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National Science Foundation (NSF): Tribal Colleges and Universities Program (TCUP) - FY 2025

Agency: U.S. National Science Foundation
CFDA: 47.076
Federal FON: 21-595
Office: Directorate for STEM Education Division of Equity for Excellence in STEM
Multipart Grant: No
Next Due: 09/02/2025 (Multiple)
Solicitation Date: Unknown
   
Match Required: No
Actual Funds: Unspecified
Summary:

The purpose of this program is to promote high-quality science, including sociology, psychology, anthropology, linguistics, economics/bioeconomics, statistics, and other social and behavioral sciences, as well as natural sciences, computer science, and science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education, research, and outreach. Through this program, the funding agency intends to increase native individuals' participation in STEM careers, improve the quality of STEM programs at TCUP-eligible institutions, and facilitate the development of a strong STEM enterprise in TCUP institutions' service areas.

Support is available in the following project categories:

  • Instructional capacity excellence in TCUP institutions (ICE-TI): projects that design, implement, and assess comprehensive institutional improvements in STEM education and research capacity
  • Targeted STEM infusion projects (TSIP): projects that support the attainment of a short-term, well-defined goal to improve the quality of STEM education at an eligible institution
  • TCUP for secondary and elementary teachers in STEM (TSETS): projects that provide in-service professional development in STEM disciplinary or STEM education content and/or research for K-12 STEM teachers in the relevant service area
  • TCU enterprise advancement centers (TEA centers): projects that coalesce the STEM and/or STEM education expertise into teams designed to support and promote the STEM goals, needs, aspirations, or interests of the chartering reservation or tribe
  • Cyberinfrastructure health, assistance, and improvements (CHAI): projects to upgrade the cyberinfrastructure necessary to conduct, expand, manage, and administer STEM programs of study, including research
  • Preparing for TCUP implementation (Pre-TI): projects that prepare an institution for implementation-level projects through self-studies and formulation of strategic plans for the development of STEM instructional programs of study
  • TCUP partnerships: projects that support collaborations that will improve TCUP institutions' instructional and research capacity in STEM fields supported by NSF; attract, retain, and support TCUP students in internships and research endeavors deemed to be necessary for a complete curriculum offering; and engage partner universities to provide an academic grounding and a successful transition for students who wish to study or attain degrees in STEM fields supported by the funding agency
  • Small grants for research (SGR): projects that will support faculty members in STEM or STEM education to help further faculty members' research capability and effectiveness; improve research and testing; and create and study new models and innovations in STEM teaching and learning

Applicants are also encouraged to address one or more of the following priorities:

  • Innovation in instruction and curriculum development
  • Providing access to STEM research experiences for TCUP students
  • Promoting STEM entrepreneurship and community collaborations
  • Successful advancement of students through the critical transition points between high school and college, two-year and four-year programs or institutions, undergraduate and graduate studies, and into the workforce

Project activities should result from analysis of institutional needs, address institutional and funding agency goals, and have the potential to result in significant and sustainable improvement of STEM programs.

Last Updated: June 05, 2025

Eligibility Notes:

Eligible applicants are federally recognized tribal colleges and universities, including Alaska Native-serving institutions and Native Hawaiian-serving institutions. Most TCUP-eligible institutions of higher education are two-year or community colleges.

For the purposes of this program, Alaska Native-serving institution means an institution of higher education that is an eligible institution under section 1058(b) of the Higher Education Act; and that, at the time of submission, has an undergraduate enrollment that is at least 20 percent Alaska Native students. Native Hawaiian-serving institution means an institution of higher education that is an eligible institution under section 1058(b) of the Higher Education Act, has a Carnegie classification of baccalaureate or associates college, and that, at the time of submission, has an undergraduate enrollment that is at least 10 percent Native Hawaiian students. 

Applicants for Preparing for TCUP implementation (Pre-TI) projects must be TCUP-eligible institutions of higher education that have never received TCUP support, have not received TCUP support within the previous five years, or are embarking on a significantly novel science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) strategic plan. 

For TCUP partnerships, proposals may be submitted collaboratively by a consortium of institutions, including TCUP and non-TCUP institutions. One TCUP institution must be identified to take the lead on organizational activities, although each institution will independently manage its award.

Multiple campuses of single university systems are normally encouraged to consider collaborative submissions.

Applicants may submit only one TCU enterprise advancement center (TEA Center) proposal per year, but may receive and administer concurrent awards.

