Request for Information-DoWEA PreK-12 Education Platform

Sources Sought / Request For Information (RFI)

This RFI is issued by the Department of War Education Activity (DoWEA) for market research and acquisition planning purposes. It seeks information on industry capabilities for a single, cohesive enterprise education platform to support DoWEA's global Pre-K-12 mission. This notice does not constitute an RFQ, IFB, or RFP, and does not obligate the Government to issue a solicitation or make an award. Responses are voluntary and will not be reimbursed.

The RFI is interested in platforms that can:

• Unify instructional and enterprise systems on a shared or tightly integrated data foundation.
• Reduce system fragmentation and manual data movement.
• Enable secure, near-real-time reporting, analytics, and AI-enabled insights.
• Support interoperability with external analytics platforms and DoWEA-managed data environments.

Specific areas of interest include:

• Integrated Platform Approach: Natively developed or fully supported modules on a shared identity and data framework.
• Student Information System (SIS): Managing student data across the lifecycle, including enrollment, grading, records management, and reporting.
• Learning Management System (LMS): Native module or strong integration with third-party LMS, supporting seamless integration, automated provisioning, bidirectional grade pass back, and consistent user identity.
• Assessment: Formative, benchmark, and summative assessment capabilities, including item banks, secure test administration, and integration with LMS.
• Special Education and Student Support Programs: Support for IEP/504, MLP, AAP, MTSS/RTI frameworks, intervention planning, and privacy controls.
• Reporting, Analytics, and Data Interoperability: Real-time reporting, role-appropriate dashboards, and integration with external AI-enabled analytics platforms.
• Enterprise Operations & Business Services: Including Finance/ERP, Human Resources/HCM, Facilities/CMMS, Transportation, and IT Service Management.
• Unified Data Architecture: Shared or federated data models, near real-time data flows.
• APIs & Interoperability Standards: Support for open REST APIs and industry standards (e.g., LTI, OneRoster, Ed-Fi).
• AI-Enabled Analytics & Business Intelligence: Dashboards, early warning indicators, machine learning explainability.
• Data Quality & Master Data Management: Automated validation, data quality dashboards, Master Data Management.
• Reporting Integration with External AI-Enabled Analytics Platforms: Seamless interoperability without data duplication.
• Data Access & Export: Secure mechanisms for exposing reporting data in open formats (Parquet, Delta, CSV, JSON).
• Compatibility with AI-Enabled Analytics Architectures: Support for lakehouse/warehouse ingestion, semantic models, data pipelines.
• Data Model Transparency & Metadata: Full transparency of reporting data model, metadata catalog.
• Security, Governance & Access Control: Role-based access, identity integration, data classification.
• Incremental, Event-Driven & Near Real-Time Reporting: Support for change data capture and event streams.
• AI & Advanced Analytics Enablement: Support for downstream AI/ML, explainable AI outputs.
• Performance & Scalability: Enterprise-wide analytics, multi-year historical analysis.
• Global PaaS Operations & Resilience: Cloud-native PaaS, high availability, data residency in the US.
• Artificial Intelligence (AI) & AI-Enabled Analysis: Capabilities for academic integrity, operational AI, communication AI, and AI governance.
• Communication & Engagement Capabilities: Multi-channel outreach, two-way messaging, audience management, personalization.

This is a Sources Sought/RFI, not a solicitation for proposals or quotes. No award will be made based on this notice.

Vendors are encouraged to respond only to sections relevant to their capabilities, distinguishing between mature and in-development features. Responses should be concise, structured, and use plain language. Diagrams and tables are encouraged. Marketing materials alone are not sufficient. Responses are due via email in PDF format to shahannah.brown@dodea.edu, with a maximum email limit of 10MB.

Not applicable, as this is a market research RFI.

• An Industry Day is being considered to provide context, clarify expectations, and promote dialogue. Vendor feedback on interest and format is requested.
• Proprietary information must be clearly marked.
• All submissions become Government property and will not be returned.

Sources Sought / Request for Information (RFI)

This RFI is issued by the Department of War Education Activity (DoWEA) for market research and acquisition planning. It does not constitute a solicitation and does not obligate the Government to issue an award. DoWEA seeks information to understand industry capabilities, architectural approaches, data strategies, and maturity related to a single, cohesive enterprise education platform supporting its global Pre-K – 12 mission.

DoWEA is assessing platforms that can:

• Unify instructional and enterprise systems on a shared or tightly integrated data foundation.
• Reduce system fragmentation and manual data movement.
• Enable secure, near-real-time reporting, analytics, and AI-enabled insights.
• Support interoperability with external analytics platforms and DoWEA-managed data environments.

Specific areas of interest include:

• Student Information System (SIS): Enrollment, scheduling, grading, record management, APIs for data exchange.
• Learning Management System (LMS): Native or integrated solutions, seamless integration with SIS, automated provisioning, bidirectional grade pass back, SSO, visibility for instructional activity.
• Assessment: Formative, benchmark, and summative capabilities, item banks, secure test administration, integration with LMS.
• Special Education and Student Support Programs: IEP/504, MLP, AAP, MTSS/RTI frameworks, intervention planning, privacy controls.
• Reporting, Analytics, and Data Interoperability: Real-time reporting, role-appropriate dashboards, integration with external AI platforms.
• Enterprise Operations & Business Services: Finance/ERP, Human Resources/HCM, Facilities/CMMS, Transportation, IT Service Management.
• Unified Data, Analytics & Interoperability: Unified or federated data models, APIs, interoperability standards (REST, LTI, Ed-Fi, etc.), AI-enabled analytics.
• Data Quality & Master Data Management: Automated validation, data quality dashboards, MDM, data classification.
• AI & Advanced Analytics Enablement: Capabilities for instruction, student support, operational efficiency, and decision-making, including explainable AI, predictive analytics, and intelligent document processing.
• Communication & Engagement Capabilities: Multi-channel outreach, two-way messaging, audience management, personalization, translation, web/mobile experience.

Vendors are encouraged to respond only to requested sections relevant to their capabilities, distinguishing between mature and in-development features. Responses should be concise, use plain language, and may include diagrams or tables. A maximum of 10 pages (excluding appendices) is allowed. Pricing overview is requested at a high level.

Not specified in this RFI.

• Responses are voluntary; no reimbursement is provided.
• The Government is considering hosting an Industry Day to provide additional context and clarify expectations. Vendor feedback on interest, format, and topics is requested.
• Participation in Industry Day is voluntary and not required for future solicitations.