1. Broadening Participation in the Geosciences: NSF Funding Opportunities
Jill Karsten, Ph.D.
Program Director, GEO Education & Diversity
Geo-Needs Workshop
August 2015

2. Policy Guiding Documents
Engage to Excel: Producing One Million Additional College Graduates with Degrees in STEM (PCAST, 2012)
Prepare and Inspire: K-12 STEM Education for America’s Future (PCAST, 2010)
Federal STEM Education 5-Year Strategic Plan (CoSTEM, 2013)
Investing in Science, Engineering, and Education for the Nation’s Future: NSF Strategic Plan for (NSF, 2013)
Dynamic Earth: GEO Imperatives & Frontiers (AC GEO, 2014)

3. CoSTEM 5-Year Strategic Plan (NSF)
Undergraduate Education
Identify & broaden implementation of evidence-based practices & document their impacts on learning & retention
Improve STEM Ed support at 2-year colleges & create bridges between 2-year and 4-year programs
Incentivize & support university-public-private partnerships to provide relevant & authentic STEM learning experiences
Address high failure rates in gatekeeper introductory math classes
Graduate Education
Recognize & financially support students with high potential for making contributions in STEM careers
Help prepare students in areas critical to the Nation, including opportunities to develop the future Federal agency workforce
Continue & enhance mechanisms for evaluating the impact of graduate fellowships
Promotes coherence across agencies & program consolidation where possible
Five priority investment areas
Improve STEM instruction (100K new STEM teachers by 2020)
Increase & sustain youth & public engagement in STEM
Enhance STEM experience of undergraduate students
Better serve groups historically underrepresented in STEM fields
Design graduate education for tomorrow’s STEM workforce
Introduces concept of “lead agencies” for STEM Ed
K-12 education: Department of Education
Undergraduate & graduate education: NSF
Informal Education: Smithsonian

4. GEO’s Education & Diversity Priorities
Increase Undergraduate Exposure to & Enrollment in the Geosciences
Prepare a Capable Geosciences Workforce
Broaden Participation of Underrepresented Groups
Promote Public & Community-based Science to Improve Public STEM Literacy and Decision-making, and to Advance the Geosciences
Promote Use of Community Resources for Both Research & Educational Purposes
From “Dynamic Earth: GEO Imperatives & Frontiers ” (AC/GEO, 2014)

5. EHR’s Education & Diversity Priorities
Strategic Re-envisioning for the Education and Human Resources Directorate report (2014)
Prepared by the EHR Advisory Committee
Three major themes:
STEM Learning and STEM Learning Environments
Broadening Participation and Institutional Capacity
STEM Workforce Development
Under Theme 2:
View BP as a solution, not a problem to be solved
Engage social networks and networked communities
Building and leveraging partnerships
View BP as central to cultivating the culture of science
Broaden participation as a means of providing intellectual context that may enrich perspectives on research on STEM practices
Broaden set of methods and metrics for program evaluation
Communicate about science across multiple media channels
Encourage researchers to consider BP aspects to inform research in the other two areas

6. Improving Undergraduate STEM Education (IUSE)
NSF-wide initiative to establish a more coherent portfolio
Consolidation of TUES, STEP, WIDER programs in FY14
Emphasis on building & using the evidence base for improved STEM teaching & learning
Three “pillars”
Improve STEM Learning & Learning Environments
Broaden Participation & Institutional Capacity for STEM Learning
Build the Professional STEM Workforce for Tomorrow

7. Educational Research Answers & Insights Questions & Ideas
which helps improve
identifies and motivates
Answers &
Insights
Questions & Ideas
IUSE Framework acknowledges:
Linkages between STEM education research & education practice
Disciplinary communities are not all at same stage in their evolution
Disciplinary scientists have an important role to play in catalyzing change & adoption of best practices in their communities
that results in
which lead to
Educational Practice
IUSE Framework

