NSF 05-540: Conferences, Workshops, and Special Meetings in the Mathematical Sciences
Program Solicitation
Program Solicitation
05-540
Replaces Document(s):
NSF 00-109
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National Science Foundation |
Full Proposal Deadline(s) (due by 5 p.m. proposer's local time):
April 07, 2005
Special meetings ONLY; see section I. Submit regular proposals according to cognizant program dates.
October 18, 2005
Special meetings ONLY; see section I. Submit regular proposals according to cognizant program dates.
August 24, 2006
Special meetings ONLY; see section I. Submit regular proposals according to cognizant program dates.
August 23, 2007
Special meetings ONLY; see section I. Submit regular proposals according to cognizant program dates.
August 28, 2008
Special meetings ONLY; see section I. Submit regular proposals according to cognizant program dates.
August 27, 2009
Special meetings ONLY; see section I. Submit regular proposals according to cognizant program dates.
August 26, 2010
Special meetings ONLY; see section I. Submit regular conference proposals according to cognizant program dates.
Revision Notes
As announced on May 21, 2009, proposers must prepare and submit proposals to the National Science Foundation (NSF) using the NSF FastLane system at http://www.fastlane.nsf.gov/. This approach is being taken to support efficient Grants.gov operations during this busy workload period and in response to OMB direction guidance issued March 9, 2009. NSF will continue to post information about available funding opportunities to Grants.gov FIND and will continue to collaborate with institutions who have invested in system-to-system submission functionality as their preferred proposal submission method. NSF remains committed to the long-standing goal of streamlined grants processing and plans to provide a web services interface for those institutions that want to use their existing grants management systems to directly submit proposals to NSF.
Summary Of Program Requirements
General Information
Program Title:
Conferences, Workshops, and Special Meetings in the Mathematical Sciences
Synopsis of Program:
For conferences, workshops, and special meetings, the Division of Mathematical Sciences (DMS) invites proposals of two types: (1) regular conference, symposia, and workshop proposals, and (2) proposals for special meetings, which comprise longer-term or larger-scale activities that more widely engage and connect the mathematical sciences community, such as special research years or semesters, multi-institutional regional meetings, and "summer schools." Regular proposals are submitted to the cognizant DMS programs according to those programs' usual deadlines or target dates. These proposals normally request funding in the range of $5,000 to $25,000, although awards of up to $50,000 have occasionally been made. Their duration is normally for one year. Proposals for special meetings are submitted to the cognizant DMS programs but at the common deadline stated in this solicitation. Special meetings proposals may request funding of any amount and for durations of up to three years, but most awards are expected to be in the range of $50,000 to $150,000 per year. This is not a change in the sort of proposals that DMS is willing to accept or to fund; it is simply a reminder to the mathematical sciences research community that this opportunity is available.
Cognizant Program Officer(s):
Applicable Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number(s):
- 47.049 --- Mathematical and Physical Sciences
Award Information
Anticipated Type of Award: Standard Grant or Continuing Grant
Estimated Number of Awards: 100 to 120 About 100 regular awards and about 20 special meetings awards annually, depending on availability of funds
Anticipated Funding Amount: $4,500,000 annually, depending on availability of funds.
Eligibility Information
None Specified
None Specified
Limit on Number of Proposals per Organization:
None Specified
Limit on Number of Proposals per PI:
None Specified
Proposal Preparation and Submission Instructions
A. Proposal Preparation Instructions
- Letters of Intent: Not Applicable
- Preliminary Proposal Submission: Not Applicable
- Full Proposal Preparation Instructions: This solicitation contains information that supplements the standard NSF Proposal and Award Policies and Procedures Guide, Part I: Grant Proposal Guide (GPG) proposal preparation guidelines. Please see the full text of this solicitation for further information
B. Budgetary Information
- Cost Sharing Requirements: Cost Sharing is not required under this solicitation.
- Indirect Cost (F&A) Limitations: Not Applicable
- Other Budgetary Limitations: Not Applicable
C. Due Dates
- Full Proposal Deadline(s) (due by 5 p.m. proposer's local time):
April 07, 2005
Special meetings ONLY; see section I. Submit regular proposals according to cognizant program dates.
October 18, 2005
Special meetings ONLY; see section I. Submit regular proposals according to cognizant program dates.
August 24, 2006
Special meetings ONLY; see section I. Submit regular proposals according to cognizant program dates.
August 23, 2007
Special meetings ONLY; see section I. Submit regular proposals according to cognizant program dates.
