Federal Funding Programs
These are federal programs that fund programs and research in informal science education.
Department of Education (DOE)
ED administers programs authorized and funded by Congress. These
programs provide financial aid for eligible applicants for elementary,
secondary, and college education; for the education of individuals with
disabilities and of those who are illiterate, disadvantaged, or gifted;
and for the education of immigrants, American Indians, and people with
limited English proficiency.
Institute of Museum and Library Services
The Institute of Museum and Library Services is the primary source of
federal support for the nation's 122,000 libraries and 17,500 museums.
The Institute's mission is to create strong libraries and museums that
connect people to information and ideas. The Institute works at the
national level and in coordination with state and local organizations
to sustain heritage, culture, and knowledge; enhance learning and
innovation; and support professional development.
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
NASA depends upon the private sector — industry, educational
institutions and other nonprofit organizations — for the greater part
of its research needs. Therefore, NASA encourages the submission of
unique and innovative unsolicited proposals which will further the
Agency's mission.
National Center for Learning Science and Technology
The House of Representatives passed legislation on 2/7/08 to establish
the National Center for Learning Science and Technology pilot program
to " ...administer a trust fund for precompetitive basic and applied
research to help transform education, skills training and lifelong
learning for the digital age. It will assess and research prototypes
for innovative digital learning and information technologies; support
pilot testing and evaluation, encourage their widespread adoption and
use, and introduce digital media education programs for parents,
teachers, and children to build technology literacy. To carry out its
activities the Center will award contracts and grants to colleges and
universities, museums, libraries, public broadcasting entities, and
similar nonprofit organizations and public institutions, as well as to
for-profit organizations."
National Endowment for the Arts
The National Endowment for the Arts is a public agency dedicated to
supporting excellence in the arts, both new and established; bringing
the arts to all Americans; and providing leadership in arts education.
Established by Congress in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal
government, the Endowment is the nation's largest annual funder of the
arts, bringing art to all 50 states, including rural areas, inner
cities, and military bases.
National Endowment for the Humanities
NEH is an independent grant-making agency of the United States
government dedicated to supporting research, education, preservation,
and public programs in the humanities.
National Institutes of Health (NIH)
The National Center for Research Resources (NCRR) invites applications
for Science Education Partnership Awards (SEPA) program whose goals are
to foster the development of novel programs to improve K–12 and the
general public's understanding of the clinical trial process as well as
the health science advances stemming from National Institutes of Health
(NIH) funded clinical and basic research. The SEPA program supports the
creation of innovative partnerships between biomedical and clinical
researchers and K–12 teachers and schools, museum and science center
educators, media experts, and other interested educational
organizations.
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
NOAA's Office of Education (OED) is requesting applications for
environmental literacy projects in support of free-choice learning. The
proposed projects should support NOAA's vision which is: an informed
society that uses a comprehensive understanding of the role of the
ocean, coasts, and atmosphere in the global ecosystem to make the best
social and economic decisions.
National Science Foundation, Cyber-Enabled Discovery and Innovation (CDI)
Cyber–Enabled Discovery and Innovation (CDI) is NSF's five-year
initiative to create revolutionary science and engineering research
outcomes made possible by innovations and advances in computational
thinking. Computational thinking is defined comprehensively to
encompass computational concepts, methods, models, algorithms, and
tools. Applied in challenging science and engineering research and
education contexts, computational thinking promises a profound impact
on the Nation's ability to generate and apply new knowledge.
Collectively, CDI research outcomes are expected to produce paradigm
shifts in the understanding of a wide range of science and engineering
phenomena and socio-technical innovations that create new wealth and
enhance the national quality of life.
National Science Foundation, Discovery Research K–12 (DR-K12)
The Discovery Research K–12 (DR-K12) program seeks to enable
significant advances in K–12 student and teacher learning of the STEM
disciplines through research about, and development and implementation
of, innovative resources, models, and technologies for use by students,
teachers, and policy makers. Activities funded under this solicitation
begin with a research question or hypothesis about K–12 STEM learning
or teaching; develop, adapt, or study innovative resources, models, or
technologies; and demonstrate if, how, for whom, and why their
implementation affects learning.
National Science Foundation, Education and Human Resources, Human Resource Development (HRD)
The
Division of Human Resource Development (HRD), within the Directorate
for Education and Human Resources, serves as a focal point for NSF's
agency–wide commitment to enhancing the quality and excellence of
science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education and
research through broadening participation by underrepresented groups
and institutions.
National Science Foundation, Geoscience Education (GeoEd)
The goals of the Geoscience Education (GeoEd) Program are to: improve
the quality of geoscience education at all educational levels; increase
the number and competency of Earth and Space Science teachers at K–12
levels; demonstrate the relevance of the geosciences by identifying and
promoting traditional and non-traditional career opportunities in the
field; increase the number of students enrolling in geoscience courses
and degree programs at all educational levels; increase the number of
students drawn from groups underrepresented in science, technology,
engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields in geoscience courses and
degree programs; and increase the public's understanding of
geoscience-related issues.
