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National Science Foundation
4201 Wilson Boulevard
Arlington, Virginia 22230
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Title: Cooperative Activity with Department of Energy Programs for Education
and Human Resource Development -- "Dear Colleague Letter"
Office of the
Assistant Director for
Education and Human Resources
Dear Colleague:
The Principal Investigators (PIs) of National Science Foundation (NSF) awards
managed by one of the NSF programs serving STEM education that often has participation
by faculty, undergraduate students and/or pre-service teachers (see list below)
are invited to consider participating in a cooperative effort between NSF and
the Department of Energy (DoE) Office of Science:
Advanced Technological Education (ATE)
Centers for Learning and Teaching (CLT)
Centers of Research Excellence in Science and Technology (CREST)
Computer Science, Engineering, and Mathematics Scholarships (CSEMS)
Gender Diversity in STEM Education (GDSE)
Historically Black Colleges and Universities Undergraduate Program (HBCU-UP)
Louis Stokes Alliances for Minority Participation (LSAMP)
Math and Science Partnership (MSP): Comprehensive and Targeted Projects
NSF Collaboratives for Excellence in Teacher Preparation (CETP)
Research on Disabilities Education (RDE)
Robert Noyce Scholarship Program
Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Teacher Preparation (STEMTP)
Teacher Professional Continuum (TPC) Program
Tribal Colleges and Universities Program (TCUP)
To support the continued leadership of the United States in science, technology,
engineering, and mathematics (STEM) and the continued development of a competitive,
diverse STEM workforce, NSF and DoE are implementing collaboration between
the agencies' programs for the development of human resources in STEM. As
an immediate result of this effort, during FY 2004 NSF will support students
and faculty from participating NSF projects (see list above) who are accepted
as participants in one of four DoE initiatives that provide hands-on research
opportunities in DoE national laboratories during the summer: Science Undergraduate
Laboratory Internships (SULI), Faculty and Student Teams (FaST), Community
College Institutes (CCI), and Pre-Service Teacher (PST) Internships. You
are invited to encourage appropriate students and faculty to apply to DoE
for these opportunities and, if DoE approves their applications, to then
request supplemental funding from NSF to support their participation. (Please
note: specific instructions for applying to DoE and for requesting supplemental
funding from NSF are in the attachment.)
A description of the opportunities is attached. SULI and CCI are designed for
college students who could benefit from working in an advanced scientific research
environment, FaST includes faculty and student teams in that opportunity, and
PST internships target students who are preparing to become teachers of science,
mathematics, and technology at elementary and secondary schools.
In FY 2004, undergraduate students (two-year and four-year schools) may apply
to DoE to participate in SULI or PST internships. Students enrolled in community
colleges may participate in CCI or SULI, and, if they are pre-service teachers,
PST. Faculty and student teams may participate in FaST. The amounts targeted
for the NSF supplements for this cooperative activity are $4,500 for each student
(allocated as ten weekly stipends of $400, and up to $500 for travel), and
up to 2/9 academic year salary (up to $12,000) for faculty. NSF will support
up to 91 students and 13 faculty, pending the availability of funds. Up to
$1,000 in additional participant support may be requested as reasonable accommodation
for unusual/extraordinary travel expenses incurred by persons with disabilities.
This additional request must be included and justified in the submitted budget.
DoE indicates that it provides reasonable accommodation at its research facilities.
Applications are reviewed by DoE beginning February 1, 2004. If DoE accepts
the applicants, you may forward a formal request for supplemental funding to
NSF. This supplement request should be submitted as soon as possible but by
5 pm (submitter’s local time), March 30, 2004.
We hope that you will give serious consideration to encouraging appropriate
students and faculty to apply for the DoE initiatives and subsequently applying
to NSF for a supplement to support the participants. As always, we cannot guarantee
that a supplement request will be granted, but we will strive to fund as many
as possible.
Sincerely,
Judith A. Ramaley
Assistant Director
Education and Human Resources
Attachment: Opportunities for NSF/EHR Grantee Participation in Programs of
the Department of Energy Office of Science
OPPORTUNITIES FOR NSF/EHR GRANTEE PARTICIPATION IN PROGRAMS
OF THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY OFFICE OF SCIENCE
Science Undergraduate Laboratory Internships (SULI) target undergraduate students
who have not had an opportunity to work in an advanced scientific research
environment, especially students belonging to groups underrepresented in fields
of science, mathematics, engineering, and technology. The SULI program incorporates
both an individually mentored research component and a set of enrichment activities,
which include lectures, classroom activities, career guidance and planning,
and field trips. Additional information is available on the Web at
http://www.scied.science.doe.gov/scied/erulf/about.html.
Grantees of participating NSF/EHR STEM programs may request supplements to
support the participation of undergraduate students in the SULI program. NSF
provides stipend and travel support of $4,500 per student.
