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National Science Foundation (NSF): Campus Cyberinfrastructure (CC*) - FY 2024

Agency: U.S. National Science Foundation
CFDA: 47.070, 47.083
Federal FON: 24-530
Office: Directorate for Computer and Information Science and Engineering Office of Advanced Cyberinfrastructure Division of Computer and Network Systems Office of Integrative Activities
Multipart Grant: No
Next Due: 10/15/2024 (Multiple)
Solicitation Date: Unknown
   
Match Required: No
Actual Funds: Unspecified
Range: $15,000,000 (Min) / $20,000,000 (Max)
Summary:

The purpose of this program is to invest in coordinated campus-level cyberinfrastructure (CI) improvements, innovation, integration, and engineering for science applications and distributed research projects. Projects that help overcome disparities in cyber-connectivity associated with geographic location, and thereby advance the geography of innovation and enable populations based in these locales to become more nationally competitive in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) research and education are particularly encouraged. Science-driven requirements are the primary motivation for any proposed activity.

Awards will be made via the following program areas:

  • Program area one: data-driven networking infrastructure: projects that address network infrastructure improvements to enable national and global high-performance end-to-end access to dynamic network services that in turn enable rapid, unimpeded movement of diverse and distributed scientific data sets and advanced computing
  • Program area two: computing and the computing continuum: projects that promote coordinated approaches in scientific computing at the campus or regional level and invest in the seeding of new and shared computing resources through investments in capacity computing; campus-level proposals from under-resourced institutions are encouraged, and strong preference will be given to proposals demonstrating a compelling need for access to campus and distributed computing resources
  • Program area three: network integration and applied innovation: projects that support end-to-end network CI through integration of existing and new technologies and applied innovation, with the goal of taking advantage of research results, prototypes, and emerging innovations to use them to enable specified researchers in a networking context
  • Program area four: data storage and digital archives: projects that promote coordinated approaches in scientific storage, data management, and digital archives  and incentivize multicampus and national resource sharing
  • Program area five: strategy: projects for strategic planning and coordination for a campus or the region

Refer to pages 5-14 of the NOFA file for additional details regarding the requirements of each program area.

All program areas, with the exception of program area three, may be campus projects or projects for the region, which will include collaborations that go beyond a single campus to target small, under-resourced institutions. Region projects should broaden participation and significantly widen the set of institutions that have access to regional and national research and education CI resources, specifically targeting groups of smaller institutions with fundamental challenges in access to resources.

For region projects, one or more meeting events should be planned, starting in year one.

All proposed projects, except projects under program area five, must include a campus CI plan within which the proposed improvements are conceived, designed, and implemented in the context of a coherent campus-wide strategy and approach to CI that is horizontally integrated.

For all projects, institutional partnerships should play a central role in developing and implementing the proposed CI.

All proposals will be expected to address the relevant cybersecurity issues and challenges related to their proposed activities. Depending on the type of proposal, these issues may include:

  • Data integrity
  • Privacy
  • Network security measures
  • Federated access and identity management
  • Infrastructure monitoring

Funded activities should represent ongoing opportunities for student engagement, education, and training. Proposals that demonstrate opportunities to engage students directly in design, deployment, operation, and advancement of the funded CI activities, consistent with the required campus CI plan, are encouraged.

Last Updated: February 27, 2024

Eligibility Notes:

Eligible applicants for all program areas are institutions of higher education. Additionally, nonprofit, non-academic organizations are eligible to apply for program areas one, two, four, and five.

For program areas one, two, and four, nonprofit, non-academic organizations may only apply for projects for the region.

For program areas one, two, three, and four, all projects must document explicit partnerships or collaborations with campus information technology (IT)/networking organizations, as well as one or more domain scientists, research groups, and educators in need of the new network capabilities.

Refer to pages 5-14 of the NOFA file for additional details regarding eligibility requirements for each program area.

Applicants for proposals for the region may form collaborations between Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) and non-EPSCoR jurisdictions, with the lead in the EPSCoR jurisdiction where feasible. Proposals from minority-serving institutions and institutions in EPSCoR-eligible jurisdictions, along with collaborations between these institutions and those in non-EPSCoR jurisdictions, are encouraged.

For proposals for the region, the lead applicant should be experienced in advanced cyberinfrastructure. Refer to page 7 of the NOFA file for additional requirements.

Collaborative proposals submitted as simultaneous submission of proposals from different organizations, with each organization requesting a separate award, are not allowed. Collaborative proposals must be submitted as a single proposal, in which a single award is being requested and subawards are administered by the lead organization. 

Collaborative proposals involving principal investigators from two or more institutions are accepted.

Grant Opportunities for Academic Liaison with Industry (GOALI) proposals must include at least one industrial co-principal investigator.

For program areas one, two, and four, past and current award recipients in these areas are ineligible to submit a proposal(s) to the same area for five years from the previous award start date. This restriction does not apply to any proposal for the region in these areas.

There are no restrictions or limits on the number of proposals that may be submitted per organization, and there are no restrictions or limits on the number of proposals that may be submitted per principal investigator (PI) or co-PI.

Eligible Applicants:
Academic Institutions
Consortia
Non Profits
Application Notes:

Proposals must be received by 5:00 p.m. applicant's local time on one of the following dates:

  • April 22, 2024
  • October 15, 2024

The first due date for the application has been extended to 5:00 p.m. applicant's local time on April 24, 2024. Additional information is included in the revised NOFA file.

