NSF 08-598: CHE-DMR-DMS Solar Energy Initiative (SOLAR)
Program Solicitation
Document Information
Document History
- Posted: August 21, 2008
- Replaced by: NSF 09-604
Program Solicitation NSF 08-598
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National Science Foundation |
Preliminary Proposal Due Date(s) (required) (due by 5 p.m. proposer's local time):
December 16, 2008
Full Proposal Deadline(s) (due by 5 p.m. proposer's local time):
March 09, 2009
Summary Of Program Requirements
General Information
Program Title:
CHE-DMR-DMS Solar Energy Initiative (SOLAR)
Synopsis of Program:
The purpose of the CHE-DMR-DMS Solar Energy Initiative is to support interdisciplinary efforts by groups of researchers to address the scientific challenges of highly efficient harvesting, conversion, and storage of solar energy. Groups must include three or more co-Principal Investigators; one must have demonstrated high expertise in chemistry, a second in materials research, and a third in mathematical sciences. The goal here is to create a new modality of linking the mathematical with the chemical and materials sciences to develop transformative paradigms in an area of much activity but largely incremental advances. Successful proposals will offer potentially transformative projects and new concepts based on the integrated expertise and synergy from the three disciplinary communities.
Cognizant Program Officer(s):
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Carol A. Bessel, (CHE), telephone: (703) 292-4945, email: cbessel@nsf.gov
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Hans Kaper, (DMS), telephone: (703) 292-4859, email: hkaper@nsf.gov
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Andrew J. Lovinger, (DMR), telephone: (703) 292-4933, email: alovinge@nsf.gov
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Charles D. Pibel, (CHE), telephone: (703) 292-4971, email: cpibel@nsf.gov
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Henry A. Warchall, (DMS), telephone: (703) 292-4861, email: hwarchal@nsf.gov
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Z. C. Ying, (DMR), telephone: (703) 292-8428, email: cying@nsf.gov
Applicable Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number(s):
- 47.049 --- Mathematical and Physical Sciences
Award Information
Anticipated Type of Award: Standard Grant or Continuing Grant
Estimated Number of Awards: 3 to 10 Under this solicitation proposals may be submitted for funding durations up to three years. The budget must be commensurate with the project and thoroughly justified in the proposal. The NSF expects to fund 3 to 10 awards in fiscal year 2009 depending on the quality of submissions and the availability of funds. The anticipated date of awards is July 2009.
Anticipated Funding Amount:
$5,000,000
Typical award size is expected to be approximately $500,000 per year and may vary depending on the scope of the proposal.
Eligibility Information
Proposals may only be submitted by the following:
- Universities and Colleges: Universities and two- and four-year colleges (including community colleges) located and accredited in the US, acting on behalf of their faculty members. Such organizations also are referred to as academic institutions.
PI Limit:
Proposals, and their associated preliminary proposals, must include three or more co-Principal Investigators (co-PIs); one must have demonstrated high expertise in chemistry, a second in materials research, and a third in mathematical sciences.
Limit on Number of Proposals per Organization:
No limitation.
Limit on Number of Proposals per PI: 1 An investigator may participate as a PI, co-PI, or other senior research associate on only one proposal and associated preliminary proposal submitted per year in response to this solicitation.
Proposal Preparation and Submission Instructions
A. Proposal Preparation Instructions
- Letters of Intent: Not Applicable
- Preliminary Proposals: Submission of Preliminary Proposals is required. Please see the full text of this solicitation for further information.
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Full Proposals:
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Full Proposals submitted via FastLane: NSF Proposal and Award Policies and Procedures Guide, Part I: Grant Proposal Guide (GPG) Guidelines apply. The complete text of the GPG is available electronically on the NSF website at: https://www.nsf.gov/publications/pub_summ.jsp?ods_key=gpg.
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Full Proposals submitted via Grants.gov: NSF Grants.gov Application Guide: A Guide for the Preparation and Submission of NSF Applications via Grants.gov Guidelines apply (Note: The NSF Grants.gov Application Guide is available on the Grants.gov website and on the NSF website at: https://www.nsf.gov/bfa/dias/policy/docs/grantsgovguide.pdf)
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B. Budgetary Information
- Cost Sharing Requirements: Cost Sharing is not required under this solicitation.