Faculty and Student Teams (FaST) provides opportunities for college professors
and students to participate in a 10-week highly interactive and stimulating
immersion experience in a research environment in a DoE laboratory. This program
encourages a sustainable professional relationship between the faculty and
laboratory investigators. Workshops and training minimize the "culture
shock" of working in a national laboratory setting. Additional information
is available on the Web at http://www.scied.science.doe.gov/scied/sci_ed.htm and
click on "Faculty and Student Teams Program."
Grantees of participating NSF/EHR STEM programs supporting undergraduate students
may request supplements to support the participation of faculty-student teams
in the FaST initiative. NSF provides up to 2/9 academic year salary (up to
$12,000) per faculty member for up to thirteen college faculty members (nationwide).
Each faculty member who is selected to participate will select up to three
undergraduate students to join the research team; NSF provides stipend and
travel support of $4,500 per student.
Community College Institutes (CCI) places students from community
colleges in paid internships in Science and Engineering and Technology. Because
of the
comprehensive nature of this program many of the participants have felt it
has had an enormous influence on their careers. Students work with scientists
or engineers on projects related to the laboratories' research programs. They
also attend career planning and numerous training/informational sessions. Additional
information is available on the Web at http://www.scied.science.doe.gov/scied/CCI/about.html.
Grantees of participating NSF/EHR STEM programs supporting community/two-year
college students may request supplements to support the participation of undergraduate
students in the CCI program. NSF provides stipend and travel support of $4,500
per student.
Pre-Service Teacher (PST) Internships target students who
are preparing to become teachers of science, mathematics, and technology at
elementary and secondary
schools. In addition to the research component found in the SULI program, the
students are guided by a resident Master Teacher to learn how to transfer their
newfound scientific research expertise to the classroom. This culminates in
each student writing an educational module based on his or her research, which
incorporates science standards and benchmarks. Additional information is available
on the Web at http://www.scied.science.doe.gov/scied/PST/about.htm.
Grantees of participating NSF/EHR STEM programs supporting students in pre-service
STEM teacher education may request supplements to support the participation
students in the PST Internships program. NSF provides stipend and travel support
of $4,500 per student.
For participants in all four initiatives, DoE provides support for housing,
laboratory safety training, local travel, and other program costs.
During FY 2004, grantees of participating NSF programs may encourage students
and faculty members to apply to participate in the DoE initiatives (SULI, FaST,
CCI, or PST Internships). Once a DoE applicant has accepted an offer from a
DoE lab, e-mail will be sent by DoE to notify the PI. The PI may then request
supplemental funding from NSF.
APPLYING TO DoE
Applications are reviewed by DoE beginning February 1, 2004. SULI:
NSF Principal Investigators (PIs) are asked to identify students who have the
potential to benefit significantly from the research participation
offered by the SULI program. These students should complete the SULI application
on the DoE Office of Science Web site at http://www.scied.science.doe.gov/scied/erulf/about.html.
This form has a check box where students should indicate that they are affiliated
with one of the participating NSF programs (including the grant award number,
the PI's name, and the PI's e-mail address). Once a DoE applicant has accepted
an offer from a DoE lab, e-mail will be sent by DoE to notify the PI. The PI
may then request supplemental funding from NSF.
FaST: NSF Principal Investigators (PIs) are asked to identify faculty members
associated with one of the participating NSF/EHR grant programs to apply to
the FaST Program. Faculty from colleges and universities with limited prior
research capabilities and those institutions serving populations underrepresented
in the fields of science, engineering and technology are encouraged to take
advantage of the FaST opportunity to prepare students for careers in science,
engineering, computer science, and technology and for their own professional
development.
Along with information about the DoE program, the web site http://www.scied.science.doe.gov/ includes
a downloadable DoE application for the faculty and student team members and
laboratory project descriptions. Faculty should review the DoE FaST project
descriptions and identify opportunities for which they are qualified, interested,
and willing to make a commitment. Faculty applicants may contact laboratory
Science Education directors for additional information on the project prior
to submitting the application.
Download and submit an application to DoE, Office of Science, FaST program
manager, Sue Ellen Walbridge at sue-ellen.walbridge@science.doe.gov. Faculty
members should select the project of interest to them and complete the application.
Once a FaST team has been selected by a lab and has accepted the offer, the
NSF PI will be notified by DoE by e-mail. The PI may then request an NSF supplement.
CCI: NSF Principal Investigators (PIs) are asked to identify two-year college
students who have the potential to benefit significantly from the research
participation offered by the CCI program. These students should complete the
CCI application on the DoE Office of Science Web site at http://www.scied.science.doe.gov/CCI/about.html.
This form has a check box where students should indicate that they are affiliated
with one of the participating NSF programs (including the grant award number,
the PI's name, and the PI's e-mail address). Once a DoE applicant has accepted
an offer from a DoE lab, e-mail will be sent by DoE to notify the PI. The PI
may then request supplemental funding from NSF.
