PRDV009: Writing Grant Proposals

Program Solicitation NSF 17-507

National Science Foundation

Directorate for Computer & Information Science & Engineering
Division of Advanced Cyberinfrastructure
Division of Computing and Communication Foundations
Directorate for Engineering
Directorate for Geosciences
Directorate for Education & Human Resources
Division of Graduate Education
Directorate for Mathematical & Physical Sciences

Full Proposal Deadline(s) (due by 5 p.m. submitter's local time):

Important Information and Revision Notes

Any proposal submitted in response to this solicitation should be submitted in accordance with the revised NSF Proposal & Award Policies & Procedures Guide (PAPPG) (NSF 16-1), which is effective for proposals submitted, or due, on or after January 25, 2016.

 

Summary of Program Requirements

General Information

Program Title:

Training-based Workforce Development for Advanced Cyberinfrastructure (CyberTraining)

Synopsis of Program:

The overarching goal of this program is to prepare, nurture and grow the national scientific workforce for creating, utilizing, and supporting advanced cyberinfrastructure (CI) that enables cutting-edge science and engineering and contributes to the Nation's overall economic competitiveness and security. For the purpose of this solicitation, advanced CI is broadly defined as the resources, tools, and services for advanced computation, data handling, networking and security. The need for such workforce development programs are highlighted by the (i) National Strategic Computing Initiative announced in 2015 (NSCI), which is co-led by NSF and aims to advance the highperformance computing ecosystem and develop workforce essential for scientific discovery; (ii) 2016 National Academies' report on Future Directions for NSF Advanced Computing Infrastructure to Support U.S. Science and Engineering in 2017-2020; and (iii) Federal Big Data Research and Development Strategic Plan, which seeks to expand the community of data-empowered experts across all domains.

This solicitation calls for developing innovative, scalable training programs to address the emerging needs and unresolved bottlenecks in scientific and engineering workforce development of targeted, multidisciplinary communities, at the postsecondary level and beyond, leading to transformative changes in the state of workforce preparedness for advanced CI in the short and long terms. A primary goal is to broaden CI access and adoption by (i) increasing or deepening accessibility of methods and resources of advanced CI and of computational and data science and engineering by a wide range of institutions and scientific communities with lower levels of CI adoption to date; and (ii) harnessing the capabilities of larger segments of diverse underrepresented groups. Proposals from and in partnership with the aforementioned communities are especially encouraged. For student training, a key concern is not to increase the time to degree; hence the emphasis shall be on out-of-class, informal training.

Prospective principal investigators (PIs) are encouraged to engage all relevant stakeholders by forging alliances, and forming backbones for collective impact, which is particularly necessary in order to address unresolved bottlenecks (John Kania & Mark Kramer, "Collective Impact", Stanford Social Innovation Review, Winter 2011). PIs may seek public-private partnerships for relevance, enrichment, pursuit of national and international dimensions, and sustainability. All projects shall include training activities. In the short term, the projects shall result in innovative, scalable, informal training models and pilot activities, complementing and leveraging the state of art in curricular offerings, material, and best practices in academia and elsewhere. In the long term, the projects should 1 This document has been archived and replaced by NSF 18-516. contribute to the larger goals of an educational ecosystem enabling "Computational and Data Science for All", with an understanding of computation as the third pillar (President's Information Technology Advisory Committee Report, Computational Science: Ensuring America's Competitiveness, 2005) and data-driven science as the fourth pillar of the scientific discovery process (2016 National Academies report), in addition to the traditional first and second pillars, respectively, of theory and experimentation. Furthermore, in the long term, projects should contribute toward an ubiquitous educational cloud infrastructure for online, dynamic, personalized lessons and certifications in CI and other multidisciplinary areas (Continuous Collaborative Computational Cloud in Higher Education, Chapter 1, NSF Advisory Committee for Cyberinfrastructure Task Force on Cyberlearning and Workforce Development Report, 2011).

There are three tracks for submissions:

The communities of CI Professionals, Contributors, and Users supported by the above three tracks are defined in Section I - Introduction.