August 28, 2008
Special meetings ONLY; see section I. Submit regular proposals according to cognizant program dates.
August 27, 2009
Special meetings ONLY; see section I. Submit regular proposals according to cognizant program dates.
August 26, 2010
Special meetings ONLY; see section I. Submit regular conference proposals according to cognizant program dates.
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: Standard NSF award conditions apply.
Reporting Requirements: Additional reporting requirements apply. Please see the full text of this solicitation for further information.
I. Introduction
For conferences, workshops, international travel, and special meetings, the Division of Mathematical Sciences (DMS) invites proposals of two types: (1) regular conference, symposia, and workshop proposals, and (2) proposals for special meetings (SM). Special meetings are longer-term or larger-scale conference-like activities that more widely engage and connect the mathematical sciences community, such as special research years or semesters, multi-institutional regional meetings, and summer schools. Regular proposals are submitted to the cognizant DMS programs according to those programs' usual deadlines or target dates. These proposals normally request funding in the range of $5,000 to $25,000, although awards of up to $50,000 have occasionally been made. Their duration is normally for a year. Proposals for special meetings are submitted to the cognizant DMS programs but at the common deadline stated elsewhere in this solicitation. Special meetings proposals may request funding of any amount and for durations of up to three years, but most awards are expected to be in the range of $50,000 to $150,000 per year.
DMS has long supported both regular conference proposals and special meetings proposals (see Section II). This solicitation points out the possibilities of both types of proposals so that the mathematical sciences community can more fully exploit the opportunities they present. Conferences and special meetings provide opportunities to widely disseminate scholarly work, to reveal and plan new directions and opportunities for research, and to engage and encourage students and junior scientists early in their careers.
The National Science Foundation is committed to strengthening and enriching the science personnel base of our nation. Organizers of research workshops, conferences, and special meetings are encouraged to contribute to fulfilling this commitment. Currently, women, minorities, and persons with disabilities are under-represented among our nation's science personnel. The Division of Mathematical Sciences expects organizers of conferences and special meetings to be attentive to these concerns. How these human resource issues are addressed in the proposal description is one of the factors used in reaching a recommendation on the proposed project. In addition, NSF requires that conferences or meetings and the facilities in which they are held must be accessible to participants with disabilities if the conferences or meetings are funded in whole or in part with NSF funds.
II. Program Description
This section describes proposals for regular conferences, symposia, and workshops as well as proposals for special meetings. Please note that proposals for special meetings must be submitted to a common deadline that is distinct from the target dates or deadlines imposed by DMS programs on the regular conference proposals that are submitted to them. Ordinarily, proposals for conferences, workshops, and symposia, and proposals for special meetings of similar size, will not receive external review.
DMS Priorities and Additional Review Criteria
Proposals for special meetings differ from regular conference, workshop, and symposia proposals in their aim at longer-term or larger-scale activities. They are intended to increase the number of mathematical scientists who participate in NSF-supported activities. For instance, they may describe semester- or year-long activities organized around a common theme, multi-institutional regional meetings, summer schools, and other forms of research connections. While ordinary conference proposals normally seek support for a single, short-term event, special meetings proposals may request longer durations, subject to the usual NSF constraints on duration. However, both regular conference proposals and special meetings proposals will be assessed in light of DMS priorities. These include:
- Breadth and diversity of participation, in order to help more mathematical scientists stay abreast of developments in the discipline.
- Involvement of students and junior investigators and of women, minorities, and persons with disabilities, in order to contribute to the development of the nation's science personnel base.
- Connection to frontiers in the mathematical sciences, to NSF research priorities, and to Federal initiatives and strategic areas, in order to advance the mathematical sciences and to strengthen the interchanges between the mathematical sciences and other science and engineering disciplines.
- Overall impact on the US mathematical sciences community.
Diversity and breadth of participation should be understood as applying to institutions as well as to individuals. In particular, it includes those institutions and individuals who do not have other Federal support.
As a consequence, all proposals must:
- Offer a strong scientific reason for the proposed activity. It is permissible that a conference coincide with a personal or community anniversary or an occasion honoring an individual's contributions, but such a coincidence is not a scientific reason.
- Distinguish the planned activity from other conferences and special meetings. The more similar meetings there are in a given time, the smaller the chances are for funding.
- Devote substantial funds to support participation by individuals who do not have other Federal support, and to students, postdocs, women, minorities, and persons with disabilities.
