Deadline: 1/18/22
Amount: $250,000-$3,000,000
Website: https://beta.nsf.gov/funding/opportunities/advancing-informal-stem-learning-aisl
Description:
Grants to USA nonprofit organizations, for-profits, IHEs, and government agencies to strengthen the quality of STEM education for the general public. Applicants are advised that required registrations take several weeks to finalize. Funding is intended for a broad range of projects that provide the public with access to STEM learning. Eligible proposals must demonstrate clear rationales describing why a project is primarily informal and how it adds value to the informal STEM learning community.
The Advancing Informal STEM Learning (AISL) program seeks to advance new approaches to and evidence-based understanding of the design and development of STEM learning opportunities for the public in informal environments; provide multiple pathways for broadening access to and engagement in STEM learning experiences; advance innovative research on and assessment of STEM learning in informal environments; and engage the public of all ages in learning STEM in informal environments.
The AISL program supports six types of projects:
- Pilots and Feasibility Studies
- Research in Service to Practice
- Innovations in Development
- Broad Implementation
- Literature Reviews, Syntheses, or Meta-Analyses, and
- Conferences.
Priorities:
There are six priorities that the AISL program believes are essential for achieving its goals. These priorities are also strategies to incorporate as approaches to the work. Every project does not need to address every priority. Thus, proposals should be clear about how the priorities are being addressed. These priorities should be addressed at the level appropriate to the proposal type and amount of funding requested.
- Maximizing Strategic Impact
- Enhancing Knowledge-building
- Promoting Innovation
- Advancing Collaboration
- Strengthening Infrastructure and Building Capacity
- Broadening Participation
Eligible applicants:
1) Institutions of Higher Education (IHEs) – Two- and four-year IHEs (including community colleges) accredited in, and having a campus located in the US, acting on behalf of their faculty members.
2) Nonprofit, non-academic organizations – Independent museums, observatories, research laboratories, professional societies and similar organizations located in the US that are directly associated with educational or research activities.
3) For-profit organizations – US commercial organizations, especially small businesses with strong capabilities in scientific or engineering research or education. The National Science Foundation is interested in supporting projects that couple industrial research resources and perspectives with those of universities; therefore, it especially welcomes proposals for cooperative projects involving both universities and the private commercial sector.
4) State and local governments – State educational offices or organizations and local school districts may submit proposals intended to broaden the impact, accelerate the pace, and increase the effectiveness of improvements in science, mathematics, and engineering education in both K-12 and post-secondary levels.
PROGRAM CONTACT
National Science Foundation
2415 Eisenhower Avenue
Alexandria, VA 22314
(703)-292-8616, DRLAISL@nsf.gov