National Science Foundation News

Active Funding Opportunities from the National Science Foundation (NSF)

The National Science Foundation (NSF), has announced a new research-oriented portal web site called Research.gov, [continued...]

NSF Raises Salary Cap for 2009

NSF Proposal and Award Policies and Procedures Guide Update.

Broader Impact Proposal Requirements (Summer 2008 and beyond)

Award Administration Guide, January 2008 (doc #: aag081)

Grant Proposal Guide, January 2008 (doc #: gpg081)\

Research Tools:

Educational Needs Index:

The following link, Educational Needs Index, was made available through the Lumina Foundation, providing detailed information per state and respective county, an educational needs index that includes demographic information, plus educational attainment and economic numbers.

The Education Needs Index (ENI) is a regional-level study of educational, economic, and population pressures that influence educational policy and planning at local, regional, and state levels. The index introduces an econometric model that assesses conditions and trends for all fifty states and their respective sub-regions and allows peer comparisons across a variety of indicators. The ENI offers a fresh opportunity and innovative approach to better understanding existing data and public policy challenges that each state faces.


Health and Education Tool:

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's Commission to Build a Healthier America has provided several resources on the connection between education and health outcomes. Featuring several charts and interactive maps, the resource examines the differences in adults’ health based on their levels of education. Nationally and in each state there is a consistent and striking pattern: as levels of education rise, health improves. This is a valuable tool for researchers investigating health outcomes across society within varying socio-economic factors.

New Faculty Orientation, 2009: 

 

Grants.gov System Alleviation Notice

Grants.gov has this week released an alert warning of the strong need for all potential grant applicants to be aware of the temporary methods for accepting grant applications outside of Grants.gov.

These temporary methods will see the select agencies opting to use alertnative submision processes. See the OSRP Blog for further details.is Corporation for National and Community Service, National Air and Space Administration, National Science Foundation, U.S. Department of Defense, U.S. Department of Education, U.S. Department of Energy, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Department of Transportation, and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

See the OSRP Blog for further information.

 

As part of Grants.gov effort to make available links to funds associated with the Recovery Act (ARRA), a direct link to Recovery Funding Opportunities has been made available to all researchers.

Foundation Center Database Search  

The Office of Sponsored Research and Programs (OSRP) is now offering faculty the ability to find grant funding opportunities through the Foundation Center website. The procedure begins with a Foundation Center search request form that interested researchers will enter their applicable keywords or search terms and send the information to OSRP. 

Personnel within OSRP will then search the Foundation Center website to find grant opportunities based on those keywords and send the results back to researchers. See more information.

OSRP News

New Electronic Forms: New Subaward Agreement form and Indirect Cost Agreement form are now available for download under the Downloadable Forms page.

Do you want to receive funding opportunities through a customizable email alert system? OSRP has a web tool called the SMARTS Keyword database that seeks to enable faculty and staff engaged in research, projects, service programs to find other researchs that may have like-minded academic and funding interests to provide collaboration and consultation work. See more information on our Blog and on the SMARTS web page.

New reports to read: 

• The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act: Opportunities and Strategies to Advance Teacher Effectiveness
• Broadening Participation in Graduate Education - The Council of Graduate Schools has found that, "Even as our nation is becoming increasingly diverse, some groups remain highly underrepresented in graduate schools, particularly in science and engineering."

Required IRB Application; CITI Training:  

Missouri State University requires all persons engaged in human subjects research to provide valid proof of current IRB education for themselves and all personnel listed in the application. Sponsored Research and Programs will not send the CONFIRMATION letter advising of the IRB approval until the CITI certificates have been received. See more information.

OHRP offers Online Guidance on Informed Consent:  

The Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Human Research Protections (OHRP) has announced the availability of a new webpage dedicated to frequently asked questions (FAQs) and answers on informed consent.

Human Subjects Web-based Training

After reviewing other training programs available online, the University has contracted with the University of Miami for use of the Collaborative IRB Training Initiative (CITI) program for Human Subjects research. The CITI program is being used by approximately 165 higher education institutions and research organizations throughout the U.S. There are 22 modules in the Basic CITI course. Each module covers a specific aspect of human subjects research, e.g., History and Ethical Principles, Informed Consent, and Research with children.

