Vendors and Contracts | Chicago Public Schools

How Vendors work with CPS

We work with hundreds of vendors who help CPS deliver high-quality education and enrichment opportunities to Chicago students. When a vendor has a product or service they feel would benefit our students, schools and district, they can go through the Request for Qualifications (RFQ) process. Once they have completed and submitted all necessary documentation, the request is then reviewed and vetted by the organization. With regard to collecting and using student data, vendors must agree and sign contracts to adhere to the CPS SOPPA policies and Illinois law.

Vendor Onboarding

To ensure that schools and CPS departments who work with vendors have access to the tools needed, the Board is committed to onboarding vendors on a rolling basis through the first year of the SOPPA implementation. As a result, the Educational Technology Products and Services RFQ will be opened/closed each school quarter from February 2021 through June 2022.

Any vendor seeking to provide educational technology products, applications, and services to the district should respond to the RFQ to be considered for a contract.

Why Vendors Collect Student Data

Vendors help us connect students to technology that supports learning, growth and achievement in the classroom and in daily life. Many of these resources use student data for a variety of educational purposes, including:

Promoting active learning
Connecting students to online resources
Analyzing student performance for immediate feedback
Automating processes such as attendance and grading
Offering assistive technology options
Developing life skills that form critical foundations for future success

Vendor Responsibilities for Student Data

Once a vendor has collected student data, it is their responsibility to ensure legal and regulatory compliance for all student data. This includes following COPPA and FERPA laws in addition to adhering to the Student Online Personal Protection Act. The vendor is also required to protect the safety and integrity of all data. The data shall never be used for anything other than furthering the performance or expanding on educational services.