Specifications include, but are not limited to: A. Staffing Plan 1. Washington County expects the shelter operator to identify the staff and position types required to operate the shelter, including the number of staff, the number of hours per week for each position, and the approximate hourly rate and weekly benefits for each position. The staffing plan should include all positions required to operate a 24/7 non-congregate shelter. If internal staff will be used to provide services, the staffing plan must identify these positions as well. Proposers may use the Sample Staffing Plan found in Attachment A to the RFP or include this information in another format as needed. B. Language Access 1. The shelter operator must provide all forms and participant-facing documents in both Spanish and English. Other languages may be required depending on future needs and the shelter operator should have the ability to translate documents into multiple languages as needed. C. Prioritizing Vulnerable Populations 1. Washington County expects the shelter operator to prioritize vulnerable populations by promoting racial and ethnic justice through the use of data-driven assessments and accountability. The shelter operator must engage with and involve the community in discussions on racial justice and should be prepared to leverage partnerships with community organizations and leaders with experience serving vulnerable populations D. Culturally-Specific and Culturally-Responsive 1. Washington County expects the shelter operator(s) to operate the shelters in a culturally-specific and culturally-responsive manner. The County believes that culturally-specific and culturally-responsive operations will help eliminate barriers and create a more inclusive and belonging environment for Participants. E. Racial l Equity: Serving Black, Indigenous, Latina/o/x, Asian, Pacific Islander, and Immigrant/Refugees 1. Washington County acknowledges that in order to end homelessness its partners must acknowledge and address the role that structural and institutional racism plays in causing significantly disproportionate rates of homelessness among communities of color. 2. Like many communities across the country, Washington County is a community built on long history of legalized and institutionalized racist and oppressive practices that have deprived generations of People of Color access to economic and social opportunity. There are abundant examples of racial exclusionary laws and practices in Oregon that have contributed to infrastructure of institutional racism. Data shows that the inequities created by these historical practices continue to be reproduced and reinforced through institutionalized racism and prejudice in our current housing, education, criminal justice, and employment and human services systems. As a result, African Americans, Native Americans, Latinx communities, immigrants and refugees and other Communities of Color do far worse on all social indicators of well-being than whites. And their rates of homelessness are much higher than rates of homelessness among whites. 3. Eliminating these disparities requires an understanding on the part of the shelter operator(s) of how historic and current structural, institutional, and personal racism shape the experiences and opportunities of people of color in our community. It requires the shelter operator(s) to understand and carry out their obligations under federal, state, and local civil rights statutes designed to protect people against unlawful discrimination. It requires that resources be targeted, and services be delivered in a manner that addresses these disparities. It also requires that shelter operator(s) and the homeless services system as a whole be accountable for equitable access to and benefit from services provided.