- Indirect Cost (F&A) Limitations: Not Applicable
- Other Budgetary Limitations: Not Applicable
C. Due Dates
- Preliminary Proposal Due Date(s) (required) (due by 5 p.m. proposer's local time):
December 16, 2008
- Full Proposal Deadline(s) (due by 5 p.m. proposer's local time):
March 09, 2009
Proposal Review Information Criteria
Merit Review Criteria: National Science Board approved criteria. Additional merit review considerations apply. Please see the full text of this solicitation for further information.
Award Administration Information
Award Conditions: Standard NSF award conditions apply.
Reporting Requirements: Standard NSF reporting requirements apply.
I. Introduction
One of the most important scientific challenges of this age is to discover new methods to secure abundant, low-cost sources of energy to meet humankind's need for sustainable energy and growth. Current global demand for energy is approximately in the 15-terawatt range and is expected to double or triple by mid-century. While increased energy production via traditional methods together with increased efficiency and conservation may alleviate some of the needs, such measures by themselves cannot meet the expected demand in the long run.
Arguably, the most abundant, sustainable source of energy is the Sun, which provides over 150,000 terawatts of power to the Earth, a small fraction of which is sufficient to supply foreseeable energy needs. Thus, one of the greatest scientific opportunities of our time is to learn to efficiently harvest, convert, store, and utilize solar energy.
The National Science Foundation Divisions of Chemistry (CHE), Materials Research (DMR), and Mathematical Sciences (DMS) believe that a new and truly transformative approach to solar energy research may result from an integrally collaborative effort among their three research communities. As a first step toward encouraging and enabling such research, the Divisions will support a small number of interdisciplinary group projects that address the scientific challenges of efficient harvesting, conversion, and storage of solar energy. Proposed projects must bring together scientists from all three disciplines in a truly collaborative and synergistic research effort. Only projects of mutual interest to all three Divisions will be supported by this initiative.
II. Program Description
The purpose of the CHE-DMR-DMS Solar Energy Initiative is to support potentially catalytic interdisciplinary work by groups of researchers to address the scientific challenges of efficient harvesting, conversion, and storage of solar energy. The goal here is to create a new modality of linking the mathematical with the chemical and materials sciences to develop transformative paradigms in an area of much activity but largely incremental advances. In pursuit of this goal each group must include three or more principal investigators with demonstrated high expertise in chemistry, materials research, and mathematical sciences. Consistent with the NSF mission and the priorities of the Directorate for Mathematical and Physical Sciences (MPS), the focus of this solicitation is on basic research. This is a way for the MPS chemistry, materials, and mathematics communities to contribute to the broad national portfolio on energy in a unique approach.
Projects supported under this activity must be closely collaborative throughout their course and depend for their advancement on the continuous interaction of scientists from all three research communities. The initiative seeks to catalyze transformative breakthroughs in solar energy research from the activities of groups of researchers working jointly at the frontiers of the three disciplines to address fundamental, first-principles questions with fresh perspectives and innovative approaches. A successful proposal should advance the frontiers of the three disciplines and lead to new concepts.
Research funded under this initiative will investigate novel methods for solar energy harvesting and conversion with potential efficiency substantially beyond that of current technology. Proposed work may include the investigation of energy storage mechanisms as integral parts of new techniques for solar energy harvesting and/or conversion.
It is not the intent of this initiative to support work on incremental advances in current technology. This initiative aims to catalyze breakthroughs in the fundamental science underlying solar energy use; distinct sources of support for related engineering challenges are available from other NSF programs.
III. Award Information
Under this solicitation proposals may be submitted for funding durations up to three years. The budget must be commensurate with the project and thoroughly justified in the proposal. Typical award size is expected to be approximately $500,000 per year and may vary depending on the scope of the proposal. Awards will be funded as standard grants or continuing grants. The NSF expects to fund 3 to 10 awards in fiscal year 2009, depending on the quality of submissions and the availability of funds. The anticipated date of awards is July 2009. Estimated program budget, number of awards and average award size/duration are subject to the availability of funds.
IV. Eligibility Information
Proposals may only be submitted by the following:
- Universities and Colleges: Universities and two- and four-year colleges (including community colleges) located and accredited in the US, acting on behalf of their faculty members. Such organizations also are referred to as academic institutions.