Proposals must be submitted online at www.research.gov or www.ecivis.com/grants.gov.

Proposals submitted via Research.gov must include:

  • Single-copy documents
  • Cover sheet
  • Project summary (1 page max)
  • Table of contents
  • Project description (15 pages max)
  • References cited
  • Budget
  • Budget justification (5 pages max)
  • Subaward budget justification (if applicable, 5 pages max each)
  • Facilities, equipment, and other resources
  • Biographical sketches (3 pages max each)
  • Current and pending support
  • Special information and supplementary documentation

Proposals submitted via Grants.gov must include:

  • SF 424R&R cover sheet
  • Project/performance site location(s)
  • R&R other project information
  • R&R senior/key person profile (expanded)
  • R&R personal data
  • R&R funds requested budget
  • R&R subaward budget attachment(s)
  • NSF cover page
  • NSF deviation authorization (if applicable)
  • NSF suggested reviewers (if applicable)

Refer to the NSF Proposal Guide or the NSF Grants.gov Guide for additional information on proposal formatting.

In addition to standard research proposals, applicants may submit other types of proposals to this program. Refer to pages 76-93 of the NSF Proposal Guide file for additional information regarding other types of proposals.

The following are required in order to submit an application:

  • Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) number
  • SAM (System for Award Management) registration

Applicants may obtain a UEI number and verify or renew SAM registration status at www.ecivis.com/sam.

Proposals will be evaluated according to the following merit review criteria:

  • Intellectual merit
  • Broader impacts

Refer to the NOFA file, the NSF Proposal Guide, and the NSF Grants.gov Guide for additional application information.

Match Required: No
Actual Funds: Unspecified
Range: $15,000,000 (Min) / $20,000,000 (Max)
Match Notes:

Matching funds are not required for this program. Inclusion of voluntary committed cost sharing in the budget or budget justification is prohibited; however, applicants may contribute a voluntary uncommitted cost share.

Funding Notes:

Approximately $15 million to $20 million is anticipated to be available to support an estimated 32 to 55 awards through this program. Award amounts will vary according to program area, as follows:

  • Program area one: 8 to 13 awards of up to $700,000, and up to $1.4 million for region awards
  • Program area two: 8 to 16 awards of up to $700,000, and up to $1.4 million for region awards
  • Program area three: 5 to 8 awards of up to $500,000 for small proposals and up to $1 million for large proposals
  • Program area four: 7 to 10 awards of up to $700,000, and up to $1.4 million for region awards
  • Program area five: 4 to 8 awards of up to $100,000, and up to $200,000 for region awards

Project periods will span up to two years, except for strategy for the campus awards, which will have project periods of up to one year, with up to two years for region awards.

Award recipients may request no-cost extensions of project periods for 12 months if additional time is required to complete the original project scope.

Budgets must include travel funds for the project principal investigators (PIs) and other team members, as appropriate, from all collaborating institutions to attend annual PI meetings.

At least 50 percent of the project budget must be allocated to the following costs by program area:

  • Program area one: network equipment
  • Program area two: computing hardware
  • Program area four: storage equipment

For program area one, costs of nominal configurations for a data transfer node (DTN) may not exceed 15 percent of overall budgets. Computer resources may only be included in the budget if they are integrated components of the DTN platform.

Refer to pages 5-14 of the NOFA file for additional details regarding funding limitations and requirements of each program area.

For program area five, funds may not be used for equipment costs.

For program area five, strategy awards will not support primary research.

For all program areas, funds may not be used for:

  • Software license fees
  • Projects focusing on a single science domain or project use

Funds may not be used for projects addressing a single institution that are submitted as proposals for the region.

In general, funding will not support:

  • Technical assistance
  • Pilot plant efforts
  • Research requiring security classification
  • Research with disease-related goals
  • Product development for commercial marketing
  • Market research for a particular project or invention
  • Biological research on mechanisms of disease in humans, biological research to develop animal models of such conditions, or the development or testing of procedures for their treatment
  • Profit

Examples of ineligible costs include:

  • Entertainment
  • Meals and coffee breaks
  • Alcoholic beverages
  • Rental of property owned by individuals or entities affiliated with NSF award recipients for use as home office workspace
  • Procuring or obtaining the equipment, services, or systems identified in section 889 of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA)
Contacts:

(See Contact Notes)

Agency Address
National Science Foundation
2415 Eisenhower Avenue
Alexandria, VA 22314

Contact Notes:

Questions should be directed to the appropriate program contact listed on page 2 of the NOFA file.

Proposals must be submitted online at www.research.gov or www.ecivis.com/grants.gov.

The agency address provided is for reference purposes only.

Files:
NOFA File: US15482_NOFA_FY2024.pdf (889.8 Kb)
Federal Forms:
NSF Grants.gov Guide (742.4 Kb)
NSF Proposal Guide (2.9 Mb)
File Notes:

The NOFA file contains the revised full solicitation for this program. The NSF Proposal Guide and the NSF Grants.gov Guide are attached. Previous awards issued through NSF programs may be accessed online at www.nsf.gov/awardsearch.

February 27, 2024
A revised full solicitation for this program containing an announcement concerning the changing of the due date for the application has been released and attached as the NOFA file. The Application section has been updated accordingly.

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Education
Training & Vocational Services
Information Technology/Telecommunications
Science/Technology