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The State Education Resource Center (SERC), in collaboration with the Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services (DMHAS), is creating a School-Based Center for Prevention, Education, and Advocacy (K-12) to serve the state of Connecticut. According to the U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory Report (2021), schools can directly impact youth mental health by providing "a continuum of supports to meet student mental health needs including evidence-based practices and trauma-informed mental health care.”
We are inviting your district to participate in a statewide survey. The purpose of the survey is to gather and share information regarding the prevention programs that Connecticut school districts are implementing around mental health, suicide prevention, substance use prevention, and social-emotional learning. The survey covers which programs are being used, impacts of the programs, and prevention priorities for districts. The survey will inform the foundation for the Center’s resource sharing, future outreach, and collaboration with districts.
Your district’s completion of the survey is vital to better serve your needs around prevention efforts. Please follow the link below and complete the survey no later than December 2, 2022. Thank you for your participation.
Thank you for your interest. The proposal submission period has ended, and the winning respondent has been notified.
Addendum 1, Answers to Submitted Questions, has been posted. See below to download.
SERC RFP Number: EASIERATWEB102022
State Education Resource Center (SERC)
Contact Person: Michelle Weaver, General Counsel, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
This RFP is for website development. Content for the website is being developed under a different RFP, Located Here.
Overview and Purpose
Local Education Agencies (LEAs) need helpful resources that will have an immediate impact to address delayed, interrupted, suspended, or inaccessible learning opportunities and provide Individualized Education Program (IEP) supports through educational recovery for students with and without disabilities due to the COVID-19 disruptions.
Many educational recovery initiatives have already been funded with one-time federal and state resources and have helped develop supports for all students, which includes access to educational technology through high-tech devices (laptop, computer, personal device, tablet, etc.). Ensuring that high-tech devices are user friendly, school ready, and aligned with a student’s needs is as critical as access to the device(s) themselves. One approach that aligns and gives students an immediate impact and potential educational gain/recovery is through the calculated use of educational applications (Apps) associated with Assistive Technology (AT) and Accessible Educational Material (AEM).
This RFP is to facilitate the development of a website that will be populated with information for users of high-tech assistive technology devices so that questions and challenges can be addressed in a prompt and succinct manner. The user’s need(s) are addressed through the provision of resources (self-driven), points of contact to gain access to professional consultative supports (professional driven), and immediate answers through “pop up” consults (expert driven).
Proposal Schedule (Eastern Time)
Release of RFP by electronic means on the SERC website, and CTsource: |
Friday, October 21, 2022 by 4:00 pm EDT |
Receipt of questions until: |
Friday, November 4, 2022 by 4:00 pm EDT |
Answers to questions will be posted as an Addendum on the SERC website on this page, and CTsource: |
Tuesday, November 8, 2022 by 4:00 pm EST |
Proposal due date: |
Friday, November 18, 2022 by 4:00 pm EST |
Award announcement: |
Friday, December 2 by 4:00 pm EST |
For more information including deliverables and proposal submission instructions, download the full Request for Proposals
Download Addendum 1, Answers to Submitted Questions
The State Education Resource Center (SERC) is committed to a policy of equal opportunity/affirmative action for all qualified persons. SERC does not discriminate in any employment practice, education program, or educational activity on the basis of race, color, religious creed, sex, age, national origin, ancestry, marital status, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity or expression, disability (including, but not limited to, intellectual disability, past or present history of mental disorder, physical disability or learning disability), genetic information, or any other basis prohibited by Connecticut state and/or federal nondiscrimination laws. SERC does not unlawfully discriminate in employment against qualified persons with a prior criminal conviction. Inquiries regarding SERC’s nondiscrimination policies should be directed to:
Michelle Weaver
General Counsel, SERC
100 Roscommon Drive,
Suite 110
Middletown, CT 06457
(860) 632-1485, ext. 364
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Ingrid M. Canady, who has championed educational and racial equity and social justice as executive director of Connecticut’s State Education Resource Center (SERC), received the Asa G. Hilliard Award for Outstanding Achievement in Racial Equity October 3 in Washington, D.C.
The Pacific Educational Group (PEG) honored Ingrid with the most prestigious recognition at its annual National Summit for Courageous Conversation®. The award, named for influential educational psychologist Asa G. Hilliard III (1933-2007), pays tribute to those who confront and challenge racism, are “passionate” and “revolutionary,” and who understand themselves and nurture greatness in others.
“The award is presented to a leader whose racial equity achievements have had an immense impact on the cultural, social, and academic development of underserved student of color populations,” according to PEG.
Under Ingrid’s leadership, SERC has continued to work with school districts across Connecticut on addressing racial equity, drawn hundreds to its annual Dismantling Systemic Racism conference, and led the development and implementation of the state’s first statewide African American/Black and Puerto Rican/Latino Course of Studies in partnership with the CT State Department of Education. The curriculum has offered every Connecticut high school student the opportunity to access the rich history, culture, and influence of populations historically left out of traditional narratives taught in school.
Ingrid migrated to the United States from Costa Rica in 1989 and became a U.S. citizen in 1997. She was a Head Start educator in Waterbury before joining SERC in 2003. From her start on the SERC consulting team, Ingrid was among those with an instrumental role in guiding the agency’s journey to examine the hidden realities of institutionalized racism and its impact in today’s classrooms, leading to the release of SERC’s major report “Equity in Education: A Transformational Approach” (2011).
Ingrid became in high demand locally and nationally as a facilitator and speaker on social justice and racial equity and SERC’s educational equity blueprint. She served as an assistant director and interim executive director before the SERC Board appointed her executive director in 2016.
Dr. Hilliard, also known as Nana Baffour Amankwatia II, believed there was no more important mission than the healthy socialization of children. His teaching is instrumental to PEG’s Courageous Conversation® framework, which guides SERC’s racial equity work. SERC Consultants are presenting at the summit on Connecticut’s Black and Latino curriculum and co-presenting on civil disobedience in literacy instruction.
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The State Education Resource Center (SERC) (ctserc.org) is a quasi-public agency created to assist the Connecticut State Board of Education in promoting educational equity and excellence. SERC provides resources, professional learning, and a centralized library to educators, families, and community members in collaboration with the Connecticut State Department of Education and other public and private partners.
