NSFs Division of Undergraduate Education: Funding Opportunities for Community Colleges and Partnersh

1
NSFs Division of Undergraduate Education
Funding Opportunities for Community Colleges and
Partnerships Focus on ATEiGETT Summer
Institute, 2009

• Elaine L. Craft, Director
• SC ATE Center of Excellence and
• President, SCATE Inc.
• Florence-Darlington Technical College
• Florence, SC
• Elaine.Craft_at_fdtc.edu ph. 843-676-8545

2
Purpose of this session

• To share information about the NSF
  Advanced Technological Education (ATE) and S-STEM
  programs from which you may wish to seek funding

3
Caution

• Most of the information presented in this talk
  represents the opinions of the individual program
  officers who prepared the material or the
  presenter and is not an official NSF position.

4
(No Transcript)
5
www.nsf.gov
6

• EHRs Mission is to promote the development of a
  diverse
• and well-prepared workforce of scientists,
  engineers, mathematicians, educators, and
  technicians
• and a well informed citizenry who have access to
  the ideas and tools of science and engineering.

7
(No Transcript)
8
(No Transcript)
9
The Role of Community Colleges in the Education
of Recent Science and Engineering Graduates

• 44 of all S E 1999 and 2000 graduates with a
  bachelors or masters degree attended a
  community college (more than 50 of the bachelors
  and 35 of the masters)
• 51 of Hispanic bachelors and masters graduates
  and 18 of the Hispanic Ph.D.s attended a
  community college

10
The Role of Community Colleges in the Education
of Recent Science and Engineering Graduates

• 62 of female graduates and 51 of male graduates
  who had children attended a community college
• 42 of the graduates who had a GPA between 3.75
  and 4.00 attended a community college

11
NSF Budget

• Education and Human Resources (EHR)
• FY 2009 (Requested) 709 Million
• Division of Undergraduate Education (DUE)
• FY 2007 (Actual) 204.96 Million
• FY 2008 (Estimate) 211.05 Million
• FY 2009 (Requested) 219.83 Million
• Note Extra 75 million from H-1B visa fees
  employers pay to obtain a visa for a foreign
• high-tech worker to fund the S-STEM program.

12
NSF Budget

• Stimulus Plan 2009 for DUE
• - NOYCE Scholarship Program 60 M
• - Math and Science Partnership (MSP)
  Program 25 M

13
Selected Programs in DUE

• FY2007 FY2008 FY2009
  (Actual) (Estimate) (Requested)
• ATE 50.58 51.62 51.62
• CCLI 37.78 37.50 39.21
• STEP 28.90 29.70 29.70
• S-STEM 75 /year from H1B visa fee
• NOYCE 10.30 10.80 (55) 11.60 (115)
• (in Million)

14
NSF support for two-year college projects FY
2006-2008
15
Scholarships in Science, Technology,
Engineering, and Mathematics  (S-STEM)

15
16
S-STEM

• Goal Provides institutions funds to provide
  scholarships to academically talented, but
  financial needy, students. Students can be
  pursuing associate, baccalaureate, or graduate
  degrees.
• Letter of Intent July ?, 2009Full Proposal
  August ?, 2009

17
S-STEM

• Eligible disciplines extended to include
  biology, physical and mathematical sciences,
  computer and information sciences, geosciences,
  and engineering
• Maximum scholarships 10,000
• (based on financial need)
• Grant size up to 600,000
• One proposal per constituent school or college
• About 50-70 million available

17
18
S-STEM

• Special Program Features
• Has a faculty member in a STEM discipline as the
  PI.
• Involves cohorts of students.
• Provides student support structures.
• Includes optional enhancements such as research
  opportunities, tutoring, internships, etc.
• Enrolls students full time.

18
19
Advanced Technological Education(ATE)
20
ATE

• ATE is in its 16th year of funding community
  colleges, having started with the Science and
  Advanced Technology Act of 1992 (SATA).
• FY2008
• Preliminary Proposals April 23, 2009
• Formal Proposals Oct. 15, 2009

21
ATE

• Goal Educate technicians for the high-tech
  fields that drive our nations economy

Before you call me or start writing
Is this project industry-driven? Are students
interested in working In this industry? What
needs to be done to meet the needs of industry
and attract students to the program?
22
ATE Institution Requirements

• Focus is on two-year colleges
• All proposals are expected to include one or more
  two-year colleges in leadership roles
• A consortium of institutions may also apply

23
ATE Tracks

• 3 Tracks
• 1. Projects including small projects
• 2. Centers
• 3. Targeted Educational Research