Each CyberTraining award shall range from $300,000 to $500,000 per award and shall be up to 3 years in duration. Based on the community response and needs, the CyberTraining solicitation may be expanded to accommodate larger projects in the future.

Programmatic Areas of Interest

The CyberTraining program includes all divisions within the Directorates of Engineering (ENG), Geosciences (GEO), and Mathematical and Physical Sciences (MPS), as well as the Divisions of Advanced Cyberinfrastructure (ACI) and Computing and Communication Foundation (CCF) in the Directorate for Computer and Information Science and Engineering (CISE), and the Division of Graduate Education (DGE) in the Directorate for Education and Human Resources (EHR). The appropriate contact for the CyberTraining program in any directorate/division is the Cognizant Program Officer (PO) for the respective directorate/division listed.

All projects must advance cyberinfrastructure training and education goals as described in the full text of this solicitation, in addition to addressing specific domain needs. Not all directorates/divisions are participating at the same level and some have specific research and education priorities as described below. Prospective PIs are strongly encouraged to contact the Cognizant Program Officers in CISE/ACI and in the participating directorate/division(s) relevant to the proposal to ascertain whether the focus and budget of the proposed activities are appropriate for this solicitation. Such consultations should be completed at least one month in advance of the submission deadline. PIs should include the names of the Cognizant Program Officers consulted in their Project Summary as described in Section V(A) - Proposal Preparation Instructions.

The Directorate for Education and Human Resources (EHR) supports the development of a diverse and well-prepared workforce of scientists, technicians, engineers, mathematicians and educators. EHR is interested in engaging the CI and education research communities to use advanced cyberinfrastructure and other approaches to analyze, visualize, and harness data to better understand issues of workforce development in science and engineering. Topics of particular interest include preparation of the workforce in areas of data security and privacy in connection with EHR's investment in the CyberCorps(R): Scholarships for Service (SFS) and Secure and Trustworthy Cyberspace (SaTC) programs, as well as the other aspects associated with preparation of the technical workforce for proficiency in using advanced cyberinfrastructure, which is supported by EHR's Advanced Technological Education (ATE) program. In this context, EHR is interested in supporting: (a) innovations in formal and informal educational settings that lead to the broadest participation by all learners; (b) advances in pedagogical curricular design, and introduction of research and internship opportunities; and (c) assessments of training, learning and program evaluation. Prospective PIs may wish to separately submit proposals to the EHR Core Research (ECR) program, which welcomes proposals seeking to advance basic research on the learning of challenging CI content in formal and informal settings, exploring the evaluation of models for broadening participation such as collective impact, and studying the development of the STEM professional workforce.

The Directorate for Engineering (ENG) is interested in training students, postdocs and educators in the areas of reusable, sustainable high-performance computing software tools, models and algorithms; Big Data management and analytics tools to advance research across the domain areas of ENG; fluidic processes and materials; catalysis and biocatalysis; and those supported by the Innovations at the Nexus of Food, Energy, and Water Systems (INFEWS), Understanding the Brain (UtB), and Nanoscale Science and Engineering (NSE) programs. Proposals are also invited to address training and education needs in advanced multi-scale, multi-physics computational models and simulations for engineering for natural hazards mitigation suitable for community sharing on the Natural Hazards Engineering Research Infrastructure (NHERI) cyberinfrastructure (http://designsafe-ci.org/). In support of the broader goals of this solicitation, proposals for workshops and summer institutes are encouraged; lectures, problem sessions, and hands-on activities are expected to achieve the intended impact.

The Directorate for Mathematical and Physical Sciences (MPS) is interested in supporting workshops and summer schools focused on training students and postdocs in computational methods on advanced computing architectures. High-performance computing and data analytics methods are to be introduced in the context of specific scientific applications relevant to the MPS communities. Lectures must be accompanied by problem sessions and hands-on activities on the actual machines. Online sharing of workshop materials and recorded presentations on dedicated websites is strongly encouraged.

The Directorate of Geosciences (GEO), and the Divisions of Advanced Cyberinfrastructure (ACI) and Computing and Communication Foundation (CCF) in the Directorate for Computer and Information Science and Engineering (CISE) are not highlighting specific areas in the context of this solicitation. Rather, they welcome proposals that broadly enhance the communities of CI Professionals, Contributors, and Users in consultation with the Cognizant POs.