- Describe plans to attract and involve a diversity of participants, both individuals and institutions.
- Include a session devoted to discussion of where the field is going, what the outstanding problems are -- a forward-looking discussion rather than a review of past accomplishments. This session is intended to give some perspective of the area and its opportunities.
- Describe plans for disseminating results of the conference or special meeting. These may include proceedings, web sites, special articles in various publications, special issues of journals. Particular attention should be given to reports of the forward-looking session. Such steps broaden the impact of the conference or special meeting.
This required information will answer the following questions:
- What is the purpose of this activity? How is it different from others?
- What is the scientific focus? Why is this topic timely and important?
- For special meetings, what are the planned activities?
- Who will be involved? If there is an organizing committee, who are its members? If there is a management team, who are its members? If multiple institutions are involved, what is the overall management plan? Who are the planned senior participants (e.g., invited speakers, session directors)? How will participants be recruited and chosen? How will the activity be widely advertised to appropriate communities, so that broad participation can be achieved? What steps will be taken to ensure diversity (gender, ethnicity, institutional, geographical, and so on)?
- Where and when will the activity be held? What facilities will be used? For multiple sites, describe them.
- What steps will be taken to disseminate the results of the activity?
The criterion of overall impact on the US mathematical sciences community will be paramount in making decisions among otherwise equally meritorious proposals submitted in response to this solicitation.
Conferences/Workshops/Symposia
The Division of Mathematical Sciences supports a variety of conferences, workshops, and related activities that are submitted as proposals from principal investigators. These activities will be supported only if equivalent results cannot be obtained at regular meetings of the professional societies. Proposals for these activities ordinarily originate with educational institutions or professional scientific societies. Typical awards range between $5,000 and $50,000, with most awards in the $10,000-$20,000 range. Grant durations are usually no more than one year. Proposals must follow the general format of the latest version of the Grant Proposal Guide (GPG) and be submitted through FastLane.
For conference, workshop, and symposia proposals, most funds are expected to be devoted to the support of participants who have no other Federal support and to participants who are students, postdocs, women, minorities, or persons with disabilities.
Proposals for regular conferences and workshops should be submitted in accord with cognizant program dates, which may vary from program to program. Programs typically expect proposals to be submitted 8 to 12 months before the date of the proposed activity, although shorter lead times may be possible in some cases. See the DMS Homepage for programs' conference target dates or deadlines and for contact information for cognizant program officers.
Historically, about 100 conferences have been supported each year under these guidelines. These conferences varied widely in size and scope, as did the amounts of the awards.
International Travel
Requests for international travel by groups of mathematical scientists ordinarily originate with educational institutions or professional scientific societies. Shared support by several federal agencies, states, or private organizations is permissible and encouraged. The Division of Mathematical Sciences supports individual requests for international travel as part of regular research proposals, and will not consider separate proposals for support of an individual's international travel.
Proposals for international travel should be submitted in accord with cognizant program dates, which may vary from program to program. Programs typically expect that an international travel proposal will be submitted at least 12 months before the intended travel is to occur, in order that sufficient time is available to make travel plans if a grant is awarded. A shorter lead time may make an award to an otherwise meritorious proposal impossible. See the DMS Homepage for programs' target dates or deadlines and for contact information for cognizant program officers.
The proposal must discuss the scientific merits of the activity for which travel funds are requested, how the availability of travel funds would be announced, how the funds would be allocated, and who would make the allocation decisions. The remaining content of the proposal should conform to that of a conference proposal with the obvious modifications, especially in the budget.
In addition to the NSF merit review criteria, the proposal will be evaluated on the basis of how well it meets DMS priorities described above. Of particular importance is the potential impact that the proposed travel will have on the nation's science personnel base, especially with regard to recent doctoral recipients, students, women, minorities, and persons with disabilities.
In general, funding to support participation in conferences held abroad has been limited. Historically, relatively few requests for group travel to international conferences or meetings have been funded per year. Other opportunities for cooperation between US mathematical scientists and those of other countries are provided by the Office of International Science and Engineering (OISE) at NSF. For additional detailed information, consult the OISE homepage. See also Section IX of this solicitation.
Special Meetings
Special meetings are intended to substantially increase the number of participants from the mathematical sciences community in NSF-supported activities. Hence proposals that involve multiple institutions are explicitly encouraged.
