Hispanic Federation (HF) is the nation's premier Latino nonprofit membership organization. Founded in 1990, HF supports Hispanic families and strengthens Latino institutions through grant making and direct services in the areas of education, health, immigration, civic engagement, economic empowerment, and the environment. Since its inception in 1990, HF has focused on supporting and strengthening Latine-led community-based nonprofit organizations as a key instrument for social justice and economic empowerment.

Program Overview

With the support of Congressman Adriano Espaillat and the U.S. Small Business Administration, HF launched Crear y Crecer su Negocio: a Small Business Support Initiative to provide a wide range of programming and tools to strengthen the growing Latino small business community in New York Congressional District 13 (NY-13).

Hispanic Federation’s Small Business Support Initiative, Crear y Crecer su Negocio, grew out of HF emergency response grant program to small businesses in Northern Manhattan during the coronavirus pandemic shutdown in 2020. With the ongoing effects of the COVID-19 pandemic disproportionality affecting Latino communities, Latino-owned businesses were found to have fewer resources to recover. As the nation recovered, Latino entrepreneurs continue to face challenges in funding and business support services to survive and thrive. Limited familiarity with managing business operations during start up and growth stages, as well as accessing capital, have been the greatest pain points. Hispanic Federation’s Crear y Crecer su Negocio Small Business Support Initiative will:

  • Provide services and support to small business owners such as creating a toolkit for launching new ideas and growing a business, developing HF curriculum for business training, and creating a centralized online resource hub
  • Host HF Programming such as virtual business resiliency workshops and one-on-one consulting sessions with business experts
  • Subaward to small business-serving community-based organizations (CBOs) in NY-13. These organizations will also receive capacity-building assistance through workshops and technical assistance.

HF aims to serve 500+ entrepreneurs and small businesses through the Crear y Crecer su Negocio initiative.

Program Period: May 1, 2023 – April 30, 2025

Project Overview

Hispanic Federation seeks an external evaluator to create evaluation criteria and processes to monitor and assess program design, impact, and effectiveness of HF’s Crear y Crecer su Negocio Small Business Support Initiative in addressing challenges faced by Hispanic/Latino entrepreneurs and merchants and strengthening the small business community in NY-13.

The overall purpose of evaluating this effort is to assess processes and achievements of the initiative, including the relevance, design, effectiveness, and performance, to inform the possibility of scaling up the program to a larger audience. The evaluation and findings should be divided into two sections:

  1. Hispanic Federation direct services to entrepreneurs and small business owners such as workshops, technical assistance, toolkits, and online resource hub.
  2. Hispanic Federation subawardee program to four community-based organizations in the NY-13 congressional district.

Performance Period: April 15th – August 15th, 2025 [dates subject to change].

Total Funds Available: Up to $20,000.

Payments and Reporting

Consultants will submit monthly invoices using a template provided by HF. All payments must be aligned with the progress toward deliverables.

Scope

Consultant will:

  • Work with HF to create two evaluation plans, including scope, activities, tools and materials to determine effectiveness of Crear y Crecer su Negocio program. The two evaluation plans should cover:
    • Hispanic Federation direct services to entrepreneurs and small business owners such as workshops, technical assistance, toolkits, and online resource hub.
    • Hispanic Federation subawardee program to four community-based organizations in the NY-13 congressional district.
  • Design data collection tools and adjust as needed.
  • Data collection tools for immediate, 3-month, and 6-month check-in with:
    • Entrepreneurs and small business owners served through workshops, technical assistance, toolkits, and online resource hub.
    • Hispanic Federation subawardees (four community-based organizations).
  • Train HF staff and consultants in data collection process, as needed.
  • Aggregate and analyze all collected data. Data collection methods may include but are not limited to surveys, focus groups, or interviews with subrecipient staff/subcontractor staff, participants, and HF staff supporting the initiative.
  • Have periodic meetings with HF staff to discuss progress and findings.
  • Write draft and final evaluation report including findings and recommendations.

Deliverables

Evaluation deliverables will include, but are not limited to:

  • Two evaluation plans, including key questions to be answered by the evaluation, planned activities, outputs and outcomes, roles and responsibilities, and timeline. The plans should focus on:
    • Hispanic Federation direct services to entrepreneurs and small business owners such as workshops, technical assistance, toolkits, and online resource hub.
    • Hispanic Federation subawardee program to four community-based organizations in the NY-13 congressional district.
  • Data collection training for HF staff and partners.
  • Data collection tools.
  • Data collection tools for immediate, 3-month, and 6-month check-in with:
    • Entrepreneurs and small business owners served through workshops, technical assistance, toolkits, and online resource hub.
    • Hispanic Federation subawardees (four community-based organizations).
  • Agendas and notes from periodic meetings with HF.
  • Draft evaluation report.
  • Final evaluation report.