There are no restrictions or limits on the number of proposals a principal investigator (PI) or co-PI may submit.

For the instructional capacity excellence in TCUP
institutions (ICE-TI), TEA centers, and TCU partnerships awards, PIs are expected to be the president, chief academic officer, another senior academic officer responsible for oversight and management of curriculum and instructional policies for the institution, or a senior STEM faculty member. Typically, the PI for targeted STEM infusion projects (TSIP) or TCUP for secondary and elementary teachers in STEM proposals (TSETS) would be a member of the STEM faculty. The PI for small grants for research (SGR) proposals should be the lead researcher and would typically be a member of the STEM or STEM education faculty. For cyberinfrastructure health, assistance, and improvements (CHAI), the PI should be a senior STEM faculty member.

Federal agencies and federally funded research and development centers (FFRDCs) are generally not eligible to apply, except under exceptional circumstances and with prior funding agency approval.

Eligible Applicants:
Academic Institutions
Consortia
Tribal Organizations/Institutions
Application Notes:

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

  • TSETS: September 2, 2025
  • TCUP Partnerships, CHAI, and Pre-TI: October 14, 2025
  • SGR: January 12, 2026
  • TSIP and ICE-TI: April 1, 2026
  • TEA centers: June 1, 2026

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
  • Senior/key personnel documents
  • Special information and supplementary documentation

Proposals submitted via Grants.gov must include:

  • SF 424 (R&R)
  • Project/performance site location(s)
  • Research and related other project information
  • Research and related budget
  • R&R subaward budget attachment(s) (if applicable)
  • NSF cover page
  • NSF senior/key person profile (expanded)
  • NSF deviation authorization (if applicable)
  • NSF list of suggested reviewers or reviewers not to include (if applicable)

Appendices will not be accepted. Refer to pages 32-33 of the NOFA file for information regarding additional application components that must be submitted with SGR proposals.

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

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
Match Notes:

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

Funding Notes:

An unspecified amount of funding is available to support an estimated 17 to 55 awards through this program, as follows:

  • Instructional capacity excellence in TCUP institutions (ICE-TI): up to six awards of up to $2.5 million
  • Targeted STEM infusion projects (TSIP): up to ten awards of up to $500,000
  • TCUP for secondary and elementary teachers in STEM (TSETS): up to five awards of up to $1.75 million
  • Small grants for research (SGR): up to ten awards of up to $200,000
  • Preparing for TCU implementation (Pre-TI): up to three awards of up to $150,000
  • TCUP partnerships: up to three awards of up to $5 million total, and up to $1 million per project, per year
  • TCU enterprise advancement centers (TEA Centers): up to eight awards of up to $3.5 million
  • Cyberinfrastructure health, assistance, and improvements (CHAI): up to ten awards of up to $250,000

The total estimated funding amount is unclear. The program officer has been contacted, and eCivis Grants Network will be updated if additional information becomes available.

The project period will vary by funding category, as follows:

  • ICE-TI, TSETS, and TCUP Partnerships: up to five years
  • TSIP: up to three years
  • TEA centers: up to five years, with the potential for renewal
  • CHAI: up to one year
  • Pre-TI and SGR: up to two years

Award recipients in the ICE-TI, TSIP, TSETS, TEA Centers, and TCUP Partnership categories must budget for their principal investigator and project director, as applicable, to attend a leaders' forum each award year.

Equipment costs may not exceed 20 percent of the total budget for SGR projects.

For first-time award recipients that elect to submit an evaluation plan, the evaluation budget should typically total no greater than $50,000.

In general, funding will not support:

  • Technical assistance
  • Pilot plant efforts
  • Research requiring security classification
  • 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
  • Payment of fees

Examples of ineligible costs include:

  • Entertainment
  • Meals and coffee breaks
  • Alcoholic beverages
  • Rental of property owned by individuals or entities affiliated with National Science Foundation (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:

Jody Chase
Program Director
(703) 292-8640
lchase@nsf.gov

Regina Sievert
Program Director
(703) 292-2808
rsievert@nsf.gov

Nicole Gass
Business Operations Specialist
(703) 292-8378
ngass@nsf.gov

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

Contact Notes:

Questions should be directed to the program staff.

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: US2608_NOFA_FY2025.pdf (575.2 Kb)
Federal Forms:
NSF Grants.gov Guide (742.4 Kb)
NSF Proposal Guide (2.4 Mb)
File Notes:

The NOFA file contains the 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.

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