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KSDE official briefs committee on TASIN contracts, MTSS funding and RFP changes
Summary
The Kansas State Department of Education described the Technical Assistance System and Network (TASIN), its major contracts (about $43 million over five years), the role of MTSS, and an ongoing RFP process to renew or restructure contracts that expire June 30, 2025.
The Kansas State Department of Education briefed the House Committee on Education on the Technical Assistance System and Network (TASIN), the set of federally funded contracts that provide statewide professional development and technical assistance to districts.
Dr. Harwood, speaking for the department, described TASIN as an umbrella for 13 projects that Kansas is required to provide under federal education law and regulation. The projects are funded primarily through federal formula grants (IDEA and ESEA/ESSA). Over a five-year period, the TASIN contracts total about $43,000,000, which Dr. Harwood said averages roughly $8.5 million per year; the largest single contract supports multi-tiered systems of support (MTSS), at roughly $4 million per year.
Dr. Harwood told committee members that KSDE typically uses regional service centers and other agencies to hold and execute the contracts. Examples cited included Keystone (MTSS), Greenbush (Educate Kansas), Southwest Plains (Kansas Learning Network), the school for the deaf and the school for the blind (specialized services), and Infinitec (assistive technology through a cerebral palsy organization). She said KSDE is in the RFP process to renew contracts that expire June 30, 2025 and that the department is exploring two-year base contracts with annual renewals up to five years to retain flexibility.
Committee members asked about metrics and evaluations. Dr. Harwood said an independent federal evaluation contract collects data from the providers about the districts and schools they serve; providers report effectiveness metrics for the programs and districts they work with rather than statewide outcome measures. She agreed to follow up with available evaluation metrics and said evaluation reports are public documents.
Members raised questions about whether contracting provides cost savings, KPERS (retirement) implications for staff employed under service-center contracts, and the structure of interlocal agreements. Dr. Harwood said using contracts does not inherently save money relative to employing staff directly, but contracting offers flexibility; bringing contract work in-house could increase KSDE staffing by about 30% and change KPERS exposure. The department also outlined procurement procedures: RFP responses are evaluated blind for technical ability first, and cost reviews follow.
Dr. Harwood provided examples of TASIN projects: Educate Kansas (teacher recruitment and retention), the Kansas Learning Network (support for schools targeted for improvement), specialized programs for teachers of the deaf and blind, and the Kansas Math Project (part of MTSS supports for mathematics). She offered to provide the committee with the service-center contract breakdown and evaluation metrics.
No formal committee votes were taken on TASIN during the briefing, and committee members requested follow-up materials on contract lists, contract terms, evaluation metrics, and the frequency of administrative staffing arrangements that affect KPERS eligibility.