DMS supports a variety of special meetings that are submitted as proposals from principal investigators. Proposals for these activities ordinarily originate with educational institutions. Typical awards range between $50,000 and $150,000 per year, though requests may be for any amount and both smaller and larger awards have been made. Grant durations may be for up to three years. Proposals must follow the general format of the latest version of the Grant Proposal Guide (GPG) and be submitted through FastLane.
Proposals for special meetings must be submitted at least 9 months in advance of the proposed starting date; earlier submission is better. Proposals must be submitted by the deadlines listed elsewhere (in 2005, this is the first Thursday in April and third Tuesday in October; in following years it is the fourth Thursday in August). It is advisable to discuss special meetings proposals with the appropriate program officer before submission. See contact information listed on the DMS Homepage.
The proposal contents, evaluation criteria, and priorities are the same as those listed for ordinary research conferences, symposia, and workshops. Proposals for special meetings should begin their titles with the phrase "SM:" or "Special meeting:" in order to expedite the orderly review of these proposals.
Investigators should take special care to justify budget items. Salary support and honoraria for participants are not allowed in special meetings proposals. Other costs not related to participant support or dissemination of project results are unlikely to be allowed. Historically, several special meetings have been supported each year. The size of the award depends upon the scope of the activities. Special meetings often include a research conference or workshop that involves individuals who are not participants in the longer-term activities of the project; this can be valuable for broadening the scientific impact of the project and extending its reach into the mathematical sciences community.
III. Award Information
Under this solicitation, DMS anticipates funding about 100 regular conference proposals annually in the range of $5,000 to $50,000, with most in the range of $10,000 to $20,000. DMS also anticipates funding about 20 special meetings annually in the range of $50,000 to $150,000 per year. As with all NSF programs, the number and size of awards depend on the availability of funds.
IV. Eligibility Information
The categories of proposers eligible to submit proposals to the National Science Foundation are identified in the Grant Proposal Guide, Chapter I, Section E.
None Specified
None Specified
Limit on Number of Proposals per Organization:
None Specified
Limit on Number of Proposals per PI:
None Specified
V. Proposal Preparation And Submission Instructions
A. Proposal Preparation Instructions
Full Proposal Instructions: Proposals submitted in response to this program solicitation should be prepared and submitted in accordance with the guidelines specified in the NSF Grant Proposal Guide (GPG). The complete text of the GPG is available electronically on the NSF website at: https://www.nsf.gov/publications/pub_summ.jsp?ods_key=gpg. Paper copies of the GPG may be obtained from the NSF Publications Clearinghouse, telephone (703) 292-PUBS (7827) or by e-mail from nsfpubs@nsf.gov.
This solicitation contains information that supplements the standard Grant Proposal Guide (GPG) proposal preparation guidelines. Investigators are directed to pay particular attention to the contents of DMS Priorities and Additional Review Criteria in Section II. Proposals that do not provide the necessary information will be returned without review. Proposals for special meetings should begin their titles with the phrase "SM:" or "Special meeting:" in order to expedite the orderly review of these proposals.
Proposers are reminded to identify the program solicitation number (Populated with NSF Number at Clearance) in the program solicitation block on the NSF Cover Sheet For Proposal to the National Science Foundation. Compliance with this requirement is critical to determining the relevant proposal processing guidelines. Failure to submit this information may delay processing.
B. Budgetary Information
Cost Sharing: Cost sharing is not required under this solicitation.
C. Due Dates
- Full Proposal Deadline(s) (due by 5 p.m. proposer's local time):
April 07, 2005
Special meetings ONLY; see section I. Submit regular proposals according to cognizant program dates.
October 18, 2005
Special meetings ONLY; see section I. Submit regular proposals according to cognizant program dates.
August 24, 2006
Special meetings ONLY; see section I. Submit regular proposals according to cognizant program dates.
August 23, 2007
Special meetings ONLY; see section I. Submit regular proposals according to cognizant program dates.
August 28, 2008
Special meetings ONLY; see section I. Submit regular proposals according to cognizant program dates.
August 27, 2009
Special meetings ONLY; see section I. Submit regular proposals according to cognizant program dates.
August 26, 2010
Special meetings ONLY; see section I. Submit regular conference proposals according to cognizant program dates.
Regular conference, symposia, and workshop proposals must be submitted to the cognizant programs in accord with the programs' target dates or deadlines for conference proposals. Proposals for special meetings must be submitted to the cognizant programs AT THE COMMON DEADLINE listed above; such proposals would normally be submitted more than nine months before the date of the proposed activities. Proposals must be submitted through FastLane and must comply with the requirements of the Grant Proposal Guide.
