Alternate Assessment

The State of South Dakota seeks a qualified contractor to develop alternate academic achievement standards for English Language Arts and Mathematics, create and administer statewide summative alternate assessments in ELA, Math, and Science for students with significant cognitive disabilities, and provide real‑time scoring, reporting, and support services. The effort includes standards development, item creation, a secure web‑based testing platform, help‑desk operations, data integration, and annual reporting, with a five‑year base period and optional one‑year extensions. • Develop AAAS (alternate academic achievement standards) for ELA & Math aligned to state standards. • Design, build, and maintain a secure SaaS testing platform that administers, scores, and reports assessments in ELA, Math, and Science. • Provide ongoing help‑desk support, data integration (nightly student file via API), accessibility accommodations, and post‑implementation reporting and technical documentation. • Meet extensive security, privacy (FERPA, HIPAA, FTI), and prohibited‑entity requirements, including background checks, cyber‑liability insurance, and compliance with BIT IT policies. • Deliver annual deliverables such as technical reports, standard‑setting analyses, and final data files, with a five‑year contract term (2026‑2031) and optional extensions.