Vice President for Research & Economic Development
Proposal Services & Faculty Support
June Funding Focus Newsletter #3
What is a Limited Submission?
A limited submission solicitation (RFA, RFP, etc.) places a cap on the number of proposals that Auburn may submit to a sponsor. Auburn coordinates limited submissions by sending out a notification via this newsletter and creating competitions in the Auburn University Competition Space (also known as InfoReady ).To apply to any limited submission posted below, click on the above link and search for your competition reflected on the page. Please refer to the Limited Submission Procedures page for a list of requirements.
Limited Submission Announcements

This solicitation offers two broad tracks for proposals in pursuit of the aforementioned goals:

The Technology Translation (PFI-TT) track  offers the opportunity to translate prior NSF-funded research results in any field of science or engineering into technological innovations with promising commercial potential and societal impact. PFI-TT supports commercial potential demonstration projects for academic research outputs in any NSF-funded science and engineering discipline. This demonstration is achieved through proof-of-concept, prototyping, technology development and/or scale-up work. Concurrently, students and postdoctoral researchers who participate in PFI-TT projects receive education and leadership training in innovation and entrepreneurship. Successful PFI-TT projects generate technology-driven commercialization outcomes that address societal needs.  PLEASE NOTE: You DO NOT need to compete in the limited submission if you are applying to the Technology Translation Track only.

The Research Partnerships (PFI-RP) track  seeks to achieve the same goals as the PFI-TT track by supporting instead complex, multi-faceted technology development projects that are typically beyond the scope of a single researcher or institution and require a multi-organizational, interdisciplinary, synergistic collaboration. A PFI-RP project requires the creation of partnerships between academic researchers and third-party organizations such as industry, non-academic research organizations, federal laboratories, public or non-profit technology transfer organizations or other universities. Such partnerships are needed to conduct applied research on a stand-alone larger project toward commercialization and societal impact. In the absence of such synergistic partnership, the project’s likelihood for success would be minimal.

The intended outcomes of both PFI-TT and PFI-RP tracks are: a) the commercialization of new intellectual property derived from NSF-funded research outputs; b) the creation of new or broader collaborations with industry (including increased corporate sponsored research); c) the licensing of NSF-funded research outputs to third party corporations or to start-up companies funded by a PFI team; and d) the training of future innovation and entrepreneurship leaders.

Institutional Limit: 1 Proposal
Internal Deadline: July 3, 2020, 4:45pm

In this solicitation, the NSF ADVANCE program seeks to build on prior NSF ADVANCE work and other research and literature concerning gender, racial, and ethnic equity. The NSF ADVANCE program goal is to broaden the implementation of evidence-based systemic change strategies that promote equity for STEM faculty in academic workplaces and the academic profession. The NSF ADVANCE program provides grants to enhance the systemic factors that support equity and inclusion and to mitigate the systemic factors that create inequities in the academic profession and workplaces. Systemic (or organizational) inequities may exist in areas such as policy and practice as well as in organizational culture and climate. For example, practices in academic departments that result in the inequitable allocation of service or teaching assignments may impede research productivity, delay advancement, and create a culture of differential treatment and rewards. Similarly, policies and procedures that do not mitigate implicit bias in hiring, tenure, and promotion decisions could lead to women and racial and ethnic minorities being evaluated less favorably, perpetuating historical under-participation in STEM academic careers and contributing to an academic climate that is not inclusive.
All NSF ADVANCE proposals are expected to use intersectional approaches in the design of systemic change strategies in recognition that gender, race and ethnicity do not exist in isolation from each other and from other categories of social identity. The solicitation includes  four funding tracks: Institutional Transformation (IT), Adaptation, Partnership, and Catalyst , in support of the NSF ADVANCE program goal to broaden the implementation of systemic strategies that promote equity for STEM faculty in academic workplaces and the academic profession.
  • The Institutional Transformation (IT) track is designed to support the development, implementation, and evaluation of innovative systemic change strategies that promote gender equity for STEM faculty within an institution of higher education.
  • The Adaptation track is designed to support the work to adapt, implement, and evaluate evidence-based systemic change strategies that have been shown to promote gender equity for STEM faculty in academic workplaces and the academic profession. Adaptation projects can either: 1) support the adaptation of evidence-based systemic change strategies to promote equity for STEM faculty within an institution of higher education; or 2) facilitate national or regional STEM disciplinary transformation by adapting evidence-based systemic change strategies to non-profit, non-academic organizations.
  • The Partnership track is designed to support the work to facilitate the broader adaptation of gender equity and systemic change strategies. Partnership projects are expected to result in national or regional transformation in STEM academic workplaces and the academic profession and demonstrate significant reach. Partnership projects can focus on the transformation of institutions and organizations and/or the transformation within one or more STEM disciplines.
  • The Catalyst track is designed to broaden the types of IHEs that are able to undertake data collection and institutional self-assessment work to identify systemic gender inequities impacting their STEM faculty so that these can be addressed by the institution.

