Slots: An organization may serve as a lead organization on only one proposal per project type, not including conferences. Proposals that exceed the organizational limit will be returned without review. No exceptions will be made.
Deadlines
Internal Deadline: TBA
LOI: N/A
External Deadline: October 24, 2023 for Alliances; October 22, 2024 for Network Connectors, Design and Development Launch Pilots, and Colalborative Charge Consortia;
Recurring Deadlines: Fourth Tuesday in October, Every Other Year Thereafter.
Award Information
Award Type: Standard or Continuing Grant or Cooperative Agreement
Estimated Number of Awards: 10 – 15
Anticipated Award Amount: 5,500,000 for all project types in each competition year.
Who May Serve as PI: No restrictions or limits.
Link to Award: https://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2022/nsf22622/nsf22622.htm
Process for Limited Submissions
PIs must submit their application as a Limited Submission through the Office of Research Application Portal: https://rii.usc.edu/oor-portal/. Use the template provided here: RII Limited Submission Applicant Template
Materials to submit include:
- (1) Two-Page Proposal Summary (1” margins; single-spaced; font type: Arial, Helvetica, Times New Roman, or Georgia typeface; font size: 11 pt). Page limit includes references and illustrations. Pages that exceed the 1-page limit will be excluded from review.
- (2) CV – (5 pages maximum)
Note: The portal requires information about the PIs and Co-PIs in addition to department and contact information, including the 10-digit USC ID#, Gender, and Ethnicity. Please have this material prepared before beginning this application.
Purpose
With this solicitation, NSF invites proposals for five types of projects (described below) that connect and contribute to the National Network: (1) Design and Development Launch Pilots, (2) Collaborative Change Consortia, (3) Alliances, (4) Network Connectors, and (5) Conferences. Investigators planning to submit a proposal are strongly encouraged to submit a one-page description of their proposal idea to nsfincludes@nsf.gov at least three months prior to proposal submission. An NSF INCLUDES program director with related expertise will review and provide feedback on the alignment of the idea with the solicitation.
Proposals that address broadening participation challenges not yet represented in the NSF INCLUDES portfolio of projects are encouraged. Proposals that focus on broadening participation in STEM innovation and entrepreneurship are especially encouraged. or more information on funded NSF INCLUDES projects, see: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/simpleSearchResult?queryText=nsf+includes.
1. Design & Development Launch Pilots (DDLPs) explore new strategies and models for collaborative approaches to broadening participation in STEM. Successful proposals will identify a specific broadening participation challenge to address, measurable objectives, and collaborative partners, with explanation of the role of each partnering individual or organization. Successful pilot projects will test and deliver models that enable new collaborative efforts or new approaches to advance equity and broaden participation in STEM.
DDLP activities should engage appropriate communities in testing the feasibility of a process for change, building infrastructure for collaborative change, and identifying potential mechanisms for sustaining the efforts. Teams of organizations might come together locally, regionally, nationally, by disciplinary focus, or by other multi-sector categories. Early in the first year, partners are expected to refine their collective commitment to a common set of objectives and plans to achieve them. No later than the second year, successful teams are expected to carry out and report on results and share findings with the National Network and other stakeholders.
DDLPs should facilitate innovative partnerships, networks, and theories of action for broadening participation in STEM, with the goal of establishing future alliances, centers, or other large-scale networks. DDLPs can explore and build capacity for the development of collaborative infrastructure. Submissions from a broad range of diverse institutional partnerships, principal investigators, and contexts are encouraged.
NSF INCLUDES will not consider “planning grant” proposals in this solicitation, Ideas for projects formerly funded by NSF INCLUDES as planning grants should be submitted as DDLP proposals.
Design and Development Launch Pilot proposals may request up to $300,000 per year for up to two years. Prior NSF INCLUDES support is not required to be eligible for a DDLP award. A DDLP award is not a required prerequisite to a proposal for other NSF INCLUDES project types.
2. Collaborative Change Consortia are networks that implement, study , and scale up systemic strategies that address a critical broadening participation challenge in STEM. Collaborative Change Consortia build the infrastructure necessary to: 1) foster collaboration, 2) broaden participation in STEM at city, state, or regional levels of impact by operationalizing the five design elements of collaborative infrastructure , and 3) contribute rigorous and innovative research to the knowledge base about broadening participation in STEM, These projects should result in research findings and sustainable , replicable models for city, state, and/or regional implementation and impact.
Consortium partners work to achieve common goals through well-defined, common objectives and use lessons learned, promising practices, evidence-based mechanisms, the science of broadening participation, and research and evaluations from past and present efforts to transform systems in order to broaden participation in STEM at scale and provide new research.
