1. Jessie DeAro, Ph.D. Program Director National Science Foundation
W H E R E D I S C O V E R I E S B E G I N
Jessie DeAro, Ph.D.
Program Director
National Science Foundation

2. National Science Board
Mission: To promote the progress of science; to advance the national health, prosperity, and welfare; to secure the national defense.
Mathematical
& Physical
Sciences
(MPS)
Geosciences
(GEO)
Engineering
(ENG)
Computer &
Information
Science &
(CISE)
Biological
(BIO)
Office of the
Inspector General
(OIG)
Director and
Deputy Director
National Science Board
(NSB)
Office of Diversity &
Inclusion
Office of the General Counsel
Office of Integrative Activities
Office of International
Science & Engineering
Social,
Behavioral
& Economic
(SBE)
Education
& Human
Resources
(EHR)
Budget, Finance
& Award
Management
(BFA)
& Resource
(IRM)
Office of Legislative &
Public Affairs
OUR MISSION
The NSF Organic Act speaks specifically to the agency’s role in education:
“to initiate and support basic scientific research and programs to strengthen scientific research potential and science education programs at all levels in the mathematical, physical, medical, biological, social, and other sciences, and to initiate and support research fundamental to the engineering process and programs to strengthen engineering research potential and engineering education programs at all levels in the various fields of engineering, by making contracts or other arrangements (including grants, loans, and other forms of assistance) to support such scientific, engineering, and educational activities and to appraise the impact of research upon industrial development and upon the general welfare”
Administrative Offices
Offices with funding opportunities

3. Proposal & Award Policies & Procedures Guide
PAPPG: contains documents relating to NSF's proposal and award process.
Grant Proposal Guide (GPG)
Award Administration Guide (AAG)
It is used by potential grantees, current grantees, and NSF staff.
Make sure you have the most up to date version.
NSF Policy office web site:

4. Types of Funding Opportunities
Program Description
Published only on the NSF website.
Proposals must follow GPG (Grant Proposal Guide) instructions.
Program Announcement
Published NSF document describing the program.
Proposals must follow GPG instructions.
Program Solicitation
Published document with additional restrictions and/or requirements.
Proposals must follow both the solicitation and the GPG instructions
Dear Colleague Letter
Notifications of opportunities or special competitions for supplements to existing NSF awards.

5. NSF Merit Review Criteria
All proposals submitted to NSF must address the following merit review criteria:
The Intellectual Merit criterion encompasses the potential to advance knowledge; and
The Broader Impacts criterion encompasses the potential to benefit society and contribute to the achievement of specific, desired societal outcomes.

6. Finding grant programs that fit your project
STEM disciplines supported by NSF
Not clinical science faculty or allied health
Subscribe to National Science Foundation
Choose and change your topics at any time
Program announcements and solicitations no less than 90 days before target date/deadline
Watch for Dear Colleague Letters in areas of interest
Review the program solicitation and NSF Grant Proposal Guide for official information on proposal preparation, eligibility, etc.

7. Advance Technology Education (ATE)
Education of technicians for the high-technology fields
Partnership between academic institutions and industry
The ATE program supports
curriculum development
professional development of college faculty and secondary school teachers
career pathways to two-year colleges from secondary schools and two-year colleges to four-year institutions - including prospective K-12 STEM teachers that focus on technological education
other activities
The program invites research proposals that advance the knowledge base related to technician education.
2008 ATE grant to Miami-Dade (PI Gines-Candelaria; )
$150K - The Biotechnology Research Learning Collaborative (BRLC), involving Barry University and Altor BioScience, is developing new instructional materials and promoting professional development among postsecondary biotechnology instructors, lab managers, and tutors. BRLC is creating a series of laboratory-based, industry-applicable, small-scale research projects appropriate for two-year college students. Project faculty are testing the learning effectiveness of these research projects within college credit courses over a three-year period. An external evaluator is assessing the research-based learning activities for pedagogical content, industry applications, replication, student retention, and student learning. BRLC personnel are compiling the individual lab-based research projects and evaluation findings into a publication for college biotechnology instructors and lab managers. The project targets sixty minority and women college students as participants in the original lab-based research projects.
ATE Projects
Planning Grants
Research on Technician Education
Award size/year: $25K to 300K
Maximum award size: $70K
Award size: $150K-800K
Maximum duration : 3 years
Maximum duration : 2 years
Duration: 2-3 years

8. Scholarships in STEM (S-STEM)
To improve the STEM workforce by increasing
# of students who graduate with STEM degrees
# of students entering the STEM workforce
Provides Scholarships for
Academically Talented
Low-income students with demonstrated financial need
Scope of projects
At least 60% of the funds must be used for scholarships
Up to 40% of funds may be used for other things – support structures, research, recruitment, etc.
Miami Dade has had several between 2000 and 2009
Funded by H-1B visa fees
1. To increase the recruitment, retention, student success, and graduation (and transfer) of low-income academically talented students in STEM.
2. To implement and study models, effective practices, and/or strategies that contribute to success in STEM.
3. To contribute to the implementation and sustainability of effective curricular and co-curricular activities in STEM education.
Track 1 Inst. Capacity
Track 2 Design & Dev.
Track 3 Design & Dev. Consortium
Maximum award size: $650K
Single Inst.
Maximum duration : 5 years
Maximum award size: $1M
Maximum award size: $5M
Maximum duration: 5 years

9. HRD Programs LSAMP ADVANCE
Focus on the graduation of well-prepared, highly-qualified students from underrepresented groups who pursue graduate studies or careers in STEM
Alliances of institutions that implement comprehensive, evidence-based, and innovative strategies
ADVANCE
Focus on gender equity in STEM academic workforce
Organizational and systemic strategies barriers that impede the full participation and advancement of all women faculty in academic institutions. 
Organizational barriers that inhibit equity may exist in policy, practice, culture, and organizational climate.

