear, concise, and grammatically correct letters, reports, and other forms of communication.
• Must possess strong group facilitation skills and experience.
• Must be able to work independently as well as in a team.
• Must have excellent organizational and multitasking
• Local, state, and occasional out-of-state travel as required.
• Working knowledge of Word, Excel, or similar word processing and spreadsheet Projects. Strong ability to utilize information technology, including general internet usage, email, video conferencing software(s), data entry, and social media tools.

  EDUCATION and/or EXPERIENCE: High school diploma or equivalent education and

  experience. 1-2 years of experience in an administrative or coordination role preferred

PHYSICAL DEMANDS: While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to sit, talk and hear. The employee is frequently required to stand, walk, and use hands to finger, handle, or feel. The employee is occasionally required to reach with hands and arms; stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl. The employee must regularly lift and/or move up to 10 pounds, frequently lift and/or move up to 25 pounds, and occasionally lift and/or move up to 50 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and the ability to adjust focus.

WORK ENVIRONMENT: While performing the duties of this job, the employee is occasionally exposed to outside weather conditions. The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate. The employee works in a standard office environment where there is the freedom to sit, stand, or walk at will. In some instances, the employee may work remotely.  The employee is frequently required to work outside the office at community buildings, schools, work sites, and other settings.

QUALIFICATIONS: To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform the above requirements satisfactorily. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Please submit, a cover letter and resume that address the requirements above to Lori Laske, Region 18, Chair via email at: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. by May 31, 2023.