RFP

Arts Impact Endowment Evaluation and Community Engagement RFP

The San Francisco Arts Commission (SFAC) and San Francisco Grants for the Arts (GFTA) are seeking qualified applicants to submit proposals for the consultancy and assessment of the Hotel Tax funded Arts Impact Endowment (AIE) that was guided by the 2019-2024 Cultural Services Allocation Plan (CSAP). The consultant is tasked with delivering an appraisal of the Arts Impact Endowment (AIE) and its effect on emerging needs of the arts and culture community.

Contract Term: September 1, 2023 – September 1, 2024

Anticipated contract not to exceed $90,000 for the allowable maximum term.

Deadline to submit: June 30, 2023 5 p.m. PT
(The Proposal Due Date has been extended from May 30, 2023 to June 30, 2023)

Project Overview

In November 2018, 75% of San Francisco voters passed Proposition E, a ballot initiative that restored the dedicated hotel tax revenue for arts and culture purposes. Proposition E ensured that 1.5% of San Francisco’s 14% hotel tax be directed to arts and culture initiatives that include allocations for Grants for the Arts, Cultural Equity Endowment, Cultural Centers, Cultural Districts, and the Arts Impact Endowment (AIE).  

The San Francisco Arts Commission (SFAC) and San Francisco Grants for the Arts (GFTA) seek a consultant to: 

1: Conduct an evaluation of the Hotel Tax funded Arts Impact Endowment (AIE) that was guided by the 2019-2024 Cultural Service Allocation Plan (CSAP). 

2: Conduct a community process to inform the funding priorities for the 2025-2029 Cultural Services Allocation Plan (CSAP) and the distribution of funds from the Arts Impact Endowment to ensure that it is responsive to community needs and reflects equity principles. 2025-2029 CSAP plan is due June 30, 2024.

The outcomes of this evaluation and community engagement process will then guide the direction of funding for years six to ten (2025 – 2029), as well as develop the grant allocation framework. With this approach, we can be intentional with resources, develop baselines, and ensure that we are able to measure impact moving forward. 

Download Full Arts Impact Endowment Evaluation and Community Engagement Request for Proposal Document
 

RFP Released

May 15, 2023 June 7, 2023

Deadline for Questions

May 26, 2023 by 5:00 p.m. PT

June 23, 2023 by 5:00 p.m. PT

Proposals Due

May 31, 2023 by 5:00 p.m. PT

June 30, 2023 by 5:00 p.m. PT (Extended deadline)

Estimated date for Review Panel

June 6, 2023 July 14, 2023

Estimated date for Award Notice

June 15, 2023 July 21, 2023

Estimated date for Contract Execution

July 15, 2023 August 21, 2023

Contract Term

August 1, 2023 - August 1, 2024 

September 1, 2023 – September 1, 2024

 

Position Description

ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES 

EVALUATION 

The consultant will provide an assessment of the impact of the Arts Impact Endowment (AIE) which focuses on emerging needs of the arts and culture community.  

Consultants will conduct an evaluation that explores, but is not limited to, the following questions: 

  • Were the programmatic goals identified by the CSAP met through AIE funding? 
  • What qualitative and quantitative outcomes resulted from AIE funding? 
  • Were the funds spent in accordance with the CSAP allocations? 
  • What key recommendations could be made to programmatically and administratively improve AIE implementation? 

The evaluation will include a set of data informed recommendations that will increase the agency’s capacity to develop and use analytical tools to understand the impact of SFAC hotel tax funding. The consultant will collect and analyze grant related documentation and will partner with SFAC/GFTA, AIE grantees, community stakeholders and other city agencies to gather information regarding the process and outcomes of the grant program. The consultant will review the CSAP funding strategy to ensure that it is equitable and responsive to local community needs. 