D. FastLane Requirements
Proposers are required to prepare and submit all proposals for this program solicitation through use of the NSF FastLane system. Detailed instructions regarding the technical aspects of proposal preparation and submission via FastLane are available at: http://www.fastlane.nsf.gov/a1/newstan.htm. For FastLane user support, call the FastLane Help Desk at 1-800-673-6188 or e-mail fastlane@nsf.gov. The FastLane Help Desk answers general technical questions related to the use of the FastLane system. Specific questions related to this program solicitation should be referred to the NSF program staff contact(s) listed in Section VIII of this funding opportunity.
Submission of Electronically Signed Cover Sheets. The Authorized Organizational Representative (AOR) must electronically sign the proposal Cover Sheet to submit the required proposal certifications (see Chapter II, Section C of the Grant Proposal Guide for a listing of the certifications). The AOR must provide the required electronic certifications within five working days following the electronic submission of the proposal. Further instructions regarding this process are available on the FastLane Website at: https://www.fastlane.nsf.gov/fastlane.jsp.
VI. NSF Proposal Processing And Review Procedures
Proposals received by NSF are assigned to the appropriate NSF program where they will be reviewed if they meet NSF proposal preparation requirements. All proposals are carefully reviewed by a scientist, engineer, or educator serving as an NSF Program Officer, and usually by three to ten other persons outside NSF who are experts in the particular fields represented by the proposal. These reviewers are selected by Program Officers charged with the oversight of the review process. Proposers are invited to suggest names of persons they believe are especially well qualified to review the proposal and/or persons they would prefer not review the proposal. These suggestions may serve as one source in the reviewer selection process at the Program Officer's discretion. Submission of such names, however, is optional. Care is taken to ensure that reviewers have no conflicts of interest with the proposal.
A. NSF Merit Review CriteriaAll NSF proposals are evaluated through use of the two National Science Board (NSB)-approved merit review criteria: intellectual merit and the broader impacts of the proposed effort. In some instances, however, NSF will employ additional criteria as required to highlight the specific objectives of certain programs and activities.
The two NSB-approved merit review criteria are listed below. The criteria include considerations that help define them. These considerations are suggestions and not all will apply to any given proposal. While proposers must address both merit review criteria, reviewers will be asked to address only those considerations that are relevant to the proposal being considered and for which the reviewer is qualified to make judgements.
How important is the proposed activity to advancing knowledge and understanding within its own field or across different fields? How well qualified is the proposer (individual or team) to conduct the project? (If appropriate, the reviewer will comment on the quality of the prior work.) To what extent does the proposed activity suggest and explore creative, original, or potentially transformative concepts? How well conceived and organized is the proposed activity? Is there sufficient access to resources?
How well does the activity advance discovery and understanding while promoting teaching, training, and learning? How well does the proposed activity broaden the participation of underrepresented groups (e.g., gender, ethnicity, disability, geographic, etc.)? To what extent will it enhance the infrastructure for research and education, such as facilities, instrumentation, networks, and partnerships? Will the results be disseminated broadly to enhance scientific and technological understanding? What may be the benefits of the proposed activity to society?
Examples illustrating activities likely to demonstrate broader impacts are available electronically on the NSF website at: https://www.nsf.gov/pubs/gpg/broaderimpacts.pdf.
Mentoring activities provided to postdoctoral researchers supported on the project, as described in a one-page supplementary document, will be evaluated under the Broader Impacts criterion.
NSF staff also will give careful consideration to the following in making funding decisions:
One of the principal strategies in support of NSF's goals is to foster integration of research and education through the programs, projects, and activities it supports at academic and research institutions. These institutions provide abundant opportunities where individuals may concurrently assume responsibilities as researchers, educators, and students and where all can engage in joint efforts that infuse education with the excitement of discovery and enrich research through the diversity of learning perspectives.
Broadening opportunities and enabling the participation of all citizens -- women and men, underrepresented minorities, and persons with disabilities -- is essential to the health and vitality of science and engineering. NSF is committed to this principle of diversity and deems it central to the programs, projects, and activities it considers and supports.
Additional Review Criteria:
In decisions about proposals submitted for this solicitation, DMS program officers will consider carefully how well proposals meet the DMS Priorities and Additional Review Criteria described in Section II. These are:
Diversity and breadth of participation by individuals and institutions.
Involvement of participants from under-represented groups and of students and junior investigators.
