THE GRADUATE SCHOOL

Limited Submission Funding Opportunity NSF Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (S-STEM)

FOA#: NSF 17-527

The goals of the S-STEM program are:

• To increase the recruitment, retention, student success, and graduation (including student transfer) of low-income academically talented students with demonstrated financial need who are pursuing associate, baccalaureate, graduate degrees in STEM and enter the STEM workforce or graduate programs in STEM.
• To adapt, implement, and study models, effective evidence-based practices, and/or strategies that contribute to understanding how factors or existing high quality evidence-based practices affect recruitment, retention, student success, academic/career pathways, and/or degree attainment (including student transfer) in STEM of low-income academically talented students with demonstrated financial need.
• To contribute to the implementation and sustainability of effective evidence-based curricular and co-curricular activities (e.g., evidence-based practices; professional and workforce development activities) for low-income academically talented students with demonstrated financial need, pursuing undergraduate or graduate education, and entry into the workforce or graduate programs in STEM.
• Track 1 (Institutional Capacity Building) seeks to increase the participation of institutions that have limited experience with designing and conducting activities. Track 1 provides funds to establish new collaborative partnerships and infrastructure that support these types of projects. Track 1 proposals may request up to $650,000 for 5 years.  At least 60% of the total requested amount must go to scholarships to academically talented low-income students with demonstrated financial need.
• Track 2 (Design and Development: Single Institution) supports single institution projects are focused on well-documented institutional needs or concerns. The program strongly encourages proposals to build on completed needs analyses or institutional self-studies. Track 2 proposals may request up to $1.0 million for 5 years. At least 60% of the total amount requested must go to scholarships to academically talented low-income students with demonstrated financial need.
• Track 3 (Design and Development: Multi-Institutional Consortia) supports institutional collaborations that focus on a common interest or problem. For example, a collaboration among community colleges and four-year colleges or universities may focus on issues associated with the transfer of students from 2-year institutions to 4-year programs or a consortium of institutions may focus on investigating factors, such as self-efficacy or identity, associated with student success or degree attainment. Track 3 proposals with a focus on multi-institutional efforts may request up to $5.0 million for 5 years. At least 60% of the total requested amount must go to supporting scholarships for academically talented low-income students with demonstrated financial need.
• Conferences and Workshops: The S-STEM program also supports a small number of conferences, workshops, and special projects that generate knowledge to better understand issues in the recruitment, retention, student success, degree attainment, and entry into the STEM workforce by low-income students. Conference and Workshop proposals are expected to be consistent with the duration of the event and the number of participants, but the cost will normally not exceed a total of $250,000 per event.

Proposals with a strong focus on workforce development are encouraged to partner with business, industry, or local community organizations. Proposals with a strong focus on the transfer or advancement of students from one educational level to another should collaborate with appropriate institutional partners (for example proposals focused on the transfer of students from 2-year institutions to 4-year institutions should include 2-year institutions and 4-year institutions or proposals focusing on the advancement of undergraduate students to graduate programs should include institutions with undergraduate programs and institutions with graduate programs).

Recent awards made through this program may be viewed here.

ELIGIBILITY

• For Track 1 and Track 2 projects, the Principal Investigator must be a faculty member currently teaching in one of the S-STEM disciplines listed in Section IV.B. of the full solicitation who can provide the leadership required to ensure the success of the project.
• For Track 3 projects, the Principal Investigator must be a faculty member currently teaching in one of the S-STEM disciplines listed in Section IV.B. of the full solicitation or an institutional, educational, or social science researcher who can provide the leadership required to ensure the success of the project.

LIMIT ON NUMBER OF PROPOSALS PER ORGANIZATION

• An Institution may submit one proposal (either as a single institution or as subawardee or a member of a Collaborative Research project) from each constituent school or college that awards degrees in an eligible field.
• For Track 3 (Design and Development: Multi-Institutional Consortia), a proposal whose Principal Investigator is an educational or social science researcher in a program other than STEM does not count against the limit on the number of proposals submitted by institutions from S-STEM disciplines.

KEY DATES

• Internal Letter of Intent Due (For all proposals, whether NU is the lead or a subaward): March 1, 2018 (by midnight)    
• Sponsor Full Proposal Due: March 28, 2018     

SUBMITTING A MANDATORY LETTER OF INTENT

Faculty members interested in applying are required to submit a letter of intent (LOI) by the deadline specified above. If interest exceeds the number of submissions the university is allowed, an internal competition will be held. Typically, all investigators that submit an LOI will be invited to submit an internal proposal. Occasionally, as appropriate, based on the LOI, only selected applicants will be invited to submit an internal proposal.

• Click here to access the LOI form.
• Name the LOI as follows: “LastName-FirstInitial-NSF-S-STEM-2018”, replacing “LastName” with your last name and “First Initial” with your first initial.
• Submit your LOI by completing this web form.  Note: Supplemental documents are not accepted.
• To receive a confirmation email and copy of your submission, check the box (“Send me a copy of my responses”) and enter your email address.
• Click “Submit”.

ASSISTANCE WITH PROPOSAL PREPARATION

The Training Grant Support Office assists faculty in the preparation of institutional training grant applications, including: Data table production involving institution-wide and Training Grant Support Office-tracked data; Proposal development aids; Advice, sharing of best practices, tips and traps; Coordination of special funding/ commitment requests made to The Graduate School in support of the training grant; and Special training grant-related projects.  Please contact Please contact Becca Lamarre, Training Grant Support Office Manager, Graduate School Administration (r-lamarre@northwestern.edu).

COLLABORATION OPPORTUNITIES

The Office of Research Development offers assistance in identifying and facilitating collaborations, putting together interdisciplinary teams, programmatic and administrative development of large, cross-school proposals, and leveraging institutional resources for outreach and education. Contact Nicole Moore (nicole.moore@northwestern.edu), Director, for more information.

CONTACT AND ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Karen Cielo, Senior Associate Director, 847-467-0043, k-cielo@northwestern.edu

Limited Submissions web site: ord.northwestern.edu/limited-submissions

Categories: Other, Opportunities for Trainees