PI Limit:
Proposals, and their associated preliminary proposals, must include three or more co-Principal Investigators (co-PIs); one must have demonstrated high expertise in chemistry, a second in materials research, and a third in mathematical sciences.
Limit on Number of Proposals per Organization:
No limitation.
Limit on Number of Proposals per PI: 1 An investigator may participate as a PI, co-PI, or other senior research associate on only one proposal and associated preliminary proposal submitted per year in response to this solicitation.
Additional Eligibility Info:
Not applicable.
V. Proposal Preparation And Submission Instructions
A. Proposal Preparation Instructions
Preliminary Proposals (required): Preliminary proposals are required and must be submitted via the NSF FastLane system, even if full proposals will be submitted via Grants.gov.
Preliminary Proposal Preparation Instructions
The following instructions apply to all preliminary proposals:
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One preliminary proposal per project should be submitted.
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Cover Sheet: Select CHE – Integrated Chemistry Activities as the "Organization Unit for Consideration of This Proposal." Select the "Preliminary Proposal" checkbox. The requested budget for the full proposal (if invited) is not expected to be known at this stage, but please enter $1 in the "Requested Amount" box (this allows for the correct FastLane processing).
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Project Summary: In one page describe the Intellectual Merit and Broader Impacts of this project.
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Project Description: Limited to 3 pages. Should contain a description of the proposed research problem and how the team will address it; the research plan and any key preliminary results (if available); the role and relevant expertise of each investigator; the collaborative approach to be used and the expected synergies among the three disciplines; and the broader impacts.
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Reference Section: Up to 20 key references.
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Biographical Sketches: Use standard Grant Proposal Guide (GPG) guidelines.
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Current and Pending Support: Use standard Grant Proposal Guide (GPG) guidelines.
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The remaining usual proposal sections (Budget, Budget Justification, Facilities and Equipment) are not permitted. Other supporting documentation, including letters of collaboration, are also not permitted in this Preliminary Proposal.
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All other requirements of the Grant Proposal Guide (GPG) should be followed.
Preliminary Proposal Review Procedure
Preliminary proposals will be reviewed by the NSF using internal review. Groups of Program Officers from each of the Divisions of Chemistry, Materials Research, and Mathematical Sciences will independently assess the extent of the group synergy and the potential for transformative breakthroughs presented by each preliminary proposal. Only those Preliminary Proposals judged by all three Divisions to exhibit the most credible plans for close, synergistic collaborative research with a high transformative potential will be encouraged to submit full proposals. Following this preliminary review, all Principal Investigators will be advised on the same day whether a full proposal is encouraged or discouraged. The NSF will do so 45 days prior to the full proposal submission deadline if possible.
Full Proposal Preparation Instructions: Proposers may opt to submit proposals in response to this Program Solicitation via Grants.gov or via the NSF FastLane system.
- Full proposals submitted via FastLane: Proposals submitted in response to this program solicitation should be prepared and submitted in accordance with the general guidelines contained in the NSF Grant Proposal Guide (GPG). The complete text of the GPG is available electronically on the NSF website at: https://www.nsf.gov/publications/pub_summ.jsp?ods_key=gpg. Paper copies of the GPG may be obtained from the NSF Publications Clearinghouse, telephone (703) 292-7827 or by e-mail from pubs@nsf.gov. Proposers are reminded to identify this program solicitation number in the program solicitation block on the NSF Cover Sheet For Proposal to the National Science Foundation. Compliance with this requirement is critical to determining the relevant proposal processing guidelines. Failure to submit this information may delay processing.
- Full proposals submitted via Grants.gov: Proposals submitted in response to this program solicitation via Grants.gov should be prepared and submitted in accordance with the NSF Grants.gov Application Guide: A Guide for the Preparation and Submission of NSF Applications via Grants.gov. The complete text of the NSF Grants.gov Application Guide is available on the Grants.gov website and on the NSF website at: (https://www.nsf.gov/bfa/dias/policy/docs/grantsgovguide.pdf). To obtain copies of the Application Guide and Application Forms Package, click on the Apply tab on the Grants.gov site, then click on the Apply Step 1: Download a Grant Application Package and Application Instructions link and enter the funding opportunity number, (the program solicitation number without the NSF prefix) and press the Download Package button. Paper copies of the Grants.gov Application Guide also may be obtained from the NSF Publications Clearinghouse, telephone (703) 292-7827 or by e-mail from pubs@nsf.gov.