Institutional Limit: 1 Proposal
Internal Deadline: July 3, 2020, 4:45pm

The  NIH Director's Early Independence Award  supports exceptional junior investigators who wish to pursue independent research soon after completion of their terminal doctoral degree or post-graduate clinical training, thereby forgoing the traditional post-doctoral training period and accelerating their entry into an independent research career. For the program to support the best possible researchers and research, applications are sought which reflect the full diversity of the research workforce. Individuals from diverse backgrounds and from the full spectrum of eligible institutions in all geographic locations are strongly encouraged to apply to this Funding Opportunity Announcement. In addition, applications in all topics relevant to the broad mission of NIH are welcome, including, but not limited to, topics in the behavioral, social, biomedical, applied, and formal sciences and topics that may involve basic, translational, or clinical research. The NIH Director's Early Independence Award is a component of the  High-Risk, High-Reward Research program  of the  NIH Common Fund .  Those wishing to apply for the NIH Director's Emergency Early Independence Award for SARS-CoV-2-related research must apply in response to RFA-RM-20-021.

Institutional Limit: 2 Proposals
Internal Deadline: June 12, 2020, 4:45pm
IMPORTANT UPDATES

The NSF has decided to extend some upcoming proposal deadlines where possible. In addition, NSF aims to provide maximum flexibility in all cases and ask that any principal investigator urgently in need of an extension please contact their program manager as soon as possible. NSF is continually assessing deadlines at the program level and will continue to balance making awards with the needs of our community.

Deadlines for published program descriptions, announcements, solicitations and DCLs that do not appear on the list below remain unchanged.

  • 18-546 Tribal Colleges and Universities Program (TCUP)
  • 19-506 Partnerships for Innovation (PFI)
  • 19-539 NSF-CBMS Regional Research Conferences in the Mathematical Sciences
  • 19-594 Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER): New Urban Site
  • 20-058 DCL: Geoscience Opportunities for Leadership in Diversity – Expanding the Network (GOLD-EN)
  • 20-529 NSF Innovation Corps Hubs Program (I-CorpsTM Hubs)
  • 20-530 Competition for the Management of Operations and Maintenance of the National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON)
  • 20-544 Expeditions in Computing
  • 20-549 Navigating the New Arctic Community Office (NNA-CO)
  • 20-554 ADVANCE: Organizational Change for Gender Equity in STEM Academic Professions (Adaptation and Partnership Tracks)

*NSF will be modifying each solicitation or DCL to reflect the new deadline date.


Streamlyne has created a free tool that enables researchers to locate articles on SARS-CoV-2  and related viruses quickly and efficiently within the COVID-19 Open Research Dataset (CORD-19) created by the Allen Institute for AI, in partnership with several tech companies and the OSTP. The dataset is linked to the World Health Organization (WHO) database of publications on coronavirus disease and other resources. The website also provides a sample list of some of the most promising COVID-19 research efforts at universities and independent research institutions.

Facebook Now Accepting Requests for Non-Aggregated Data for Research Purposes

Facebook and partners now offer a portal where researchers from academic and nonprofit institutions can request access to non-aggregated symptom survey data from Carnegie Mellon University and University of Maryland. Signed data use agreements are required for this access.
 
The sharing of non-aggregated data is intended to help facilitate more advanced modeling and forecasting efforts by researchers aiding public health responses around the world. Interested academic and nonprofit researchers can submit a request here .

Researchers should contact the Office of Research Compliance regarding IRB compliance.