8. IUSE Resources Initiative expected to extend to ~FY20
Core funding opportunities:
IUSE: EHR
IUSE: GEOPATHS
IUSE/PFE: RED
RCN/UBE
FY 16 & beyond, integrate supporting programs:
REU, TCUP, LSAMP, HBCU-UP
EHR
ENG
GEO
BIO
CISE
FY 2015
$84M
$6.0M
$10.9M
$2.5M
$2.0M
FY 2016
$120M $0
IUSE = Improving Undergraduate STEM Education
IUSE: EHR = IUSE: Education and Human Resources
IUSE: GEOPATHS = IUSE: Pathways into Geoscience
IUSE/PFE: RED = IUSE/Preparing Future Engineers: Revolutionizing Engineering Departments
RCN/UBE = Research Coordination Networks: Undergraduate Biology Education

9. IUSE: Pathways into Geoscience (IUSE: GEOPATHS)
Program Solicitation NSF
Two funding tracks:
GEOPATHS-EXTRA
GEOPATHS-IMPACT
Up to $500K total; up to 3 years of funding
Eligibility restrictions
Deadlines:
Letter of Intent (required) due August 14, 2015
Full proposals due October 5, 2015
Expect annual competitions thereafter
Both tracks have a strong focus on supporting diverse students or collaborating with community colleges or MSIs.
EXTRA: Focus on extra-curricular experiences for cohorts of students that foster skills development, increased career awareness & stronger engagement
IMPACT: Focus on institutional partnerships that promote retention of students in the geosciences at critical junctures, especially between 2-year and 4-year institutions and/or between Minority-Serving Institutions and 4-year institutions with geoscience degree programs
Eligibility restrictions:
An institution can submit one proposal to the competition each year as lead or sole submitting institution.
Lead institution of an EXTRA track proposal cannot be a Research Intensive (Carnegie classification) institution

10. IUSE: Education & Human Resources (IUSE: EHR)
Program Solicitation NSF
Two funding tracks:
Engaged Student Learning
Institutional & Community Transformation
Three funding levels:
Engaged Student Learning
This track focuses on design, development, and research studies that involve the creation, exploration, or implementation of tools,
resources, and models that show particular promise to increase engagement of undergraduate students in their STEM learning and
lead to measurable and lasting learning gains. Projects are encouraged to form collaborations among STEM disciplinary researchers,
education researchers, and cognitive scientists so that their projects can best leverage what is known about how people learn and/or
contribute to the growth of that body of knowledge.
Institutional and Community Transformation
This track supports projects that use innovative approaches to increase substantially the widespread use of highly effective, evidence-based
STEM teaching and learning, curricular, and co-curricular practices in institutions of higher education or across/within disciplinary
communities. These projects may be proposed by an institution or set of institutions; alternatively, the community proposals may be
submitted through professional communities, including discipline-based professional societies and networks or organizations that
represent institutions of higher education. Projects are expected to be both knowledge-based and knowledge-generating.
Exploration & Design
Development & Implementation
Engaged Student Learning
Up to $300K, for 3 years
Level 1: Up to $600K, for 3 years
Level 2: $601K-$2M, for 5 years
Institutional & Community Transformation
Up to $3M, for 5 years

11. NSF Broadening Participation Programs
Centralized information on the NSF BP web site:
Portfolio of focused funding opportunities
Reports on broadening participation
Framework for evaluating impacts of broadening participation projects
Other relevant links
NSF invests in fundamental research, design & development research, implementation research, and capacity building