In determining which method to utilize in the electronic preparation and submission of the proposal, please note the following:
Collaborative Proposals. All collaborative proposals submitted as separate submissions from multiple organizations must be submitted via the NSF FastLane system. Chapter II, Section D.3 of the Grant Proposal Guide provides additional information on collaborative proposals.
Additional Instructions for Full Proposal Preparation
The standard Grant Proposal Guide instructions for proposal preparation apply, with the following additions.
Cover sheet: Select CHE – Integrated Chemistry Activities as the "Organization Unit for Consideration of This Proposal." To facilitate timely processing, the title of the proposal should begin with the designation "SOLAR:" If any proposals are submitted by different institutions as a collaborative group, they all should have the same title and begin with the designation "SOLAR Collaborative:" .
Project Description: In addition to the requirements of the NSF Grant Proposal Guide (GPG) the narrative should also include the following within the standard 15-page limit:
- A justification for why a group effort is necessary to carry out the proposed project.
- A management plan, describing how the group effort will be coordinated.
- A description of how each researcher will contribute to the project. For senior personnel and other professionals, provide an estimate of the amount of time to be committed to this project. For investigators with other supported research, explain how the investigator will allocate time and effort among the projects
B. Budgetary Information
Cost Sharing: Cost sharing is not required under this solicitation.
C. Due Dates
- Preliminary Proposal Due Date(s) (required) (due by 5 p.m. proposer's local time):
December 16, 2008
- Full Proposal Deadline(s) (due by 5 p.m. proposer's local time):
March 09, 2009
D. FastLane/Grants.gov Requirements
For Proposals Submitted Via FastLane:
Detailed technical instructions regarding the technical aspects of preparation and submission via FastLane are available at: https://www.fastlane.nsf.gov/a1/newstan.htm. For FastLane user support, call the FastLane Help Desk at 1-800-673-6188 or e-mail fastlane@nsf.gov. The FastLane Help Desk answers general technical questions related to the use of the FastLane system. Specific questions related to this program solicitation should be referred to the NSF program staff contact(s) listed in Section VIII of this funding opportunity.
Submission of Electronically Signed Cover Sheets. The Authorized Organizational Representative (AOR) must electronically sign the proposal Cover Sheet to submit the required proposal certifications (see Chapter II, Section C of the Grant Proposal Guide for a listing of the certifications). The AOR must provide the required electronic certifications within five working days following the electronic submission of the proposal. Further instructions regarding this process are available on the FastLane Website at: https://www.fastlane.nsf.gov/fastlane.jsp.
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For Proposals Submitted Via Grants.gov:
Before using Grants.gov for the first time, each organization must register to create an institutional profile. Once registered, the applicant's organization can then apply for any federal grant on the Grants.gov website. The Grants.gov's Grant Community User Guide is a comprehensive reference document that provides technical information about Grants.gov. Proposers can download the User Guide as a Microsoft Word document or as a PDF document. The Grants.gov User Guide is available at: http://www.grants.gov/CustomerSupport. In addition, the NSF Grants.gov Application Guide provides additional technical guidance regarding preparation of proposals via Grants.gov. For Grants.gov user support, contact the Grants.gov Contact Center at 1-800-518-4726 or by email: support@grants.gov. The Grants.gov Contact Center answers general technical questions related to the use of Grants.gov. Specific questions related to this program solicitation should be referred to the NSF program staff contact(s) listed in Section VIII of this solicitation.
Submitting the Proposal: Once all documents have been completed, the Authorized Organizational Representative (AOR) must submit the application to Grants.gov and verify the desired funding opportunity and agency to which the application is submitted. The AOR must then sign and submit the application to Grants.gov. The completed application will be transferred to the NSF FastLane system for further processing.
VI. NSF Proposal Processing And Review Procedures
Proposals received by NSF are assigned to the appropriate NSF program where they will be reviewed if they meet NSF proposal preparation requirements. All proposals are carefully reviewed by a scientist, engineer, or educator serving as an NSF Program Officer, and usually by three to ten other persons outside NSF who are experts in the particular fields represented by the proposal. These reviewers are selected by Program Officers charged with the oversight of the review process. Proposers are invited to suggest names of persons they believe are especially well qualified to review the proposal and/or persons they would prefer not review the proposal. These suggestions may serve as one source in the reviewer selection process at the Program Officer's discretion. Submission of such names, however, is optional. Care is taken to ensure that reviewers have no conflicts of interest with the proposal.