PST Internships: Grantees of participating NSF/EHR STEM programs supporting
students in pre-service STEM teacher education are asked to identify students
who have the potential to benefit significantly from the research participation
offered by the PST Internships program. These students should complete the
PST Internships application on the DoE Office of Science Web site at http://www.scied.science.doe.gov/PST/about.html..
Once a DoE applicant has accepted an offer from a DoE lab, e-mail will be
sent by DoE to notify the PI. The PI may then request supplemental funding
from NSF.
REQUESTING SUPPLEMENTAL FUNDING FROM NSF
After DoE notifies the NSF PI that the DoE application has been approved,
the PI may then submit a request for supplemental funding to NSF. This request
should conform to the procedure outlined in NSF's Grant Policy Manual, Section
264 (see
http://www.nsf.gov/bfa/cpo/gpm95/ch2.htm#ch2-19).
NSF's FastLane system should be used to prepare and submit these requests
for supplemental funding (https://www.fastlane.nsf.gov/fastlane.jsp). The
requests should be submitted as soon as notification of application acceptance
by DoE
is received, but must be submitted by 5 pm (submitter’s local time),
March 30, 2004.
To request the supplement, the PI should use the FastLane Proposals, Awards & Status
function. The Supplemental Funding Request may be accessed via the Award and
Reporting Functions. In the Supplemental Funding Request, the PI should complete:
Justification For Supplement: a brief (one-page) statement justifying participation
in the relevant DoE initiative (e.g., alignment of the planned research with
the overall program goals). Note that decisions will be based on the evaluation
of submittals through use of the standard NSB Merit Review Criteria, and will
take into account the quality of the proposed work and its expected benefits
to the students and faculty participating.
Supplementary Docs: a copy of the notification from DoE that the students
and/or faculty have been accepted.
Budgets (Including Justification): a budget for travel and stipend. On the
budget page, stipends and travel support should be entered on Line F (Participant
Support). Indirect costs are not allowed on participant support costs, and
there is no administrative allowance in lieu of indirect costs. The amounts
targeted for the NSF supplements for this cooperative activity are $4,500 for
each student (allocated as ten weekly stipends of $400, and up to $500 for
travel), and up to 2/9 academic year salary (up to $12,000) for faculty. NSF
will support up to 91 students and 13 faculty. Up to $1,000 in additional participant
support may be requested as reasonable accommodation for unusual/extraordinary
travel expenses incurred by persons with disabilities. This additional request
must be included and justified in the submitted budget. DoE indicates that
it provides reasonable accommodation at its research facilities.
FastLane Contact(s): FastLane Help Desk, telephone: (703) 292-8040, e-mail:
fastlane@nsf.gov.
The PI must also send notification to NSF/EHR DOE-EHR@nsf.gov that
the FastLane request has been submitted. The notification should include the
PI's name, the grant to be supplemented by the seven-digit number, and the
cognizant NSF Program Officer for the award.
Also, the PI must submit an annual project report to the cognizant Program
Officer at least 90 days before the end of the current budget period, including
information on supplement-based project participants (individual and organizational),
activities and findings, publications, and other specific products and contributions.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Requests for additional information or clarifications may be e-mailed to
DOE-EHR@nsf.gov.
ABOUT THE NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION
The National Science Foundation (NSF) funds research and education in most
fields of science and engineering. Awardees are wholly responsible for conducting
their project activities and preparing the results for publication. Thus, the
Foundation does not assume responsibility for such findings or their interpretation.
NSF welcomes proposals from all qualified scientists, engineers and educators.
The Foundation strongly encourages women, minorities and persons with disabilities
to compete fully in its programs. In accordance with Federal statutes, regulations
and NSF policies, no person on grounds of race, color, age, sex, national origin
or disability shall be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits
of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving
financial assistance from NSF, although some programs may have special requirements
that limit eligibility.
Facilitation Awards for Scientists and Engineers with Disabilities (FASED)
provide funding for special assistance or equipment to enable persons with
disabilities (investigators and other staff, including student research assistants)
to work on NSF-supported projects. See the GPG Chapter II, Section D.2 for
instructions regarding preparation of these types of proposals.
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 http://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; 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 applicant 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 needing information as part of the review process or in
order to coordinate programs; 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," 63 Federal Register 267 (January 5, 1998), and
NSF-51, "Reviewer/Proposal File and Associated Records," 63 Federal Register
268 (January 5, 1998). 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 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 this
burden estimate and any other aspect of this collection of information, including
suggestions for reducing this burden, to: Suzanne Plimpton, Reports Clearance
Officer, Division of Administrative Services, National Science Foundation,
Arlington, VA 22230.
OMB control number: 3145-0058.
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