24
Projects

• www.ateprojectimpact.org
• Projects can focus on one or more aspects of
• Program Improvement
• Professional Development for Educators
• Curriculum and Educational Materials Development
• Teacher Preparation (http//www.aacc.nche.edu/Reso
  urces/aaccprograms/ate/Documents/teacherprep_stem.
  pdf)
• Research on Technician Education or
• Institution-Level Reform of Technician Education

25
Program Improvement

• Activities might include
• Integrating industry standards and workplace
  competencies into the curriculum
• Adapting educational materials or courses
  developed elsewhere
• Adding rigorous STEM content to programs and
  courses
• Providing professional development to educators
• Developing articulation agreements between
  two-year colleges and secondary schools or
  four-year institutions
• Improving recruitment or retention of students

26
Best Practices for Involving Industry and Writing
a Good ATE Proposal

• Get the PI to write it
• Focus on needs for the workplace
• Get decision makers involved
• Link company research and colleges in training of
  technicians
• Provide flexible pathways for students

27
Small Grants for Institutions New to ATE

• Purpose
• Simulates implementation, adaptation, and
  innovation in all areas supported by ATE.
• Available only to community college campuses that
  have not an an ATE award within the last 10 years
• Broaden the base of participation of community
  colleges in ATE.
• Strengthen the role of community colleges in
  meeting needs of business and industry
• Proposers are encouraged to include resources of
  ATE and other NSF awardees and to include those
  people as consultants and subawardees.
• Limited to 150,000 with a maximum of 10
  indirect

28
Centers

• Centers of Excellence National, Regional,
  Resource
• http//www.ATECenters.org

29
Regional Centers

• Former -- Manufacturing Technology or Information
  Technology
• Regional focus serves the needs of industry in
  a region
• Collaboration among colleges and secondary
  schools
• Collaboration with industry in the region
• Activities include curriculum adaptation, faculty
  and teacher development, establishment of
  partnerships, and recruitment and retention
  strategies, all directed toward regional
  workforce needs
• Clear, measurable impacts on quantity and quality
  of students for the workforce

30
ATE Resource Centers

• Constitute a highly visible source of educational
  materials, ideas, contacts, and mentoring in a
  particular field of technological education
• Led by those who have already made substantial,
  high-quality contributions in an area of
  technological education.
• Serve as clearinghouses for, and broadly
  distribute, the exemplary materials, curricula,
  and pedagogical practices adapted or designed by
  previously funded ATE centers and projects
• Provide support and mentoring for institutions
  that wish to start or improve educational
  programs in a particular field of technology.

31
ATE Centers of Excellence (36)
National Center
Regional Center
Resource Center
32
ATE awards (FY2008)

• Typical award sizes
• Projects 200K/year for 3 years
• (45 new awards)
• Small Grants 75K/year for 2 years
  (15 new awards)
• National Centers 1.2M/year for 4 years
  (2 new awards)

33
ATE Professional Development Opportunities

• Go to www.TeachingTechnicians.org
• Now over 100 professional development
  opportunities

34
Number of Awards per State in ATEs 15 Year
HistoryTotal number of Awards (865)
30 WASHINGTON
6 MAINE
3 MONTANA
5 NORTH DAKOTA
18 MINNESOTA
2 VT.
7 N.H.
25 OREGON
19 WISCONSIN
62 MA.
2 IDAHO
47 NEW YORK
4 SOUTH DAKOTA
2 WYOMING
16 MICHIGAN
14 CT.
16 PENNSYLVANIA
1 R.I.
23 IOWA
16 N.J.
7 NEBRASKA
3 NEVADA
42 OHIO
2 DEL.
8 INDIANA
28 ILLINOIS
2 UTAH
26 MD.
2 W.V.
15 COLORADO
22 VIRGINIA
6 MISSOURI
20 D.C.
3 KANSAS
18 KENTUCKY
99 CALIFORNIA
18 NORTH CAROLINA
18 TENNESSEE
7 OKLAHOMA
21 ARIZONA
4 ARKANSAS
22 S.C.
16 NEW MEXICO
9 GEORGIA
12 MISS.
15 ALABAMA
53 TEXAS
3 LOUISIANA
32 FLA.
3 ALASKA
3 PUERTO RICO
HAWAII
35
(No Transcript)
36
(No Transcript)
37
Information about funded proposals

• Go to the DUE Home website on NSF
• Find the Program of interest to you
• Go to the bottom of that page and click on
  Abstracts of Recent Awards Made Through This
  Program
• Write to the PI requesting a copy of her/his
  proposal.