A. NSF Merit Review Criteria
All NSF proposals are evaluated through use of the two National Science Board (NSB)-approved merit review criteria: intellectual merit and the broader impacts of the proposed effort. In some instances, however, NSF will employ additional criteria as required to highlight the specific objectives of certain programs and activities.
The two NSB-approved merit review criteria are listed below. The criteria include considerations that help define them. These considerations are suggestions and not all will apply to any given proposal. While proposers must address both merit review criteria, reviewers will be asked to address only those considerations that are relevant to the proposal being considered and for which the reviewer is qualified to make judgements.
What is the intellectual merit of the proposed activity?
How important is the proposed activity to advancing knowledge and understanding within its own field or across different fields? How well qualified is the proposer (individual or team) to conduct the project? (If appropriate, the reviewer will comment on the quality of the prior work.) To what extent does the proposed activity suggest and explore creative, original, or potentially transformative concepts? How well conceived and organized is the proposed activity? Is there sufficient access to resources?
What are the broader impacts of the proposed activity?
How well does the activity advance discovery and understanding while promoting teaching, training, and learning? How well does the proposed activity broaden the participation of underrepresented groups (e.g., gender, ethnicity, disability, geographic, etc.)? To what extent will it enhance the infrastructure for research and education, such as facilities, instrumentation, networks, and partnerships? Will the results be disseminated broadly to enhance scientific and technological understanding? What may be the benefits of the proposed activity to society?
Examples illustrating activities likely to demonstrate broader impacts are available electronically on the NSF website at: https://www.nsf.gov/pubs/gpg/broaderimpacts.pdf.
NSF staff also will give careful consideration to the following in making funding decisions:
Integration of Research and Education
One of the principal strategies in support of NSF's goals is to foster integration of research and education through the programs, projects, and activities it supports at academic and research institutions. These institutions provide abundant opportunities where individuals may concurrently assume responsibilities as researchers, educators, and students and where all can engage in joint efforts that infuse education with the excitement of discovery and enrich research through the diversity of learning perspectives.
Integrating Diversity into NSF Programs, Projects, and Activities
Broadening opportunities and enabling the participation of all citizens -- women and men, underrepresented minorities, and persons with disabilities -- is essential to the health and vitality of science and engineering. NSF is committed to this principle of diversity and deems it central to the programs, projects, and activities it considers and supports.Additional Review Criteria:
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the potential of a transformative breakthrough that addresses a major scientific challenge of efficient harvesting, conversion, or storage of solar energy; and
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the likely effectiveness of the proposed research group structure, with particular attention to the extent to which the proposed work is inherently collaborative and depends for its advancement on the close interaction of all researchers; the extent to which the whole of the proposed group effort will be greater than the sum of its parts; the appropriateness of the group members and the nature of involvement and extent of commitment of the senior personnel.
In addition to the National Science Board merit review criteria, reviewers will be asked to assess
B. Review and Selection Process
Proposals submitted in response to this program solicitation will be reviewed by Ad hoc Review and/or Panel Review.
Reviewers will be asked to formulate a recommendation to either support or decline each proposal. The Program Officer assigned to manage the proposal's review will consider the advice of reviewers and will formulate a recommendation.
After scientific, technical and programmatic review and consideration of appropriate factors, the NSF Program Officer recommends to the cognizant Division Director whether the proposal should be declined or recommended for award. NSF is striving to be able to tell applicants whether their proposals have been declined or recommended for funding within six months. The time interval begins on the deadline or target date, or receipt date, whichever is later. The interval ends when the Division Director accepts the Program Officer's recommendation.
A summary rating and accompanying narrative will be completed and submitted by each reviewer. In all cases, reviews are treated as confidential documents. Verbatim copies of reviews, excluding the names of the reviewers, are sent to the Principal Investigator/Project Director by the Program Officer. In addition, the proposer will receive an explanation of the decision to award or decline funding.