  • Collect and analyze documentation related to each grant category (total of 4 grant categories) which include: guidelines, applications, grant agreements, final reports and financial reports,  
  • Facilitate conversations with key internal and external stakeholders identified by SFAC/GFTA staff;  
  • Summarize findings from these conversations into a report with concrete strategies that will inform the agency’s existing AIE grant program;  
  • Design an evaluation process to measure the impact of the five-year allocation plan, including benchmarking, developing evaluation metrics, collecting data, conducting an initial evaluation; 
  • Complete a report with the findings and any suggested potential revisions to the next five-year cultural services allocation plan;  
  • Prepare engaging presentation materials that provide report highlights, grantee success stories, images, video and recommendations that can be tailored towards various audiences and stakeholders and used for future reports to the community and City partners on findings, promising practices, and other lessons learned. 

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT 

The consultant will conduct a community process to inform the funding priorities for the 2025-2029 Cultural Services Allocation Plan (CSAP) and the distribution of funds from the Arts Impact Endowment to ensure that it is responsive to community needs and reflects equity principles.   

Utilizing a variety of engagement methods such as surveys, focus groups, interviews, and community conversations conducted in the four San Francisco priority languages (English, Chinese, Filipino, Spanish), consultants will conduct a community engagement process that explores, but is not limited to, the following questions. SFAC is embarking on a strategic planning process in the fall and the consultant may also consider alignment with the agency’s overall process.

  • What are current and future emerging needs and trends in the arts and culture landscape?  
  • What priorities should the 2024-2029 CSAP consider? 

QUALIFICATIONS  

  • Deep knowledge and understanding of DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) practices and principles; 
  • Background in or familiarity with research, policy analysis and/or community development;  
  • Familiarity with San Francisco arts and culture ecosystem, philanthropy, and/or government funding;  
  • Strong analytical skills;  
  • Ability to summarize complex ideas into concise recommendations and work plans;  
  • Ability to communicate effectively with diverse audiences include audiences with language access needs;  
  • Experience facilitating conversations with varied stakeholders;  
  • Persistence, flexibility, and a focus on finding solutions; and 
  • Experience with financial analysis and review. 

Selection Process

PROPOSAL EVALUATION CRITERIA 

CRITERION CHECK POINTS FOR CONSIDERATION POINTS
Vendor Qualifications
  • Vendor has demonstrated successful similar evaluation projects to the proposal. Projects with arts and culture and philanthropic partners are preferred. 
  • Vendor has demonstrated successful similar community engagement projects to the proposal. Projects with similar communities (language groups, race/ethnicity, etc.) are preferred.  
  • Vendor provided at least two references that can attest to  the quality of similar projects completed. 

Possible Points: 40 

Fit To Proposed Scope of Work
  • Vendor should clearly justify the qualifications of the proposed resource(s) and staff to perform the implementation services specified in the Scope of Work above. 
  • Special attention will be paid to references, experience and expertise with projects of similar scale and complexity. 
Possible Points: 40 
Price
  • Vendor proposals that meet minimum qualifications will be evaluated by their total cost and should include services and expenses required to complete this project. 
Possible Points: 20
TOTAL: (100 Possible Points)    

 

How To Apply

PROPOSER QUESTIONS AND REQUESTS FOR CLARIFICATIONS 

Proposers shall address any questions regarding this RFP to Debbie Ng, Senior Program Officer, debbie.h.ng@sfgov.org. Questions must be submitted by no later than 5 p.m. Pacific Time on June 23, 2023. Questions will be addressed via email.  

PROPOSAL FORMAT 

Proposals must include: 

  • bios/qualifications of consultant/team 
  • approach to work 
  • two similar project examples 
  • proposed project timeline 
  • proposed budget 

Proposals will be evaluated using the RFP Panel Scoresheet included below.   

Proposals must be created using a word processing software (e.g. Microsoft Word or Excel) and typed in a serif font (e.g.-Times New Roman). The document must have page margins of at least .5” on all sides. Proposals must not exceed 20 pages. Information must be provided at a level of detail that enables effective evaluation and comparison between Proposals. Failure to follow formatting, submission, or content requirements, as well as page limit restrictions (if any), may negatively impact the evaluation of your proposal.  

