MERL Consultant

Introduction

Freedom of the Press Foundation is seeking a qualified Monitoring, Evaluation, Research, and Learning (MERL) consultant to evaluate and enhance our digital security training programs for working journalists. The consultant will develop robust feedback mechanisms to measure the impact and success of our training, both remote and in-person, and create a framework for continuous improvement.

The digital security training team specializes in providing digital security training for journalists, with a focus on safeguarding their work and personal information. We cover everything from fundamentals to specialized technical training for high-risk situations. We serve between 1,200 and 1,800 journalists a year. We require more comprehensive evaluation tools to better understand the effectiveness of our training programs.

Scope of Work

The consultant will report to the Program Manager of The Digital Security Team for consultation and approval of project plans, check-ins for milestones and deliverables. The consultant can expect to coordinate with our team to do any synchronous work the consultant requires during the project. The Digital Security Training team is typically available between 10am - 5pm Eastern Time.

1. Research and Need-Finding Phase

• Conduct a thorough analysis of our current pedagogy and service delivery, including a curriculum review of up to 10 training sessions and potentially shadowing live training sessions.
• Identify our desired impacts and outcomes (rather than outputs) for the training program, with an emphasis on measurable changes in knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors.
• Engage with our team to understand the challenges and constraints we face in regards to training delivery. 

2. Monitoring and Evaluation Plan

• Develop a comprehensive plan to monitor and evaluate the success and impact of our training programs.
• Identify specific success indicators and evaluation metrics to assess training effectiveness.
• Propose methods to increase survey response rates and gather more robust feedback.

3. Continuous Improvement Framework

• Create a framework for ongoing improvement of our training programs, beyond the consultancy period, that allows us to use the monitoring and evaluation data to inform curriculum development.
• Guide the team through the first evaluation cycle.
• Provide some specific recommendations for incorporating feedback and adapting training materials and methods, based on initial results of the monitoring and evaluation data.
• Offer guidance on best practices for adult learning and digital security education.

Qualifications

• A master's degree or PhD in adult learning, public policy, education, MERL, or a related field (candidates who are currently pursuing these degrees are welcome); Or a bachelor's degree in a related field with 5+ years of commensurate work experience.
• Two or more years of proven experience in MERL, particularly in the context of adult learning and training programs.
• Preferably, an understanding of basic digital security concepts, ideally in the context of journalism; or a willingness to learn.
• Strong analytical and research skills.
• Ability to develop practical, actionable evaluation and improvement plans.
• Flexible and adaptive approach to work, allowing one to work with our team’s existing tools and platforms (primarily Google Drive).

Deliverables

1. A comprehensive report detailing the findings from the research and need-finding phase.
2. A detailed monitoring and evaluation plan, including success indicators and evaluation metrics.
3. A continuous improvement framework and actionable recommendations for its application.
4. Regular progress updates and a final presentation of findings and recommendations to our team.

Term of Contract

The contract will commence on a mutually agreeable date sometime in August 2024, but will end no later than March 2025. 

Payments and Schedule 

The contractor will be solely responsible for paying any and all taxes incurred as a result of their compensation. Please indicate your availability in your response to this RFP. 

We welcome candidates to bid on this project in their proposal by including an estimated timeline and cost estimate (project-based). The project-based cap for this work is $20,000-25,500 USD.

Proposal Submission Requirements (DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION: 8/2/2024 by 5pm ET)

Interested consultants should submit the following:

1. Consultant's resume
2. A 1-page cover letter outlining their qualifications and relevant experience.
1. Please include examples of previous MERL work, particularly in adult learning or digital security training (if applicable), via links to a portfolio or description of previous engagements.
2. When highlighting your experience in MERL, please be specific about how it would be applicable to FPF and this scope of work.
3. A 1-2 page outline explaining their approach to the project, including:
1. Brief, high-level description of your monitoring and evaluation approach (~1- 4 sentences)
2. An estimated timeline of each phase as described in the Scope of Work above (project can run from Sept 2024 - Mar 2025) 
3. A cost estimate (budget is capped at $20-25K) 
4. Type of outcomes we might expect from the MERL project. We are most interested in outcomes (e.g. evidence of changed behavior, knowledge, or attitude; data that indicates areas for improvement in our materials) rather than outputs (e.g. # of trainees, subject matters covered, etc.)

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