RFP: Youth Data Hub Equity Consultant — Baltimore's Promise

Request for Proposals (RFP):

Youth Data Hub Equity Consultant

Release Date: March 30, 2023

Overview and Q&A Session: April 14, 2023 12:00

Recording Link + Passcode: i6Gx!%n9

Deadline for Questions: April 26, 2023 by 12:00 PM ET

Deadline for Submission: May 5, 2023 by 5:00 PM ET

Download the RFP

Overview

Baltimore’s Promise, on behalf of the Baltimore City Youth Data Hub, seeks an external Data Equity Consultant to support the development of a city-wide data sharing infrastructure that centers principles of anti-racism, equity, and community power.

The Baltimore City Youth Data Hub (the Data Hub) is a shared data ecosystem that links data across youth-serving organizations into an anonymous system subject to community oversight and strict guidelines. The Data Hub exists to improve quality of life outcomes for young people and their families in Baltimore City. Demonstrating our commitment to equity and shared power, the Data Hub legislation enables the development of a community advisory committee that will co-create the data inquiry agenda, determine who has data access, ensure the data findings are accessible to diverse audiences, and advance recommendations and strategies to address the most pressing needs identified by youth and their families. The Data Equity Consultant will collaborate with project partners to develop the process to select and launch the Data Hub community advisory committee.

The Data Equity Consultant will work with cross-agency partners that include representatives from the City of Baltimore, Baltimore City Public Schools, and Baltimore’s Promise. This position will work on a diverse range of projects and initiatives designed to advance data equity that may include the development of the data governance process, data collection, and frameworks and methodologies.

BP worked with community leaders and equity experts to develop the Data Hub’s Race Equity and Inclusion (REI) Framework. This framework requires the establishment of transparent and equitable policies, processes, and decision-making relative to all aspects of the shared data ecosystem and practices. This includes interrogating the data findings through participatory data walks and addressing data quality issues that may result from biased data collection processes (https://bit.ly/3KP5vxL). The Data Equity Consultant will leverage the foundational work of the Race Equity and Inclusion Framework to help design processes that center equity throughout Data Hub development and implementation.

Project Scope of Work

Baltimore’s Promise on behalf of the Baltimore City Youth Data Hub is seeking a Data Equity Consultant for a period of at least twelve months. The project’s scope of work will include:

Review, evaluate, and make recommendations to incorporate data equity throughout all Data Hub operations and processes inclusive of operations, data governance, data collection and methodologies.
Hold listening sessions to gather information from project partners and other stakeholders to understand the preferred design of a shared community governance model and ideas for embedding data equity
Launch, recruit and support members for the Community Research and Action Committee (C-RAC)
Deliver and/or identify external consultants to facilitate trainings on data equity and community participatory action and research practice
Determine best practices and guidelines for building internal data equity and data justice approaches for the entire Data Hub enterprise and partner institutions
Work with implementation project partners to develop processes to center data equity, including the revision of the Data Hub REI framework, training materials, and other resources
Build an understanding that individuals and organizations are at different places regarding centering equity in policies and procedures (i.e., a need to differentiate and meet people/institutions where they are)
Biweekly meetings with Baltimore City Youth Data Hub project team for the first phase of the project (June 2023 - August 2023). Consultant will support facilitating meetings, agenda settings, and completing follow-ups related to this project specifically.
Develop project plans and project documents to document work

Qualifications of Consultants

Understanding of, and commitment to advancing Race Equity and Inclusion principles and centering community members with lived experiences to shift decision-making
Advanced experience institutionalizing racial equity and establishing stakeholder advisory committees
Knowledge of the public sector and an understanding of data sharing and challenges to data sharing such as privacy, data sharing rules and regulations, and lack of transparency within institutions
Strong familiarity and knowledge of the Baltimore
Excellent interpersonal skills with the ability to work empathically and collaboratively with internal and a wide range of external stakeholders
Experience advancing systems change and dismantling systems of oppression
Ability to handle sensitive and confidential information with discretion
Consultants must be adaptable to changes in responsibilities as the nature of work changes to meet the demands of our environment. This is a new body of work that is complex in nature. The consultant should be willing to work with the project team to work through the complexity and make sense of the collective activities to formalize processes and plans.

Preferred Qualifications

Familiarity with data processes and preferred candidates will have experience working with cross-system data sharing efforts

Deliverables and TImeline

All deliverables will be collaboratively developed with the Baltimore City Youth Data Hub project team members.