In all cases, after programmatic approval has been obtained, the proposals recommended for funding will be forwarded to the Division of Grants and Agreements for review of business, financial, and policy implications and the processing and issuance of a grant or other agreement. Proposers are cautioned that only a Grants and Agreements Officer may make commitments, obligations or awards on behalf of NSF or authorize the expenditure of funds. No commitment on the part of NSF should be inferred from technical or budgetary discussions with a NSF Program Officer. A Principal Investigator or organization that makes financial or personnel commitments in the absence of a grant or cooperative agreement signed by the NSF Grants and Agreements Officer does so at their own risk.
VII. Award Administration Information
A. Notification of the Award
Notification of the award is made to the submitting organization by a Grants Officer in the Division of Grants and Agreements. Organizations whose proposals are declined will be advised as promptly as possible by the cognizant NSF Program administering the program. Verbatim copies of reviews, not including the identity of the reviewer, will be provided automatically to the Principal Investigator. (See Section VI.B. for additional information on the review process.)
B. Award Conditions
An NSF award consists of: (1) the award letter, which includes any special provisions applicable to the award and any numbered amendments thereto; (2) the budget, which indicates the amounts, by categories of expense, on which NSF has based its support (or otherwise communicates any specific approvals or disapprovals of proposed expenditures); (3) the proposal referenced in the award letter; (4) the applicable award conditions, such as Grant General Conditions (GC-1); * or Research Terms and Conditions * and (5) any announcement or other NSF issuance that may be incorporated by reference in the award letter. Cooperative agreements also are administered in accordance with NSF Cooperative Agreement Financial and Administrative Terms and Conditions (CA-FATC) and the applicable Programmatic Terms and Conditions. NSF awards are electronically signed by an NSF Grants and Agreements Officer and transmitted electronically to the organization via e-mail.
*These documents may be accessed electronically on NSF's Website at https://www.nsf.gov/awards/managing/award_conditions.jsp?org=NSF. Paper copies may be obtained from the NSF Publications Clearinghouse, telephone (703) 292-7827 or by e-mail from pubs@nsf.gov.
More comprehensive information on NSF Award Conditions and other important information on the administration of NSF awards is contained in the NSF Award & Administration Guide (AAG) Chapter II, available electronically on the NSF Website at https://www.nsf.gov/publications/pub_summ.jsp?ods_key=aag.
C. Reporting Requirements
For all multi-year grants (including both standard and continuing grants), the Principal Investigator must submit an annual project report to the cognizant Program Officer at least 90 days before the end of the current budget period. (Some programs or awards require more frequent project reports). Within 90 days after expiration of a grant, the PI also is required to submit a final project report.
Failure to provide the required annual or final project reports will delay NSF review and processing of any future funding increments as well as any pending proposals for that PI. PIs should examine the formats of the required reports in advance to assure availability of required data.
PIs are required to use NSF's electronic project-reporting system, available through FastLane, for preparation and submission of annual and final project reports. Such reports provide information on activities and findings, project participants (individual and organizational) publications; and, other specific products and contributions. PIs will not be required to re-enter information previously provided, either with a proposal or in earlier updates using the electronic system. Submission of the report via FastLane constitutes certification by the PI that the contents of the report are accurate and complete.
VIII. Agency Contacts
General inquiries regarding this program should be made to:
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Carol A. Bessel, (CHE), telephone: (703) 292-4945, email: cbessel@nsf.gov
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Hans Kaper, (DMS), telephone: (703) 292-4859, email: hkaper@nsf.gov
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Andrew J. Lovinger, (DMR), telephone: (703) 292-4933, email: alovinge@nsf.gov
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Charles D. Pibel, (CHE), telephone: (703) 292-4971, email: cpibel@nsf.gov
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Henry A. Warchall, (DMS), telephone: (703) 292-4861, email: hwarchal@nsf.gov
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Z. C. Ying, (DMR), telephone: (703) 292-8428, email: cying@nsf.gov
For questions related to the use of FastLane, contact:
- FastLane Help Desk, telephone: 1-800-673-6188; e-mail: fastlane@nsf.gov.
For questions relating to Grants.gov contact:
- Grants.gov Contact Center: If the Authorized Organizational Representatives (AOR) has not received a confirmation message from Grants.gov within 48 hours of submission of application, please contact via telephone: 1-800-518-4726; e-mail: support@grants.gov.
