What ED buys
Most ED dollars don't go through open SAM.gov competitions. Here's how the spend actually breaks down:
Where ED posts opportunities
Primary channels: SAM.gov · GSA Schedule · Grants.gov.
ED pain points
What ED is actively trying to fix — sourced from agency strategic plans, IG reports, and FY26 budget justifications. Map your capabilities to these and you're writing toward an evaluator's actual problem.
- 1
Student loan servicing - managing $1.7T+ portfolio across multiple servicers with system integration challenges
- 2
FAFSA modernization - simplifying federal student aid application after troubled 2024 rollout
- 3
Data privacy and security - protecting 42M+ student borrower records under FERPA and cybersecurity mandates
- 4
IT infrastructure modernization - legacy systems supporting financial aid processing and compliance
- 5
Civil rights enforcement technology - case management and investigation systems for OCR
- 6
K-12 technology grants - administering E-Rate, Title I, and IDEA technology funding to schools
FY26 funding priorities
Where the money is moving inside ED in the current and upcoming fiscal years.
- $1.2B allocated for the Federal Student Aid (FSA) Next Generation Financial Services Environment, with recompetes for IT and servicing contracts expected in FY2025
- $500M in FY2025 budget for Title I Grants to Local Educational Agencies, supporting contractors providing educational materials and services to disadvantaged schools
- $800M committed to the Pell Grant program expansion, with opportunities for administrative and IT support contracts through FY2026
- $300M for the Education Stabilization Fund under the American Rescue Plan, with active grants for edtech solutions and distance learning infrastructure in FY2025
- $250M allocated for the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) research initiatives, with RFPs for data analytics and evaluation services expected in FY2025-2026
How Mindy tracks ED
Mindy pulls ED opportunities from 3 sources every day — SAM.gov, agency forecast portals, recompete signals from expiring contracts — then filters by your NAICS, set-aside eligibility, and location. New opportunities and recompete signals land in a single morning email.
No more checking 12 portals. No more reading 80-page solicitations to figure out if you're even eligible.
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