21st Century School Buildings Program Committed to Contracting Locally Based Minority and Women-Owned Businesses

Maryland Stadium Authority reports that of the $1.06 billion contracted within the Program, $352 million of Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) contracts included equating to 33.1% MBE participation.
 

(Baltimore, MD) The Maryland Stadium Authority (MSA), a partner in the 21st Century School Buildings Program, today previewed the Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) and Workforce Development successes detailed in the Program’s upcoming 2020 Annual Report. The 21st Century School Buildings Program is a partnership between the MSA, Baltimore City Public Schools, the City of Baltimore, and the Interagency Commission on Public School Construction (IAC). The MSA is the Program partner that finances, procures, and builds future-focused, adaptable, sustainable and high-quality schools in communities throughout Baltimore City.

Not only does the 21st Century School Building Program contribute to Baltimore City and the State of Maryland through the education of Baltimore’s children, but it also promotes local employment with 948 positions filled by local residents, introduces a school internship initiative, and realizes a 33.1% MBE achievement with over $352 million in contracts awarded to minority and women owned businesses. These modernized schools may also serve as catalysts for economic development and neighborhood revitalization.

“The goals of the 21st Century School Buildings Program in Baltimore City goes well beyond the designing, constructing and delivering of modern schools by purposefully collaborating with the broader community with workforce development initiatives and minority business enterprise opportunities,” said Michael Frenz, Executive Director of the Maryland Stadium Authority.

The 21st Century School Buildings Program partners work together to maximize the opportunities for the City students and residents to be informed about, prepared for and connected to work-based learning and employment opportunities created by the Program. The Program also partners with the Mayor’s Office of Minority and Women-Owned Business Development (MWBD) to maximize the utilization of State-certified locally based minority and women-owned businesses.

An important goal of the Program is to contribute to the pipeline of qualified small, local, minority and woman-owned contractors with the capacity to participate in the program. With this goal in mind the Program and MWBD developed an outreach and inclusion plan administered by MSA in partnership with MWBD for all projects. Further, the Program also created a Supplier Diversity subgroup, chaired by MWBD, which created a supplier diversity plan.

An important component to ensure inclusion of minority and women-owned firms in the Program is to review all contract opportunities to determine the appropriate MBE participation goal and sub-goals based on the specific circumstances of the project.  All procurements in the 21st Century School Buildings Program must comply with State MBE law.

The MBE plan also envisions providing educational assistance to local, small, minority- and women-owned firms on methods of doing business on Program-related projects.  Since the Program’s inception, MSA has participated in over 62 state-wide business outreach events, 14 of which were organized by MSA to discuss specific potential outreach opportunities in the Program and provide technical assistance.  MSA will continue to promote the objectives of the MBE plan and to implement strategies to ensure that these objectives are met.

“As a partner in the 21st Century School Buildings Program, MSA is pleased to work with the Mayor’s Office of Minority and Women-Owned Business Development on the successful outreach and inclusion plan that promotes the utilization of State-certified locally based minority and women-owned businesses on the school projects, in compliance with State law,” said Gary McGuigan, Executive Vice President, Capital Projects Development Group at the Maryland Stadium Authority. “Regarding local hiring, 948 positions in Baltimore City have been filled with local candidates to date – exceeding the 369-position commitment originally anticipated from our contracts.  From a procurement perspective, a total of $1.06 billion has been contracted to date, with $352 million of MBE contracts equating to 33.1% MBE participation,” McGuigan added.

The MSA currently is scheduled to deliver 28 school buildings that will be home to 32 schools, maximizing the original Program projections of delivering 23 to 28 school buildings. Thus far, the MSA has delivered 17 modernized school buildings housing 19 schools on-time and under budget. Many of these school buildings have received environmental, engineering, and design awards. Currently, another seven schools are under construction, three are in design, and one more is completing the feasibility study phase. The 21st Century School Buildings program is scheduled to be substantially complete in 2021.

These modernized schools will serve communities in Baltimore for years to come with light-filled collaborative, fully accessible, learning and gathering spaces, all equipped with enhanced technologies and environmental efficiencies throughout. Adjacent outdoor areas can be enjoyed for organized sports, passive leisure, and additional educational opportunities.

In September 2020, Governor Larry Hogan announced that an additional $60 million is available for school construction through the MSA’s efficient project and fiscal management of the 21st Century School Buildings Program in Baltimore City. As a result, MSA has begun working with City leaders on funding additional school projects through the Program. 

The MSA expects the full 21st Century School Buildings Program’s 2020 annual report to be published on all the partners’ websites on April 30, 2021.