Opportunities for Enhancing Diversity in the Geosciences (OEDG)

CONTACTS

PROGRAM GUIDELINES

Solicitation  10-599

Important Notice to Proposers

A revised version of the NSF Proposal & Award Policies & Procedures Guide (PAPPG), NSF 13-1, was issued on October 4, 2012 and is effective for proposals submitted, or due, on or after January 14, 2013. Please be advised that, depending on the specified due date, the guidelines contained in NSF 13-1 may apply to proposals submitted in response to this funding opportunity.

Please be aware that significant changes have been made to the PAPPG to implement revised merit review criteria based on the National Science Board (NSB) report, National Science Foundation's Merit Review Criteria: Review and Revisions. While the two merit review criteria remain unchanged (Intellectual Merit and Broader Impacts), guidance has been provided to clarify and improve the function of the criteria. Changes will affect the project summary and project description sections of proposals. Annual and final reports also will be affected.

A by-chapter summary of this and other significant changes is provided at the beginning of both the Grant Proposal Guide and the Award & Administration Guide.

DUE DATES

Current but no Longer Receiving Proposals

SYNOPSIS

The Directorate for Geosciences (GEO) supports research and education in the Earth, Ocean, Atmospheric, and Geospace Sciences. The Opportunities for Enhancing Diversity in the Geosciences (OEDG) Program is designed to address the fact that certain groups are underrepresented in the geosciences relative to their proportions in the general population. The primary goal of the OEDG Program is to increase participation in the geosciences by African Americans, Hispanic Americans, Native Americans (American Indians and Alaskan Natives), Native Pacific Islanders (Polynesians or Micronesians), and persons with disabilities. A secondary goal of the program is to increase the perceived relevance of the geosciences among broad and diverse segments of the population. The OEDG Program supports activities that will increase the number of members of underrepresented groups who:

• Are involved in formal pre-college geoscience education programs;
• Pursue and earn associate's, bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees in the geosciences;
• Enter geoscience careers; and
• Participate in informal geoscience education programs.

The OEDG Program offers three funding Tracks: OEDG Planning Grants; Track 1: Proof-of-Concept Projects; and Track 2: Full-Scale Projects.

OEDG Planning Grants - This Track supports planning workshops, conferences, symposia and related short-term activities that facilitate either: 1) development of new strategic plans to implement systemic, community-wide programs to broaden participation in the geosciences; or, 2) development of new partnerships or collaborations between multiple institutions seeking to establish sustainable projects that address the goals of the OEDG program.

Track 1: Proof-of-Concept Projects - This Track supports short-term activities. Track 1 projects include activities that will occur only one time, as well as those that are intended as the testing phase of an anticipated long-term Full-Scale Project.

Track 2: Full-Scale Projects - This Track supports longer-term activities that will identify and promote pathways to geoscience careers among members of underrepresented groups.  It is expected that Track 2 proposals will establish programs that are sustainable without additional OEDG funding.  Prior Track 1 OEDG funding is not a pre-requisite for submitting a Track 2 proposal.

RELATED PROGRAMS

Cyber-Enabled Discovery and Innovation

Geoscience Education

Historically Black Colleges and Universities - Undergraduate Program

Louis Stokes Alliances for Minority Participation

Partnerships for International Research and Education

Tribal Colleges and Universities Program

ADVANCE: Increasing the Participation and Advancement of Women in Academic Science and Engineering Careers

Facilitating Research at Primarily Undergraduate Institutions:

NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program

Research Experiences for Teachers (RET) in Engineering and Computer Science

Research Experiences for Undergraduates

Research in Disabilities Education

Research on Gender in Science and Engineering FY 2010

Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Talent Expansion Program

Transforming Undergraduate Education in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics

RELATED URLS

GEO Education and Diversity Strategic Framework

GEO Vision Report (2009)

THIS PROGRAM IS PART OF

Special Programs In Geosciences Education

Special Programs in Geosciences Education Related to EAR

What Has Been Funded (Recent Awards Made Through This Program, with Abstracts)

Map of Recent Awards Made Through This Program