12. EHR Core Research (ECR) Program
Program Solicitation NSF
Focus on fundamental research to accumulate evidence to understand, build theories, and suggest innovative interventions to address persistent challenges to STEM learning and participation
Strands:
STEM learning & learning environments
STEM professional workforce development
Broadening participation in STEM
Eligibility: No restrictions
Deadlines:
September 10, 2015
2nd Thursday in September annually thereafter
ECR is a $61M program
ECR supports fundamental research on broadening participation in STEM and invites proposals that will pursue fundamental research about what it takes to diversify and increase participation in STEM effectively, including research improves our understanding of how to build institutional capacity and informal learning environments that foster the untapped potential of
underrepresented minority groups in STEM fields. Proposals may address topics including, but not limited to, better understanding of what leads to: retention and degree attainment; development of measures, processes and metrics to assess impacts and outcomes of broadening participation and institutional capacity initiatives and programs; studies that examine the impact of diversity (or the lack thereof) of various kinds on innovation and productivity in STEM education and in the STEM workforce (including in-depth studies on practices that have proved effective in reducing stumbling blocks across multiple sites). Current technologies and cyberlearning options have provided new opportunities to further enhance STEM research and education; however, issues of accessibility for and impacts on underrepresented groups are not yet fully understood. Broadening participation research areas of special interest include research in disabilities education and research on gender in science and engineering. ECR research in disabilities education includes fundamental research about learners (of all ages) with disabilities in STEM, with a particular focus on efforts to understand and address disability-based differences in STEM education and workforce participation. Fundamental research projects typically address areas such as stereotype threat, an individual's identity (e.g. STEM and disability identity), underlying attention and physical barriers that impact STEM learning, and the societal and organizational characteristics that influence learning and educational pathways. Projects must employ evidence-based educational exemplars, have a strong theoretical base, and be justified by relevant educational, disability, and social science research. ECR research on gender in science and engineering seeks to understand and address gender-based differences in STEM education and workforce participation through education and implementation research that will lead to a larger and more diverse domestic STEM workforce. Typical projects will contribute to the knowledge base addressing gender-related differences in learning and in the educational experiences that affect student interest, performance, and choice of careers; how pedagogical approaches and teaching styles, curriculum, student services, and institutional culture contribute to causing or closing gender gaps that persist in certain scientific fields.

13. Advanced Technological Education (ATE)
Program Solicitation NSF
Focus on two-year colleges and preparation of the advanced technical workforce
Supports a variety of activities, including: curriculum development; professional development of faculty & teachers; support for career pathway transitions between HS-2YC & 2YC-4YC
Three tracks
ATE Projects; ATE Centers; Targeted Research
Deadlines:
October 8, 2015 (October 6, 2016)
ATE Projects support
Program Development and Improvement
Curriculum and Educational Materials Development
Professional Development for Educators
Leadership Capacity Building for Faculty
Teacher Preparation
Business and Entrepreneurial Skills Development for Students
Small Grants for Institutions New to the ATE Program
Conferences and Workshops
ATE Coordination Networks
ATE CENTERS support national, regional, and support centers:
National Centers: National Centers must have a major national impact and visibility in the technological fields they address catalyzing a broad national network of academic institutions and industry partners.
Regional Centers: Regional centers focus on a particular field of technology and have a clear, measurable impact on the workforce and economy in a logically defined geographic region.
Support Centers: A support center, within a technological area or combination of areas, constitutes a highly visible source of educational materials, ideas, and contacts, research and evaluation, and provides mentoring to increase leadership capacity on a national level.
Targeted Research on Technician Education track:
The goals of this track are: 1) to simulate and support research on technician education in established and emerging advanced technology fields in STEM, and 2) to build the partnership capacity between 2-year and 4-year institutions and universities to design and conduct research and development projects.