National Science Foundation, Informal Science Education (ISE)
The ISE program invests in projects that develop and implement informal
learning experiences designed to increase interest, engagement, and
understanding of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics
(STEM) by individuals of all ages and backgrounds, as well as projects
that advance knowledge and practice of informal science education.
Projects may target either public audiences or professionals whose work
directly affects informal STEM learning. ISE projects are expected to
demonstrate strategic impact, innovation, and collaboration.
National Science Foundation, Innovative Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST)
What does it take to effectively interest and prepare students as
participants in the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics
(STEM) workforce of the future? What are the knowledge, skills, and
dispositions that students need in order to participate productively in
the changing workforce in STEM, particularly in STEM–related
information and communication technology (ICT) areas? How do they
acquire them? What will ensure that the nation has the capacity it
needs to participate in transformative, innovative STEM advances? How
can we assess and predict inclination to participate in the STEM fields
and how can we measure and study impact of various models to encourage
that participation?
National Science Foundation, Research and Evaluation on Education in Science and Engineering (REESE)
The goals of the REESE program are: (1) to advance discovery and
innovation at the frontiers of STEM learning, education, and
evaluation; (2) to stimulate the field to produce high quality and
robust research results through the advancement of theory, method, and
human resources; and (3) to help coordinate advances in education,
learning research, and evaluation efforts. REESE advances its mission
by developing an interdisciplinary research portfolio focusing on core
scientific questions of learning in real and emerging educational
contexts, from childhood through adulthood, and from before school
through to graduate school and beyond into the workforce. In addition,
research questions related to education and evaluation are central to
the REESE activity.
National Science Foundation, Research on Learning in Formal and Informal Settings (DRL)
DRL invests in projects to improve the effectiveness of STEM learning
for people of all ages. Its mission includes promoting innovative
research, development, and evaluation of learning and teaching across
all STEM disciplines by advancing cutting–edge knowledge and practices
in both formal and informal learning settings. DRL also promotes the
broadening and deepening of capacity and impact in the educational
sciences by encouraging the participation of scientists, engineers, and
educators from the range of disciplines represented at NSF.
National Science Foundation, Science of Learning Centers (SLC)
The Science of Learning Centers program (SLC) offers awards for
large-scale, long–term Centers that create the intellectual,
organizational, and physical infrastructure needed for the long–term
advancement of Science of Learning research. It supports research that
harnesses and integrates knowledge across multiple disciplines to
create a common groundwork of conceptualization, experimentation, and
explanation that anchor new lines of thinking and inquiry towards a
deeper understanding of learning.
Inside the NSF
These are links to useful areas of the NSF website.
Research on Learning in Formal and Informal Settings (DRL) Funding Opportunities
Committee of Visitors
NSF relies on the judgment of external experts to maintain high
standards of program management, to provide advice for continuous
improvement of NSF performance, and to ensure openness to the research
and education community served by the Foundation. Committee of Visitors
(COV) reviews provide NSF with external expert judgments in two areas:
(1) assessments of the quality and integrity of program operations and
program-level technical and managerial matters pertaining to proposal
decisions; and (2) comments on how the outputs and outcomes generated
by awardees have contributed to the attainment of NSF's mission and
strategic outcome goals.
Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and Privacy Act
NSF–Funded Centers for Informal Science Education
These are NSF–funded research centers that study informal education.
The Center for Advancement in Informal Science Education (CAISE)
The Center for Advancement of Informal Science Education (CAISE) is
dedicated to advancing and improving the practice of informal science
education in its many and varied forms—through film and broadcast
media, science centers and museums, zoos and aquariums, botanical
gardens and nature centers, digital media and gaming, and youth,
community and after-school programs. Founded in 2007 with support from
the National Science Foundation, CAISE focuses on increasing and
communicating the value of NSF's investments in informal science
education.
The Center for Informal Learning and Schools (CILS)
In 2002, the Center for Informal Learning and Schools (CILS) was funded
by the National Science Foundation to create a program of research,
scholarship, and leadership in the arena of informal learning and the
relationship of informal science institutions and schools. CILS
addresses "pressing problems confronting K–12 science education" by
focusing on key components of the national science education
infrastructure.
The Learning in Informal and Formal Environments (LIFE) Center
The National Science Foundation (NSF) is funding Science of Learning
Centers (SLCs) in order to extend the frontiers of knowledge on
learning of all types and create the intellectual, organizational, and
physical infrastructure needed for the long–term advancement of
learning research. The Learning in Informal and Formal Environments
(LIFE) Center was one of the first four Science of Learning Centers to
be funded in the Fall of 2004. LIFE is an interdisciplinary
collaboration between learning scientists at the University of
Washington, Stanford University, SRI International, and other
institutions across the country.
Nanoscale Informal Science Education Network (NISENET)
NISE Net offers a variety of opportunities for scientists and museum
professionals to collaborate in bringing nanoscale science to the
public. The network is being built through these active collaborations,
and as a result is creating a national infrastructure of relationships
and resources to support informal nanoscale science education.