MEMORANDUM
TO:
Publishers of Instructional Materials and Their Representatives
FROM:
Becky Butler, Assistant Director
Office of Middle/Secondary Learning
RE:
Call for Instructional Materials: World Languages
DATE:
February 9, 2016
The West Virginia Board of Education is pleased to announce the Call for Instructional Materials
for World Languages by issuing the Notice, Request and Instruction to Vendors of Instructional
Materials. This call will include electronic and print materials; however, only print materials that
include an interactive electronic option for adoption will be eligible for consideration as a
primary instructional resource. Specific Criteria for World Language courses have been posted
to the West Virginia Department of Education (WVDE) Instructional Materials website,
http://wvde.state.wv.us/materials, for your convenience. Vendors/Publishers seeking to submit
bids for public school instructional materials for the Call in print and/or electronic format are
directed to the WVDE Instructional Materials’ Call to Bid webpage,
http://wvde.state.wv.us/materials/calltobid.html, for the procedures and forms to be used in
preparation of the official bid. Official bids are to be submitted to the WVDE using the Online
Electronic Bid Submission Application located on the WVDE Instructional Materials website,
http://wvde.state.wv.us/materials.
The Official Signature Page and a $1,000 bid deposit are the only items that are to be mailed to
the WVDE. The bid deposit is refundable once all conditions of the adoption process are met,
including the submission of the contracts and bonds by the state deadline. The Official
Signature Page is to be completed according to the instructions on the website and delivered to
the WVDE no later than 12:00 PM EST on March 24, 2016.
The bid deposit must be provided via certified check to the West Virginia Department of
Education, along with the Official Signature Sheet, no later than 12:00 PM EST on March 24,
2016. The official bid opening will be held at 1:00 PM on March 31, 2016, by West Virginia
Department of Education in or near Building 6, Room 603, 1900 Kanawha Boulevard East,
Charleston, West Virginia.
All bids must be submitted electronically using the secure Electronic Bid Submission application
accessed through the Instructional Materials website, http://wvde.state.wv.us/materials. Any
bids that do not follow the prescribed procedures for submission will be automatically rejected.
Vendors/Publishers are requested to acknowledge receipt of this information and indicated
their intent to bid by email to djustice@k12.wv.us no later than the close of the business day,
February 29, 2016. The Intent to Bid, which is not binding, should include a comprehensive list
of the student editions, categorized as print or electronic and identified under the respective
category by course and/or grade level(s). If multiple formats of the same resources will be
submitted, please list each format separately. If a resource is intended for a programmatic level
(K-2, 3-5, 6-8 or 9-12), the resource will need to be listed separately at each grade level. West
Virginia reviews for grade-specific alignment. This information is to reflect the items to be on the
official bid and will assist in organizing the review of instructional materials submitted for
consideration.
Bidders are advised that the criteria by which programs will be evaluated is posted on the
Instructional Materials Criteria page, http://wvde.state.wv.us/materials/criteria.html. The
Instructional Materials Review Committee (IMRC) will meet the week of July 11, 2016, to
deliberate on the instructional materials submitted, make decisions and prepare
recommendations to be submitted to the West Virginia Board of Education. During the week of
deliberations, you may be asked to present and explain your programs’ alignment with adoption
criteria for World Languages. Publishers must provide Lexile measures for student editions
approved for adoption. Additionally, approved programs must include an electronic file of
student edition that can be downloaded to an eReader (e.g. Kindle, Sony Reader, netbook,
etc.).
Publishers are required to provide access to electronic instructional resources during the IMRC
orientation and training session which will be held April 22-24, 2016. This training is necessary to
ensure that all members of the IMRC conduct a complete, thorough, and quality review of
electronic materials. Specifications for access to electronic instructional resources for the
purpose of review can be found on the Instructional Materials Call for Bid webpage,
http://wvde.state.wv.us/materials/calltobid.html. Vendors may be asked to provide guidance
on accessing and navigating electronic resources to ensure a complete and accurate review of
the resource.
If you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact me or my assistant, Deborah, by phone at
304-558-5325 or by email at rbutler@k12.wv.us.
Mailing Address:
West Virginia Department of Education
Office of Middle/Secondary Learning
Attn: Becky Butler
Building 6, Room 603
1900 Kanawha Boulevard, East
Charleston, WV 25305
Thank you for considering West Virginia in the bidding of your instructional materials.