TIME AND PLACE FOR SUBMISSION OF PROPOSALS 

Prior to the submission deadline of 5 p.m. Pacific Time on Friday, June 30, 2023, proposers must email their completed proposals to Senior Program Officer, Debbie Ng, debbie.h.ng@sfgov.org. Late submissions will not be considered. Partial or complete omission of any required content may disqualify proposals from further consideration. Late proposal submissions will not be considered and failure to adhere to the above requirements may result in the complete rejection of your proposal. 

CONTRACT TERM 
A contract awarded pursuant to this Solicitation will have a contract term of one year. The anticipated contract term is September 1, 2023 – September 1, 2024. The City at its sole, absolute discretion, shall have the option to extend the term for one additional year for a total of two years as determined by the Arts Commission.  
 
The San Francisco Arts Commission reserves the right to: reissue this request for proposal; reject or cancel any or all proposals; prior to submission deadline, modify all or any portion of the selection procedures, including deadlines for accepting responses, the specifications or requirements for any services to be provided under this Solicitation, or the requirements for content or format of the applications. 

CONTRACT AMOUNT 
A contract awarded pursuant to this Solicitation shall have a not to exceed (“NTE”) amount of $90,000 for the initial term. 

 
CONTRACT REQUIREMENTS  

If awarded a contract under this Solicitation the contract requires the following:  

  • City of San Francisco Supplier Account 
    If awarded a contract the contractor must set up a Supplier Account. The Supplier Account is the mechanism for payment, is non-negotiable and includes the following:  
    • Compliance with the Treasurer and Tax Collectors office.  
    • Compliance with the Contract Monitoring Division Equal Benefits and Non-Discrimination in Contracting chapter 12(B). 

For more information about City of San Francisco Supplier Accounts please visit: https://sfcitypartner.sfgov.org/pages/become-a-supplier.aspx  

  • Insurance  
    Contractor must maintain in force, during the full term of the Agreement, insurance in the following amounts and coverages: 
    • Commercial General Liability Insurance with limits not less than $1,000,000 each occurrence for Bodily Injury and Property Damage, including Contractual Liability, Personal Injury, Products and Completed Operations.  
    • Commercial Automobile Liability Insurance with limits not less than $1,000,000 each occurrence, “Combined Single Limit” for Bodily Injury and Property Damage, including Owned, Non-Owned and Hired auto coverage, as applicable. 
    • Workers’ Compensation, in statutory amounts, with Employers’ Liability Limits not less than $1,000,000 each accident, injury, or illness, as applicable. 
    • The Workers’ Compensation policy shall be endorsed with a waiver of subrogation in favor of the City for all work performed by the Contractor, its employees, agents and subcontractors on City owned or managed property.  
x

Land Acknowledgment

The San Francisco Arts Commission acknowledges that we are on the unceded ancestral homeland of the Ramaytush Ohlone. We affirm the sovereign rights of their community as First Peoples and are committed to supporting the traditional and contemporary evolution of the American Indian community and uplifting contemporary indigenous voices and culture.

Racial Equity Statement
The San Francisco Arts Commission is committed to creating a city where all artists and cultural workers have the freedom, resources and platform to share their stories, art and culture and where race does not predetermine one’s success in life. Fueled by these beliefs, we commit to addressing the systemic inequities within our agency, the City and County of San Francisco and the broader arts and culture sector. This work requires that we focus on race as we confront inequities of the past, reveal inequities of the present and develop effective strategies to move all of us towards an equitable future.

What's Coming Up

Public Meeting

Executive Committee Meeting

December 18
/
1:00 PM to 2:30 PM

Hybrid: 401 Van Ness | Rm 125 and Online
Public Meeting

Visual Arts Committee Meeting

December 16
/
2:30 PM to 6:00 PM

Hybrid: City Hall | Rm 408 and Online
Public Meeting

Community Investments Committee Meeting

December 09
/
1:00 PM to 3:00 PM

Hybrid: City Hall | Rm 416 and Online
Public Meeting

Full Arts Commission Meeting

May 06
/
2:00 PM to 4:00 PM

Hybrid: City Hall | Rm 416 and Online