14. EHR Capacity Building Programs
Louis Stokes Alliances for Minority Participation (LSAMP) – NSF
Historically Black Colleges & Universities Undergraduate Program (HBCU-UP) – NSF
Alliances for Graduate Education and the Professoriate (AGEP) – NSF
Centers of Research Excellence in Science & Technology (CREST) – NSF
Tribal Colleges & Universities Program (TCUP) – NSF
HBCU-UP, AGEP, CREST & TCUP offer tracks in Broadening Participation Research in STEM Education
The Louis Stokes Alliances for Minority Participation (LSAMP) program assists universities and colleges in their efforts to significantly increase the numbers of students matriculating into and successfully completing high quality degree programs in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) disciplines in order to diversify the STEM workforce. Particular emphasis is placed on transforming undergraduate STEM education through innovative, evidence-based recruitment and retention strategies, and relevant educational experiences in support of racial and ethnic groups historically underrepresented in STEM disciplines: African Americans, Hispanic Americans, American Indians, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, and Native Pacific Islanders. The LSAMP program provides funding to alliances that implement comprehensive, evidence-based, innovative, and sustained strategies that ultimately result in the graduation of well-prepared, highly-qualified students from underrepresented groups who pursue graduate studies or careers in STEM.
There are four alliance award types:
1. Alliances (Multi-institutional Partnerships): 5-year projects focused on undergraduate recruitment and retention activities.
2. Bridge to the Baccalaureate (B2B) Alliances (Alliances with a community college as lead institution): 3-year projects focused on activities that provide effective educational preparation of community college students for successful transfer to 4-year institutions in STEM.
3. Bridge to the Doctorate (BD) Activity: 2-year projects eligible only to existing alliances funded more than 10 consecutive years; these projects are focused on providing post-baccalaureate fellowship support to a cohort of 12 LSAMP students for the first two years of their STEM graduate studies and on providing the necessary academic and research skills that will enable them to successfully earn STEM doctoral degrees and transition into the professoriate and/or STEM workforce.
4. Pre-Alliance Planning Grants: Up to 18-month projects that undertake planning activities necessary to form new alliances or regional outreach and knowledge-diffusion centers of excellence.
HBCU-UP provides awards to develop, implement, and study evidence-based innovative models and approaches for improving the preparation and success of HBCU undergraduate students so that they may pursue STEM graduate programs and/or careers. Support is available for Targeted Infusion Projects, Broadening Participation Research Projects, Research Initiation Awards, Implementation Projects, Achieving Competitive Excellence Implementation Projects, and Broadening Participation Research Centers; as well as other funding opportunities. Targeted Infusion Projects (TIP) provide support to achieve a short-term, well-defined goal to improve the quality of undergraduate STEM education at HBCUs. The Broadening Participation Research (BPR) in STEM Education track provides support for research projects that seek to create and study new theory-driven models and innovations related to the participation and success of underrepresented groups in STEM undergraduate education. Research Initiation Awards (RIA) provide support for STEM faculty at HBCUs to pursue research at the home institution or at an NSF-funded research center, a research intensive institution or a national laboratory. Implementation Projects provide support to design, implement, study, and assess comprehensive institutional efforts to increase the number of students receiving undergraduate degrees in STEM and enhance the quality of their preparation by strengthening STEM education and research. Within this track, Achieving Competitive Excellence (ACE) Implementation Projects are intended for HBCUs with exemplary achievements and established institutionalized foundations from previous Implementation Project grants. Broadening Participation Research Centers provide support to conduct world-class research at institutions that have held three rounds of Implementation or ACE Implementation Projects.
AGEP: Will support the development, implementation, study, and dissemination of innovative models and standards of graduate education and postdoctoral training that are designed to improve URM participation, preparation, and success. The AGEP-Broadening Participation Research in STEM Education (AGEP-BPR) track - Investigator initiated empirical research projects that seek to create and study new theory-driven models and innovations related to the participation and success of URMs in STEM graduate education, postdoctoral training, and academic STEM careers at all types of institutions of higher education.
CREST Center awards provide multi-year support (typically 5-years) for eligible minority-serving institutions that demonstrate a strong research and education base, a compelling vision for research infrastructure improvement, and a comprehensive plan with the necessary elements to achieve and sustain national competitiveness in a clearly defined area of national significance in science or engineering research. There is a track in the CREST solicitation called Broadening Participation Research (BPR) in STEM Education which supports projects that create and study new models and innovations in STEM teaching and learning; enhance the understanding of the underlying issues affecting the differential participation and success rates of students from underrepresented groups; add to the research knowledge base; and inform STEM education practices and interventions. Broadening Participation Research proposals should describe evidence-based research studies that contribute to understanding the participation of and successful outcomes for underrepresented groups in STEM. Proposals should consider new evidence-based strategies and practices and institutional structure models for broadening participation in STEM and increasing the capacity of scholars in minority-serving institutions to conduct this type of research.
The Tribal Colleges and Universities Program (TCUP) provides awards to Tribal Colleges and Universities, Alaska Native-serving institutions, and Native Hawaiian-serving institutions to promote high quality science (including sociology, psychology, anthropology, economics, statistics, and other social and behavioral science as well as natural science and education disciplines), technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education, research, and outreach. Support is available to TCUP-eligible institutions (see the Additional Eligibility subsection of Section IV of this solicitation) for Instructional Capacity Excellence in TCUP Institutions (ICE-TI), Targeted STEM Infusion Projects (TSIP), PArtnerships for Geoscience Education (PAGE), Broadening Participation Research in STEM Education (BPR), Small Grants for Research (SGR), and Preparing for TCUP Implementation (Pre-TI).