Phase 1 (Assessment & Planning) June 2023 - September 2023

Create a project plan with timeline that includes budget
Audit proposed Data Hub policies, practices, and decisions and provide recommendations to ensure the system centers equity and will be accountable to the communities reflected in the data
Work with the project team to develop the process to select the Community Research and Action Committee (C-RAC) members. While we are still in the process of developing the norms and process for the C-RAC we estimate the C-RAC will be made up of 10 community members, that will serve up to two two-year terms, and estimate paying members $1500 stipends each year

Phase 2 (Launch of C-RAC and capacity building) September 2023 - January 2024

Establish norms and protocols for C-RAC and develop processes around ensuring C-RAC is influential in decisions on front-end and back-end of data lifecycle
Co-facilitate monthly C-RAC committee meetings once the committee launches and throughout the project duration. The expectation is the Consult will support a process of co-creation that would facilitate identifying a process for meeting facilitation that positions a C-RAC member (s) to take over facilitation by the end of the project.
Facilitate or coordinate the facilitation of race equity and community participatory action research trainings

Phase 3 (Coming together) February 2024 - May 2024

Revised REI Framework
REI Training Schedule for project stakeholders inclusive of the Project Team and governance committees C-RAC, and DOC

Budget

Interested applicants are requested to provide a detailed cost proposal and brief justification for carrying out the full scope of the responsibilities outlined in this RFP, including travel specifically related to this project and any other direct costs related to this project. The initial budget is up to $100,000 and should include support for activities between June 2023 and May 2024. Baltimore’s Promise on behalf of the Baltimore City Youth Data Hub is actively working to secure additional funding for this project and highly anticipate being able to extend this work for an additional year to support additional efforts. Once the consultant is selected, a mutually agreeable budget based on the approved work plan will be finalized during the contracting process.

Proposal Requirements

Interested applicants must submit their proposals via Formstack. Proposals submitted by email will not be accepted. Please submit the required materials below in PDF format no later than Friday, May 5th, 2023 by 5:00 PM ET. All proposals should include:

Application Name
Primary Contact Name
Primary Contact Email - Please list the best email to receive a copy of the submitted materials and to be notified of our final decision
Primary Contact Phone Number - Please list the best phone number to call if proposal reviewers have questions
Proposal Narrative: A description of the approach to planning and completing the requested deliverables. High level proposal approach to complete the project aims to advance data equity throughout the Data Hub. Proposal should include proposed process to establish and facilitate the Community Research and Action Committee, engaging key stakeholders, and potential challenges and limitations. Proposal narrative should be no more than 6 pages long, single space
Work History: Provide two examples from past work that is relevant to the current project.
Budget & Timeline: A detailed budget including your requested contract amount, how the contract amount requested will be used to complete the deliverables, and a timeline for completion
Resume: CVs or resumes of key staff
Biography: Biographies of proposed team members
References: Name, email, phone number, and relationship of three (3) current and former clients for whom you have conducted similar work

Submit Your Application

Questions about the RFP

There will be a Youth Data Equity Consultant Info Session on Monday, April 14, 2023 12:00 PM ET. Please register for the session in advance.

Applicants may also submit written questions about the RFP via email to rfps@baltimorespromise.org. Please use the subject heading “Data Hub Equity Consultant RFP”. All questions must be submitted by Wednesday, April 26, 2023 by 12:00 PM ET (noon).

A link to the info session recording, and all questions and their responses will begin to be posted in an online Q&A document on the Baltimore’s Promise website on or about April 17, 2023.

Important Dates

Friday, April 14th at 12:00 pm - Virtual Q&A session
Week of April 17 - Q&A document and Info Session Recording will be posted
Wednesday, April 26, 2023, 12 PM ET - Deadline for questions about the RFP
Friday, May 5, 2023, 5 PM ET - Proposals due via Formstack. Proposals submitted via email will not be accepted.
Week of May 22, 2023 - Interviews for final candidates (if needed)
Week of June 5, 2023 - Applicants notified of final decision via email in their application

Deliverables Note

All deliverables created as part of this work will remain the property of Baltimore’s Promise on behalf of the Baltimore City Youth Data Hub. At the end of the contract, the equity consultant will submit all project-related documentation to Baltimore’s Promise. None of the work created under this project should be shared externally without Baltimore’s Promise prior written approval.