Requirements and Preferences

Consultants must demonstrate:

  • A minimum of 5 years of professional experience in public/non-profit program evaluation.
  • Strong analytical skills, with expertise in qualitative and quantitative research methods and data collection.
  • Direct experience working with community-of-color-led nonprofits.
  • Cultural and community competence.
  • Alignment with HF values.
  • Excellent writing skills.
  • Ability to adhere to project timelines and deliver high-quality work on schedule.
  • Strong collaborative skills.
  • Ability to meet all federal contractor requirements, including the Uniform Guidance for Federal Awards (2 CFR 200) and other federal requirements as relevant.

Consultants should preferably possess:

  • Knowledge of Evaluation Frameworks; familiarity with different evaluation models (e.g., Logic Models, Theory of Change, or the Kirkpatrick Model) and when to apply them.
  • Ability to design bilingual tools and guides in English and Spanish, and collect, aggregate, and analyze data in both languages.
  • Understanding how to design a solid research methodology, develop surveys or interviews, and collect data in a valid and reliable way.

Due Date and Submission

No later than Monday, April 7, 2025. Late applications will not be reviewed.

Proposal

To apply, applicants must submit all required documents outlined below to smallbusiness@hispanicfederation.org

The proposal must include the following:

  • Document answering the questions in the application included below.
  • Resume for each person who will be involved in project evaluation.
    • Note: HF does not allow subcontracting; please do not suggest the use of consultants.
  • Writing samples
    • Evaluation Report: Submit a sample evaluation report (a portion of a report is acceptable) that demonstrates the evaluator’s abilities in detail.
    • Evaluation Tool: Provide a sample of an evaluation tool. HF will use this sample solely for application evaluation purposes.
  • Estimated number of hours and total cost, provided the evaluation is conducted between April 15, 2025 through August 15, 2025.
  • If chosen, consultants will also need to provide:
    • W-9, signed and dated in 2025 (must be the updated W-9 form).
    • Voided check or bank letter.
    • A document of a staff training agenda or outline used in the past.
    • Detailed budget breakdown with calculation of hourly rate. Please note, subcontracting is not allowed.

For questions on the RFP or the proposal submission process, please contact: smallbusiness@hispanicfederation.org

Funded through a Grant with the U.S. Small Business Administration.

Crear y Crecer su Negocio Evaluation Services

For questions about this RFP, please contact smallbusiness@hispanicfederation.org.

I. Contact Information

Applicant name (individual or entity)

Name of individual completing the application

Title of individual completing this application (if entity)

Email

Phone number

Street Address

City, State and Zip Code

If the entity is registered in SAM.gov, please provide the entity's Unique Entity Identifier (UEI)

Is the entity MWBE certified in New York State? [YES/NO/N/A]

II. Certifications

I understand and certify the following:

I am authorized to make any commitments on behalf of the entity that are inherent in the proposed services and rates included in this application. [YES/NO]

I/the entity meet(s) all federal contractor requirements, including the Uniform Guidance for Federal Awards (2 CFR 200) and any other applicable federal, state, and local requirements. [YES/NO]

I/the entity/all of the proposed staff are not debarred or suspended by the Federal or New York State Government. [YES/NO]

If you answered NO to any of the certification questions, please explain.

III. Scope of Work

Scope of Work: Please describe how you will approach the assignment as it is described in this RFP, including process, methods, etc.

IV. Experience

Summary of Experience: Please concisely summarize your/the entity’s experience and capacity to provide the proposed consulting services.

Experience working with community of color-led organizations: Please describe your experience in evaluating public or nonprofit programs. Please provide examples of how you applied both qualitative and quantitative research methods to measure program outcomes and address community-specific needs.

Experience meeting public sector requirements: Please provide examples of the situations where you were required to meet public-sector requirements and how you managed them.

Experience working with and training staff and subawardees: Please provide a concise summary, including specific examples.

V. References

Please list three (3) previous clients who can serve as a reference relevant to the proposed project. Provide information on three prior related assignments, including client’s name if applicable, email and phone number, period of performance and a brief description of the work, including how it prepares you for this assignment.

To apply, applicants must submit this, and all other required documents outlined in the RFP, no later than Tuesday, April 1, 2025 to smallbusiness@hispanicfederation.org.