Note:  Those who met Missouri State University’s Human Subjects Education requirement prior to July 1, 2006, via use of the NIH training are not required to complete the basic CITI program, but to take the refresher courses. See more information.

NIH; Salary Limitation on Grants, Cooperative Agreements, and Contracts: 

New Investigator Policies:

NIH has announced a change in its New Investigator policies designed to encourage early transition to independence. Under this policy, new investigators within ten years of completing their terminal research degree or within ten years of
completing their medical residency will be designated Early Stage Investigators (ESIs). Traditional NIH research grant (R01s) applications from ESIs will be identified and the career stage of the applicant will be considered at the time of review and award. See website for additional information.

Adobe Transition:

In conjunction with the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and Food and Drug Administration, NIH has published a transition schedule to move from PureEdge to Adobe-based grant application forms for electronic submissions of SF424 Research and Related (R&R) applications. Grants.gov will not accept PureEdge applications after the transition dates. See website for details.

This notice provides updated information regarding the salary limitation for NIH grant and cooperative agreement awards and extramural research and development contract awards (referred to here as a grant). More...

Other News:

Grants Resource Center:  

The American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU) Grants Resouce Center provides grant search and funding opportunities to its member insitutions, though monthly deadlines.

NSF News:

New Proposal and Award Policies and Procedure Guide available. - Effective April 6, 2009

ARRA Federal Reporting:

As part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009, a new federal website, has been established to collect and submit data on a quarterly basis for grants, loans, and contracts made under Section 1512 of the Recovery Act (PDF). This Website provides a mechanism for submitting these required data.

Through FederalReporting.gov, Recipients and Federal Agencies will have the ability to:

• Register for the site and manage their account(s)
• Submit reports
• View and comment on reports (if the user represents a Federal Agency or Prime Recipient)
• Update or correct reports when appropriate.

Reporting Timeline -

Section 1512 of ARRA requires recipients to submit quarterly reports to a new centralized reporting site, FederalReporting.gov, on each ARRA award no later than 10 calendar days after each calendar quarter (Jan 10, April 10, July 10, and Oct 10). From calendar day 11-21, recipients can review and edit their submitted data. Agencies then have 7 calendar days to review the reports, and on day 30, reports are published for public viewing on Recovery.gov.

What Can I Do Now to Prepare for October 1? -

Remember, federal agencies awards grants to institutions, so institutional officials have the prime responsibility for reporting. If you are a PI who received an ARRA grant, the office of Sponsored Research and Programs will let you know what they need from you to comply with this reporting requirement.

Institutions will need to register with FederalReporting.gov when the Web site opens in mid-August. Begin now to determine what processes need to be in place for you to gather and submit all the required data when the first reporting period begins October 1, 2009.

Funding and Research:

Grants.gov and Recovery Act Funding:

As part of providing funding opportunities to the research community, Grants.gov has a new feature that posts Recovery Act specific grant opportunities on its website. Learn More.

OHRP Launches New System:

The Office for Human Research Protections (OHRP) has unveiled an updated, web-based system for submitting Federalwide Assurance (FWA) and Institutional Review Board (IRB) registration, update, or renewal documents. Use of the system is strongly encouraged for FWAs and required for new IRBs. OHRP staff members are available to provide assistance.

All about Animal Research:

The Office of Laboratory Animal Welfare (OLAW) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has developed a comprehensive website (opens in a new window) designed to provide key information to investigators who use animals in their research.

The Foundation Center (opens in a new window) has developed a series of "mapshots" (interactive maps) that provides detailed information on the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funding, a map detailing community foundations, and a map illustrating grantmakers with an interest in community and economic development, among others.

New Troubleshooting Tips Page:  

Grants.gov has implemented a new troubleshooting tips page that will provide help with common troubleshooting issues such as verifying your Authorized Organization Representative (AOR) status, login for E-Business Point of Contact (E-Biz POC) and accessing search results. See website.

RSS Feeds for New & Modified Opportunities:
A featured enhancement on Grants.gov is the RSS feed. Now users will be able to receive a listing of new and recently modified opportunities by agency name or by category through a RSS feed. See link at http://www.grants.gov/help/rss.jsp

Submission of Grant Proposals:
Grants.gov is the government agencies primary source for the submission of grant proposals. When a grant application package is submitted through Grants.gov, a confirmation screen will be received by the sender as well as four emails advising of the status of the sent submission. [continued....]