38
Information about funded proposals
39
How to Write Good Proposals?
40
NSF Proposal Review and Decision Process

Mail Reviews
Award (Via DGA)
Declination
Central Processing
Program Manager
Division Director
Investigator/ Institution
Withdrawal
Panel
Inap- propriate
41
(No Transcript)
42
The ProposalCriteria for Evaluation

• What is the intellectual merit of the proposed
  activity?
• What are the broader impacts of the proposed
  activity?

43
Intellectual Merit

• Addresses a major challenge
• Supported by capable faculty and others
• Improved student learning
• Rationale and vision clearly articulated
• Informed by other projects
• Effective evaluation and dissemination
• Adequate facilities, resources, and commitment
• Institutional and departmental commitment

44
Broader Impacts

• Integrated into the institutions academic
  programs
• Contributes to knowledge base and useful to other
  institutions
• Widely used products which can be disseminated
  through commercial and other channels
• Improved content and pedagogy for faculty and
  teachers
• Increased participation by women,
  underrepresented minorities, and persons with
  disabilities
• Ensures high quality STEM education for people
  pursuing careers in STEM fields or as teachers or
  technicians

45
General tips

• At the DUE Web Site
• http//www.nsf.gov/div/index.jsp?divDUE
• Create a personalized alert service
• Get copies of previously funded proposals
• Directly from the PI
• From Leslie Jensen (ljensen_at_nsf.gov)
• Contact a program officer (PO) and offer to
  review proposals

46
What Makes a Proposal Competitive?

• Original ideas
• Succinct, focused project plan
• Realistic amount of work
• Sufficient detail provided
• Cost effective
• High impact

47
What Makes a Proposal Competitive?

• Knowledge and experience of PIs
• Contribution to the field
• Rationale and evidence of potential effectiveness
• Likelihood the project will be sustained
• Solid evaluation plan

48
Tips for Success

• Consult the program solicitation and NSF Proposal
  Award Policies Procedures Guide (PAPPG) (NSF
  09-1)
• Test drive FastLane
• Alert the Sponsored Research Office
• Follow page and font size limits
• Be aware of other projects and advances in the
  field

49
Tips for Success

• Cite the literature
• Provide details
• Discuss prior results
• Include evaluation plan with timelines and
  benchmarks
• Put yourself in the reviewers place
• Consider reviewers comments if resubmitting
  proposal

50
Tips for Success

• Have someone else read the proposal
• Spell check grammar check
• Meet deadlines
• Follow NSF requirements for proposals involving
  Human Subjects
• Call or email NSF Program Officers

51
Return Without Review

• Submitted after deadline
• Fail to separately and explicitly address
  intellectual merit and broader impacts in the
  Project Summary
• Fail to follow formatting (e. g. page limitation,
  font size, and margin limits) requirements

52
Making the Project Better based on Review Criteria

• 10 Helpful Hints
• (What do you think they are?)

53
Helpful Hints

• 1. Read the Program Announcement

54
Helpful Hints

• 2. Care About the Project

55
Helpful Hints

• 3. Build on What Others Have Done

56
Helpful Hints

• 4. Think Global, Act Local and Global

57
Helpful Hints

• 5. Have Measurable Goals and Objectives

58
Helpful Hints

• 6. Think Teamwork

59
Helpful Hints

• 7. Use Good Management Skills

60
Helpful Hints

• 8. Evaluation Includes Impact and Effectiveness

61
Helpful Hints

• 9. Spread the Word

62
Helpful Hints

• 10. Pay It Back

63
Top Ten Ways To Write a Good Proposal That
Wont Get Funded
64
Flaws

• 10. Inflate the budget to allow for negotiations.

65
Flaws

• 9. Provide a template letter of commitment for
  your (genuine) supporters to use. (They will!)

66
Flaws

• 8. Assume your past accomplishments are well
  known.

67
Flaws

• 7. Assume a project website is sufficient for
  dissemination.

68
Flaws

• 6. Assert Evaluation will be ongoing and
  consist of a variety of methods.

69
Flaws
5. Assume the program guidelines have not
changed or better yet, ignore them!
70
Flaws

• 4. Dont check your speeling, nor youre grammer.

71
Flaws

• 3. Substitute flowery rhetoric for good examples.

72
Flaws

• 2. Assume page limits and font size restrictions
  are not enforced.

73
Flaws

• 1. Assume deadlines are not enforced.

74
WAYS TO PARTICIPATE ON A GRANT

• Grant Holder
• Principal Investigator
• Member of Project Team
• Member of a coalition
• Member of an Advisory Board
• Test Site
• User of Products
• Participant in Workshops and Symposium
• Reviewer of Proposals

75
But Most Important!

• Have fun!

76
Thank you!