  • You must use FORMS-F forms for grant application due dates on or after May 25, 2020 and FORMS-E for due dates on or before May 24, 2020. If you aren’t sure what an application package “Competition ID” is or where to find it, check out Do I Have the Right Form Version For My Application?
  • The biosketch, data table, and other format pages have also been updated with FORMS-F versions. Format pages are approved formats to be used with specific grant application attachments.
As information is being shared by sponsors, it is being collected/posted here so please check back often for updates.
FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES

The ERC program supports convergent research that will lead to strong societal impact. Each ERC has interacting foundational components that go beyond the research project, including engineering workforce development at all participant stages, a culture of diversity and inclusion where all participants gain mutual benefit, and value creation within an innovation ecosystem that will outlast the lifetime of the ERC. The logical reasoning that links the proposed activities to the identified goals for each ERC should be clear.

Letters of Intent Due: September 2, 2020 5pm (Central)

Toward the goals and responsibilities listed above, this joint solicitation is designed to enable both NSF and NIST to collaborate and partner to, among other things:
  • Encourage the nations’ university-based research communities to pursue resilience-relevant research across the spectrum from fundamental to applied, in support of NEHRP and NWIRP;
  • Enable agency staff (as well as the reviewing community) to better understand the range of research ideas and capabilities across the nation, across the fundamental to applied spectrum. Improved understanding will enable more effective policy design and coordination across agencies going forward;
  • Convene all the awardees in a jointly designed annual PI meeting, that will (a) enable investigators to share research approaches and results; (b) ensure that findings are shared with Federal scientists and engineers with responsibility to improve resilience policies and standards; and (c) encourage discussion of potential new collaborations, including translational opportunities.


Letters of Intent Due: August 14 2020 5pm (Central)

The IUCRC program provides a structure for academic researchers to conduct fundamental, pre-competitive research of shared interest to industry and government organizations. These organizations pay membership fees to a consortium so that they can collectively envision and fund research, with at least 90% of Member funds allocated to the direct costs of these shared research projects.

IUCRCs are formed around research areas of strategic interest to U.S. industry. Industry is defined very broadly to include companies (large and small), startups and non-profit organizations. Principal Investigators form a Center around emerging research topics of current research interest, in a pre-competitive space but with clear pathways to applied research and commercial development. Industry partners join at inception, as an existing Center grows or they inspire the creation of a new Center by recruiting university partners to leverage NSF support. Government agencies participate in IUCRCs as Members or by partnering directly with NSF at the strategic level.

Universities, academic researchers, and students benefit from IUCRC participation through the research funding, the establishment and growth of industry partnerships, and educational and career placement opportunities for students. Industry Members benefit by accessing knowledge, facilities, equipment, and intellectual property in a highly cost-efficient model; leveraging Center research outcomes in their future proprietary projects; interacting in an informal, collaborative way with other private sector and government entities with shared interests; and identifying and recruiting talent. NSF provides funding to support Center administrative costs and a governance framework to manage membership, operations, and evaluation.

Successful IUCRCs require:
  • A capable research/management team with an entrepreneurial mindset;
  • Universities, faculty, and students interested in engaging in research of interest to industry;
  • A community of industry partners seeking pre-competitive, use-inspired research projects.

Each IUCRC is expected to grow and become independently sustainable by the end of the NSF support.

Preliminary Proposals Due: July 7, 2020 5pm (Central)

The Discovery Research PreK-12 program (DRK-12) seeks to significantly enhance the learning and teaching of science, technology, engineering, mathematics and computer science (STEM) by preK-12 students and teachers, through research and development of STEM education innovations and approaches. Projects in the DRK-12 program build on fundamental research in STEM education and prior research and development efforts that provide theoretical and empirical justification for proposed projects. Projects should result in research-informed and field-tested outcomes and products that inform teaching and learning. Teachers and students who participate in DRK-12 studies are expected to enhance their understanding and use of STEM content, practices and skills.

The DRK-12 program invites proposals that address immediate challenges that are facing preK-12 STEM education as well as those that anticipate radically different structures and functions of preK-12 teaching and learning. The DRK-12 program has three major research and development strands: (1) Assessment; (2) Learning; and (3) Teaching. The program recognizes the synergy among the three strands and that there is some overlap and interdependence among them. However, proposals should identify a clear focus of the proposed research efforts (i.e., assessment, learning, or teaching) consistent with the proposal’s main objectives and research questions. The program supports six types of projects: (1) Exploratory, (2) Design and Development, (3) Impact, (4) Implementation and Improvement, (5) Syntheses, and (6) Conferences. All six types of projects apply to each of the three DRK-12 program strands.

Applications Due: October 7 2020 5pm (Eastern)
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