ARRA of 2009:

With the recent signing into law of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009, many federal agencies has began to establish their own Recovery Act program that are highlighted within their websites. OSRP has developed a Recover Act webpage that will contain reports pertaining to information on funding, and major actions taken so far, and those actions planned for the near-term.

Grants.gov "Track My Application" Enhancement:

In a move to improve the Grants.gov system performance and to manage the increase in submission demands due to the Recovery Act funding ooportunities, a new feature has been added to the "Track My Applications" page. This feature allows for each applicant to seach and check their application submission status by entering their corresponding Grants.gov tracking number. See further details on the "Tracking My Application Enhancement" (PDF file; Opens in a new window) documentation.

GAO issues Recommendations to Grants.gov Submissions:

In a recently published Office of Management and Budget (OMB) recommendation , the Government Accountability Office (GAO), instructed all federal agencies to "identify alternate methods for accepting grant applications during the peak period of the Recovery Act, with a focus on minimizing any disruption to the grants application processes". This comes as a result of the increasingly large spikes in grant-related submissions that have affected the grants application process which could potentially hamper the Recovery Act implementation. While this peak period is expected to last until August 2009, alternative methods being suggested include agency-specific electronic systems (i.e., non-Grants.gov electronic systems run by a grantor agency), e-mail, fax, and mail.

The GAO suggests that Recovery.gov and federal agencies begin posting prominent notices (similar to the one posted recently by Grants.gov) about application options and guidance for what to do if they try to submit through Grants.gov but aren't able to. The recommendations are aimed at ensuring that every grant application submitted under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) receives equal consideration. View full details of the GAO recommendations.

NEH News:

The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) has made it official: the agency’s focus on its Digital Humanities Initiative is here to stay. This enterprise becomes the Office of Digital Humanities (ODH), complete with its own resource library, blog outlet, and funding opportunity guide.

Grants Resource Center Services: 

An Economic Development Funding Guide is being provided by the Grants Resource Center for member institutions. These programs focus on small business and joint business ventures that support the institutions and their community

The Grants Resource Center (GRC) provides services to its member institutions giving them the competitive edge in obtaining external funding, as well providing help in strategizing institutional goals regarding federal and private grant funding. Member services can range from asking a quick question about a particular grant program, to identifying funding sources for faculty projects. The GRC Members' Handbook (PDF doc) details all the services that its members can use towards strengthening their research comptitiveness for federal and private grants.

Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act (FFATA):

The FFATA Web Site Is Up and Running! Have you visited USASpending.gov yet? This free publicly accessible Web site contains federal funding data and was mandated under the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006 was made available on Jan. 1, 2008. It was a "re-launch" of http://www.federalspending.gov/. The data on federal contracts are drawn from the Federal Procurement Data System, and the data on federal assistance come largely from federal agencies via the Federal Assistance Award Data System. See link: http://www.usaspending.gov/.

Animal Hazard Assessment Tool 

A Hazard Assessment Information Tool has been provided to all covered persons (faculty, supervisors, workers and students) to help them in knowing the risks and taking the necessary safety precautions when working with animals. Each person will simply choose the species they work with, and the hazards and related infomation sheets will be provided regarding the associated risks.

Indirect Cost Distribution Policy

The University's policy on distribution of recovered indirect costs from grants and contracts is being revised. The new IDC allocations that will go into effect for FY07 are part of a number of efforts to achieve the goal of expanding research and other scholarly activity and productivity of Missouri State. The formulas for distribution of IDCs are in two categories --- Non-Center Projects vs. Center Projects.
See link to complete policy: IDCs Distribution Policy.

Funding from Grants.Gov:

Logon to Grants.Gov to see new funding opportunities. This search result is updated each week.

DHHS releases a New Grants.Gov SF424 (R&R) Guide. See PDF document. 

NSF, Proposal and Award Policies and Procedures Guide, June 2007

NIH Announces new R01 Submission Process 

NSF, Grant Proposal Guide, June 2007

NSF, Award Administration Guide, June 2007