10. NSF INCLUDES
Projects to create networks among organizations whose goals include developing talent from all sectors of society to build the STEM workforce. 
NSF INCLUDES Design and Development Launch Pilots:
Projects to explore the feasibility of bold, innovative ways for solving a broadening participation challenge in STEM. 
$300K for two years
Preliminary proposal deadline past for 2017 – look for next competition
NSF INCLUDES Alliances:
Alliances of Design and Development Launch Pilots, programs, people, organizations, technologies, and institutions to catalyze broadening participation investments
Funding levels and duration will be articulated in next INCLUDES solicitation
inquiries to

11. Research in Undergraduate Institutions (RUI) and Research Opportunity Awards (ROA)
Solicitation NSF
RUI – support for one faculty researcher or group of faculty to do research and integrate into education at your institution.
The RUI proposal is submitted by you.
Recommend contacting the NSF program officer in your research area to ask:
If it is a good time to get it reviewed or should you wait until later? Do they still have funds?
What is a reasonable amount of funds to request? Can you include equipment and supplies?
ROA – support for faculty to do research someplace that has NSF funding
The NSF PI will ask for the ROA funds
Can be built into new proposals or supplement existing NSF awards
Points of contact for RUI and ROA:

12. Improving Undergraduate STEM Education (IUSE)
IUSE Program Goals:
increasing student retention in STEM;
preparing students to participate in science for tomorrow; and
improving students' STEM learning outcomes.
IUSE has two tracks with two tiers each [Exploration and Design and Development and Implementation]
(1) Engaged Student Learning 
(2) Institutional and Community Transformation.
IUSE: EHR funding opportunity is offered in alignment with the NSF-wide undergraduate STEM education initiative, Improving Undergraduate STEM Education (NSF-IUSE) described in the solicitation.
MDCC had an STEP award – STEP is part of IUSE

13. EHR Core Research (ECR)
We invite researchers to identify and conduct research on questions or issues in order to advance the improvement of STEM learning in general, or to address specific challenges of great importance.
Three levels of funding based on the maturity of the proposed work and the size and scope of the empirical effort:
ECR Level I Research
ECR Level II Research
ECR Level III Research
Maximum award size: $500K
Maximum award size: $1.5M
Maximum award size: $2.5M
Maximum duration: 3 years
Maximum duration: 5 years
ECR projects can include the:
Collection of new data and/or secondary analyses of databases
Development of innovative research methods, metrics, and conceptual models
Implementation of educational or other interventions that are necessary to answer the research questions
Suzanne Austin had an research on gender in science and engineering award in 1995 studying writing’s impact on girls and college students attitude and achievement in math – this type of research would be funded under the ECR program,

14. Common Guidelines for Education Research and Development
A report from the Institute of Education Sciences at the U.S. Department of Education and the National Science Foundation, August 2013
Recommended reading for anyone proposing education research to NSF
Describes six research types:
Foundational
early-stage or exploratory
design and development
efficacy
effectiveness
scale-up
Partner with colleagues in social and behavioral sciences to:
Enhance the design of the education research components of your project at the proposal stage
Act as a co-PI with needed expertise to the project when needed

15. NSF Research Experiences for Undergraduate Students (REU)
Search for an REU site by discipline/research area:
Listed by institution and title of research
Contact the REU site for application information (not the NSF)
REU sites have to recruit half of their summer students from other institutions
Faculty with a NSF research grant may be able to get supplemental funds to support an undergraduate student:
They should contact their NSF program officer before submitting the supplement

16. NSF Graduate Research Fellowship
NSF GRF Solicitation and links:
GRFP Website:
Online Application, User Guides, Official Announcements:

17. Early Academic Research Career Programs
NSF Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER)
Support for junior faculty who exemplify the role of teacher-scholars through outstanding research, excellent education and the integration of education and research
NIH Mentored Career Development Awards (K awards)
Different types of awards depending on type of research

18. Policy Opportunities for Faculty in STEM
Visiting Program Officer at the National Science Foundation
American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Science & Technology Policy Fellowships
For those who have already earned a Ph.D.
Up to two-year policy experience in the Federal government

19. Useful Links on NSF Proposal Development
NSF:
Guide to Programs:
Award Information:
FastLane:
Broader Impacts:
Data Management Plan:
Funding Opportunities:

20. Proposal & Award Policies & Procedures Guide
PAPPG: contains documents relating to NSF's proposal and award process.
Grant Proposal Guide (GPG)
Award Administration Guide (AAG)
It is used by potential grantees, current grantees, and NSF staff.
Make sure you have the most up to date version.
NSF Policy office web site:

21. Jessie DeAro, Ph.D. Program Director National Science Foundation
W H E R E D I S C O V E R I E S B E G I N
Jessie DeAro, Ph.D.
Program Director
National Science Foundation