IX. Other Information
The NSF Website provides the most comprehensive source of information on NSF Directorates (including contact information), programs and funding opportunities. Use of this Website by potential proposers is strongly encouraged. In addition, MyNSF (formerly the Custom News Service) is an information-delivery system designed to keep potential proposers and other interested parties apprised of new NSF funding opportunities and publications, important changes in proposal and award policies and procedures, and upcoming NSF Regional Grants Conferences. Subscribers are informed through e-mail or the user's Web browser each time new publications are issued that match their identified interests. MyNSF also is available on NSF's Website at https://www.nsf.gov/mynsf/.
Grants.gov provides an additional electronic capability to search for Federal government-wide grant opportunities. NSF funding opportunities may be accessed via this new mechanism. Further information on Grants.gov may be obtained at http://www.grants.gov.
About The National Science Foundation
The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent Federal agency created by the National Science Foundation Act of 1950, as amended (42 USC 1861-75). The Act states the purpose of the NSF is "to promote the progress of science; [and] to advance the national health, prosperity, and welfare by supporting research and education in all fields of science and engineering."
NSF funds research and education in most fields of science and engineering. It does this through grants and cooperative agreements to more than 2,000 colleges, universities, K-12 school systems, businesses, informal science organizations and other research organizations throughout the US. The Foundation accounts for about one-fourth of Federal support to academic institutions for basic research.
NSF receives approximately 40,000 proposals each year for research, education and training projects, of which approximately 11,000 are funded. In addition, the Foundation receives several thousand applications for graduate and postdoctoral fellowships. The agency operates no laboratories itself but does support National Research Centers, user facilities, certain oceanographic vessels and Antarctic research stations. The Foundation also supports cooperative research between universities and industry, US participation in international scientific and engineering efforts, and educational activities at every academic level.
Facilitation Awards for Scientists and Engineers with Disabilities provide funding for special assistance or equipment to enable persons with disabilities to work on NSF-supported projects. See Grant Proposal Guide Chapter II, Section D.2 for instructions regarding preparation of these types of proposals.
The National Science Foundation has Telephonic Device for the Deaf (TDD) and Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) capabilities that enable individuals with hearing impairments to communicate with the Foundation about NSF programs, employment or general information. TDD may be accessed at (703) 292-5090 and (800) 281-8749, FIRS at (800) 877-8339.
The National Science Foundation Information Center may be reached at (703) 292-5111.
The National Science Foundation promotes and advances scientific progress in the United States by competitively awarding grants and cooperative agreements for research and education in the sciences, mathematics, and engineering. To get the latest information about program deadlines, to download copies of NSF publications, and to access abstracts of awards, visit the NSF Website at https://www.nsf.gov
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Privacy Act And Public Burden Statements
The information requested on proposal forms and project reports is solicited under the authority of the National Science Foundation Act of 1950, as amended. The information on proposal forms will be used in connection with the selection of qualified proposals; and project reports submitted by awardees will be used for program evaluation and reporting within the Executive Branch and to Congress. The information requested may be disclosed to qualified reviewers and staff assistants as part of the proposal review process; to proposer institutions/grantees to provide or obtain data regarding the proposal review process, award decisions, or the administration of awards; to government contractors, experts, volunteers and researchers and educators as necessary to complete assigned work; to other government agencies or other entities needing information regarding applicants or nominees as part of a joint application review process, or in order to coordinate programs or policy; and to another Federal agency, court, or party in a court or Federal administrative proceeding if the government is a party. Information about Principal Investigators may be added to the Reviewer file and used to select potential candidates to serve as peer reviewers or advisory committee members. See Systems of Records, NSF-50, "Principal Investigator/Proposal File and Associated Records," 69 Federal Register 26410 (May 12, 2004), and NSF-51, "Reviewer/Proposal File and Associated Records, " 69 Federal Register 26410 (May 12, 2004). Submission of the information is voluntary. Failure to provide full and complete information, however, may reduce the possibility of receiving an award.
An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, an information collection unless it displays a valid Office of Management and Budget (OMB) control number. The OMB control number for this collection is 3145-0058. Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 120 hours per response, including the time for reviewing instructions. Send comments regarding the burden estimate and any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to:
Suzanne H. Plimpton
Reports Clearance Officer
Division of Administrative Services
National Science Foundation
Arlington, VA 22230