15. Opportunities for the Geosciences
TCUP PArtnerships for Geoscience Education (TCUP: PAGE)
Program Solicitation NSF
Supports collaborations between TCUP institutions and 4-year geoscience programs to improve instructional capabilities; attract & retain TCUP students; support transitions to help students attain geoscience degrees
Eligibility: TCUP-eligible institution must be the lead
Up to $5M total funding (limit of $825K per institution)
Up to 5 years duration
Deadlines: March 16, 2016 (annually)
CREST Postdoctoral Fellowships
Look for this track in the next solicitation

16. Hispanic-Serving Institutions
Stimulating Research on Effective Strategies in Undergraduate STEM Education at Two-Year Hispanic Serving Institutions
Dear Colleague Letter NSF
Early Concept Grants for Exploratory Research (EAGER) and Conference proposals
Up to $300K/2 years for EAGERS; up to $50K for conferences
Proposals due by May 31, 2016
See also Dear Colleague Letter NSF for supplemental funding request information for specific programs

17. NSF INCLUDES Initiative (FY16)
Inclusion across the Nation of Communities of Learners that have been Underrepresented for Diversity in Engineering and Science
Six-year, NSF-wide activity will pilot two new models:
NSF INCLUDES: Networks for STEM Excellence
NSF INCLUDES: Empowering All Youth for STEM
Formal solicitations, DCLs, and supplements
$15M requested in FY16 budget
NSF INCLUDES: Networks for STEM Excellence pilot will catalyze the implementation of networks consistent with CEOSE’s and the NSF Broadening Participation Working Group’s recommendations for centers/institutes and partnerships. The key idea is to leverage existing programs, people, organizations, alliances, and institutions by providing resources that will allow the formation of new networks and synergies, to form NSF’s next generation of BP investments. Focus on "Collective Impact" strategies (e.g., see
NSF INCLUDES: Empowering All Youth for STEM pilot will invite proposals to design, implement, and assess models to ignite greater demand for STEM learning opportunities for middle grades youth. In contrast with more traditional approaches to informal STEM learning, this pilot will emphasize engaging young people more directly in the kinds of STEM learning opportunities that they seek. It will build on literature about such important variables as grit, collaborative problem solving, growth mindset, and motivation. New NSF investments in this pilot will go to community organizations, informal learning enterprises, developers of technology, cyberlearning experts, and creative partnerships that can leverage other stakeholders with shared interest in this space, and that can focus in high-needs areas and on populations that are underrepresented in STEM.
BIO
CISE
EHR
ENG
GEO
MPS
SBE IA
FY16
$1.40M
$1.78M
$3.00M
$2.44M
$2.60M
$0.50M
$1.88M

18. Useful Links PCAST 2010 PCAST 2012 CoSTEM 2013
PCAST 2012
12.pdf
CoSTEM 2013
NSF Strategic Plan
AC GEO Report 2014