Request for Proposals to Provide Equity Assessment and Related Services to Disability Rights North Carolina 

Disability Rights North Carolina (DRNC) is a legal advocacy agency that fights for the rights of people with disabilities in North Carolina. We are North Carolina’s Protection & Advocacy agency, an independent, 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, and a member of the National Disability Rights Network. See DRNC’s mission, vision, and values statements here. 

DRNC handles cases where people with disabilities have experienced discrimination, abuse and other rights violations, including those in K-12 and higher education, employment, public access, housing, jails and prisons, and home and community-based services. Our staff of approximately 50 people is passionate about fighting for community inclusion for people with disabilities, and providing a welcoming and safe space for individuals to seek help when they are unable to advocate for themselves or their loved ones. We also provide information & referral services and elf-advocacy tools. All of our services are at no cost to North Carolinians with disabilities. 

Our internal and external interactions must reflect our mission and values. DRNC is seeking professional support to increase race equity in our organization’s work and operations, enhance our internal work culture, and examine how we show up in the communities we serve. We also aim to improve our practices regarding intersectionality in our work, particularly the intersectionality of race and disability. We have already invested some internal resources in this work and are eager to secure expert assistance to elevate and guide this important endeavor. 

We are seeking an individual or firm who will: 

  • Hear us. 
  • Help us to hear and understand our colleagues and others. 
  • Help us to identify explicit and implicit inequities that impede reaching the organization’s goals. 
  • Help us to assess existing organizational culture and identify internal and external bias. 
  • Help us to set goals for equitable processes and structures that address bias and promote a culture of equity. 
  • Help us make an ambitious and achievable plan to reach those goals. 
  • Help us to develop an equity framework upon which our future work can be launched and maintained. 

Disability Rights North Carolina (DRNC) seeks to retain the services of a qualified individual or firm (Consultant) to provide the services outlined above. The Consultant should identify any services recommended or required, price them, and explain them in their response, as well as any services named above the Consultant recommends against or cannot provide.   Consultant may partner with other firms and/or hire subconsultants to complete the project.  

Please  provide DRNC with a brief summary describing the Consultant’s ability to perform the work requested, a history of the Consultant’s background and experience providing similar or related services; the qualifications of any personnel to be assigned to this project; names and qualifications of any subcontractor, sub consultants, and/or suppliers; two – three relevant, recent references or recommendations; and any other information called for by this request for proposal which the Consultant deems relevant. This summary should be concise and allow DRNC to assess the Consultant’s qualifications, availability, and fee structure.   

DRNC requests responses by Sept. 1, 2020. If you are unable to make a complete response by that time but are interested in this project, please email as soon as possible to let us know of your interest and the date by which you anticipate submitting a complete response. Inquiries should be directed to Virginia Knowlton Marcus at: Virginia.KnowltonMarcus@DisabilityRightsNC.org.