Investments through this solicitation at the undergraduate and graduate levels complement NSF's Improving Undergraduate STEM Education (IUSE) and graduate education strategic frameworks, respectively. IUSE is NSF's 2 comprehensive, Foundation-wide framework for an integrated vision of the agency's investments in undergraduate science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education. Similarly, NSF has recently published a Strategic Framework for Investments in Graduate Education (https://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2016/nsf16074/nsf16074.pdf).

Prospective PIs contemplating submissions that primarily target communities relevant to those directorates/divisions that are not participating in this solicitation are directed to instead explore the education and workforce development programs of the respective directorates/divisions.

Cognizant Program Officer(s):

Please note that the following information is current at the time of publishing. See program website for any updates to the points of contact.

• Sushil K. Prasad, CISE/ACI, telephone: (703) 292-5059, email: sprasad@nsf.gov
• Almadena Y. Chtchelkanova, CISE/CCF, telephone: (703) 292-8910, email: achtchel@nsf.gov
• Victor P. Piotrowski, EHR/DGE, telephone: (703) 292-8670, email: vpiotrow@nsf.gov
• Ronald Joslin, ENG/CBET, telephone: (703) 292-7030, email: rjoslin@nsf.gov
• Joanne D. Culbertson, ENG/CMMI, telephone: (703) 292-4602, email: jculbert@nsf.gov Chengshan Xiao, ENG/EECS, telephone: (703) 292-4753, email: cxiao@nsf.gov
• Eva Zanzerkia, GEO, telephone: (703) 292-4734, email: ezanzerk@nsf.gov
• Bogdan Mihaila, MPS, telephone: (703) 292-8235, email: bmihaila@nsf.gov

Applicable Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number(s):

• 47.041 --- Engineering
• 47.049 --- Mathematical and Physical Sciences
• 47.050 --- Geosciences
• 47.070 --- Computer and Information Science and Engineering
• 47.076 --- Education and Human Resources

 

Award Information

Anticipated Type of Award: Standard Grant

Estimated Number of Awards: 10 to 15

Each CyberTraining award shall range from $300,000 to $500,000 per award and shall be up to 3 years in duration. The number of awards will be based on quality of proposals, availability of funds, and responsiveness to the priorities of the participating directorates/divisions.

Anticipated Funding Amount: $4,500,000

Estimated program budget, number of awards and average award size/duration are subject to the availability of funds.

 

Eligibility Information

Who May Submit Proposals:

The categories of proposers eligible to submit proposals to the National Science Foundation are identified in the Grant Proposal Guide, Chapter I, Section E.

Who May Serve as PI:

There are no restrictions or limits.

Limit on Number of Proposals per Organization:

There are no restrictions or limits.

Limit on Number of Proposals per PI or Co-PI: 1

An individual may serve as Lead Principal Investigator (PI) or Co-PI on only one proposal submitted to the CyberTraining program per annual competition. In the event that an individual exceeds this limit, proposals will be accepted based on earliest date and time of proposal submission, i.e., the first proposal will be accepted and the remainder will be returned without review. No exceptions will be made.

 

Proposal Preparation and Submission Instructions

A. Proposal Preparation Instructions

Letters of Intent: Not required

Preliminary Proposal Submission: Not required

Full Proposals:

 

B. Budgetary Information

Cost Sharing Requirements:

Inclusion of voluntary committed cost sharing is prohibited.

Indirect Cost (F&A) Limitations:

Not Applicable

Other Budgetary Limitations:

Not Applicable

 

C. Due Dates

Full Proposal Deadline(s) (due by 5 p.m. submitter's local time):

Proposal Review Information Criteria

Merit Review Criteria:

National Science Board approved criteria. Additional merit review considerations apply. Please see the full text of this solicitation for further information.

 

Award Administration Information

Award Conditions: Additional award conditions apply. Please see the full text of this solicitation for further information.

Reporting Requirements: Standard NSF reporting requirements apply.

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Source: U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF), https://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2017/nsf17507/nsf17507.pdf
This work is in the Public Domain.