Consortium proposals must include:
- a shared vision and strategy for broadening the participation of an identified population(s) in STEM, along with relevant metrics of progress and key milestones/goals to be achieved during the funding period and beyond;
- multi- sector partnerships and plans to build infrastructure to achieve progress on the project’s goals;
- a framework for continuous communication, data management, capacity building, networking, expansion, sustainability, and visibility of the project network;
- a plan for contributing rigorous and innovative research to the knowledge base on broadening participation in STEM;
- a plan for contributing project evaluations, data, new scientific findings/discoveries, and promising practices to the NSF INCLUDES National Network;
- planned connections and contributions to the National Network online community and the NSF INCLUDES Coordination Hub;
- a logic model or other heuristic that identifies outcomes reflecting the implementation of systemic change at scale and progress toward developing an inclusive STEM enterprise.
Collaborative Change Consortia may, but are not required to, build on the work of current or previously-funded NSF INCLUDES projects. A Consortium award is not a required prerequisite to a proposal for other NSF INCLUDES project types.
Collaborative Change Consortium proposals may request up to $1,000,000 per year for up to five years.
3. Alliances are large-scale networks that implement, study, and scale up systemic strategies that address a critical broadening participation challenge in STEM, Like Collaborative Change Consortia, Alliances build the infrastructure necessary to foster collaboration and broaden participation in STEM, but for Alliances, the level of impact should be national and supported by a backbone organization, Alliance s engage partners to operationalize the five design elements of collaborative infrastructure; work to achieve common goals through well-defined, common objectives; contribute rigorous and innovative research to the knowledge base about broadening participation in STEM; leverage NSF’s broadening participation investments; and use lessons learned, promising practices, evidence-based mechanisms, the science of broadening participation, and research and evaluations from past and present efforts to transform systems and broaden participation in STEM at scale. Alliances are required to:
- Develop a shared vision and strategy for broadening the participation of an identified population(s) in STEM, along with relevant metrics of progress and key milestones/goals to be achieved at a national level, during the funding period and beyond;
- Establish multi-sector partnerships and build infrastructure to achieve progress on the project’s goals;
- Contribute rigorous and innovative research to the knowledge base on broadening participation in STEM;
- Establish a “backbone” (i.e., support) organization that provides a framework for continuous communication, data management, capacity building, networking, expansion, sustainability, and visibility of the project network beyond a single city, state, or region;
- Advance a logic model or other heuristic that identifies Alliance outcomes, reflecting the implementation of change at a national scale and progress toward developing an inclusive STEM enterprise;
- Collaborate with the NSF INCLUDES Coordination Hub to share project evaluations, data, new scientific findings/discoveries, and promising practices with the NSF INCLUDES National Network and build critical knowledge that enables measurable progress toward NSF INCLUDES goals;
- Participate in a network of peer alliances and the NSF INCLUDES National Network to achieve NSF INCLUDES goals; and
- Work to build connections to other organizations and broadening participation stakeholders to join in and expand the NSF National Network.
Alliance proposals may request up to $2,000,000 per year for up to five years.
4. Network Connectors initiate or maintain linkages to the NSF INCLUDES National Network for projects or partnerships that are not currently funded by NSF INCLUDES. Network connector proposals may be submitted by existing NSF-funded and non-NSF funded projects seeking funding to provide or participate in:
- new collaborations that expand the impact of active or previously-funded NSF INCLUDES projects;
- new opportunities for collaboration across the NSF INCLUDES National Network;
- novel ideas to bring a community of NSF-funded projects into the NSF INCLUDES National Network;
- efforts to equitably scale up innovative and evidence-based approaches to broadening participation in STEM;
- NSF-funded research activities with the goal of broadening participation in STEM;
- development of shared goals, measures, and mutually reinforcing activities to build collaborative infrastructure for broadening participation in STEM;
- communicating knowledge and results from the NSF broadening participation portfolio of programs and projects, NSF Center-scale activities, or other major Foundation investments ; or
- communicating findings from the science of broadening participation research community to the NSF INCLUDES National Network, especially pertaining to new efforts to translate basic research into practice.
Network Connectors implement connections to NSF-funded or other existing projects and evidence-based approaches. A letter of collaboration from a leader of the existing project is needed. Institutions and organizations that are new to the National Network who are looking to adopt or adapt evidence-based practices that emerged from current or previously-funded NSF INCLUDES projects are encouraged to apply.
Network connector proposals may request up to $250,000 per year for up to two years. Requests that exceed $250,000 may be considered, depending on the description of need in the proposal and the proposed activities.
5. Conferences provide platforms for new collaborations or exchange of ideas that strengthen the NSF INCLUDES National Network. Conference proposals may be submitted by current or former NSF INCLUDES awardees or organizations that are not currently part of the NSF INCLUDES portfolio.
NSF INCLUDES will consider conference proposals on an ongoing basis. Please note that although Conference proposals may be accepted at any time during the year-long submission window, a due date of October 30th is displayed in Research.gov. You must choose the “October 30, 202x (Window) from the Due Date drop down window to submit a Conference proposal.
Conference proposals may request up to $100,000 for one year. Please refer to the instructions in Section V.A. and in PAPPG Chapter II.E.9 for additional guidance on preparing conference proposals.
Visit our Institutionally Limited Submission webpage for more updates and other announcements.