Connection to frontiers of mathematical sciences and between mathematical sciences and other science and engineering disciplines.
Overall impact on the US mathematical sciences community.
B. Review and Selection Process
Proposals submitted in response to this program solicitation will be reviewed by Decisions about conference and workshop proposals and special meeting proposals of similar size are.
Proposals may be evaluated by panel review, external mail review, or internal review.
Reviewers will be asked to formulate a recommendation to either support or decline each proposal. The Program Officer assigned to manage the proposal's review will consider the advice of reviewers and will formulate a recommendation.
After scientific, technical and programmatic review and consideration of appropriate factors, the NSF Program Officer recommends to the cognizant Division Director whether the proposal should be declined or recommended for award. NSF is striving to be able to tell applicants whether their proposals have been declined or recommended for funding within six months. The time interval begins on the deadline or target date, or receipt date, whichever is later. The interval ends when the Division Director accepts the Program Officer's recommendation.
A summary rating and accompanying narrative will be completed and submitted by each reviewer. In all cases, reviews are treated as confidential documents. Verbatim copies of reviews, excluding the names of the reviewers, are sent to the Principal Investigator/Project Director by the Program Officer. In addition, the proposer will receive an explanation of the decision to award or decline funding.
In all cases, after programmatic approval has been obtained, the proposals recommended for funding will be forwarded to the Division of Grants and Agreements for review of business, financial, and policy implications and the processing and issuance of a grant or other agreement. Proposers are cautioned that only a Grants and Agreements Officer may make commitments, obligations or awards on behalf of NSF or authorize the expenditure of funds. No commitment on the part of NSF should be inferred from technical or budgetary discussions with a NSF Program Officer. A Principal Investigator or organization that makes financial or personnel commitments in the absence of a grant or cooperative agreement signed by the NSF Grants and Agreements Officer does so at their own risk.
VII. Award Administration Information
A. Notification of the Award
Notification of the award is made to the submitting organization by a Grants Officer in the Division of Grants and Agreements. Organizations whose proposals are declined will be advised as promptly as possible by the cognizant NSF Program administering the program. Verbatim copies of reviews, not including the identity of the reviewer, will be provided automatically to the Principal Investigator. (See Section VI.B. for additional information on the review process.)
B. Award Conditions
An NSF award consists of: (1) the award letter, which includes any special provisions applicable to the award and any numbered amendments thereto; (2) the budget, which indicates the amounts, by categories of expense, on which NSF has based its support (or otherwise communicates any specific approvals or disapprovals of proposed expenditures); (3) the proposal referenced in the award letter; (4) the applicable award conditions, such as Grant General Conditions (GC-1); * or Research Terms and Conditions * and (5) any announcement or other NSF issuance that may be incorporated by reference in the award letter. Cooperative agreements also are administered in accordance with NSF Cooperative Agreement Financial and Administrative Terms and Conditions (CA-FATC) and the applicable Programmatic Terms and Conditions. NSF awards are electronically signed by an NSF Grants and Agreements Officer and transmitted electronically to the organization via e-mail.
*These documents may be accessed electronically on NSF's Website at https://www.nsf.gov/awards/managing/award_conditions.jsp?org=NSF. Paper copies may be obtained from the NSF Publications Clearinghouse, telephone (703) 292-7827 or by e-mail from nsfpubs@nsf.gov.
More comprehensive information on NSF Award Conditions and other important information on the administration of NSF awards is contained in the NSF Award & Administration Guide (AAG) Chapter II, available electronically on the NSF Website at https://www.nsf.gov/publications/pub_summ.jsp?ods_key=aag.
C. Reporting Requirements
For all multi-year grants (including both standard and continuing grants), the Principal Investigator must submit an annual project report to the cognizant Program Officer at least 90 days before the end of the current budget period. (Some programs or awards require more frequent project reports). Within 90 days after expiration of a grant, the PI also is required to submit a final project report.
Failure to provide the required annual or final project reports will delay NSF review and processing of any future funding increments as well as any pending proposals for that PI. PIs should examine the formats of the required reports in advance to assure availability of required data.
PIs are required to use NSF's electronic project-reporting system, available through FastLane, for preparation and submission of annual and final project reports. Such reports provide information on activities and findings, project participants (individual and organizational) publications; and, other specific products and contributions. PIs will not be required to re-enter information previously provided, either with a proposal or in earlier updates using the electronic system. Submission of the report via FastLane constitutes certification by the PI that the contents of the report are accurate and complete.
Investigators are reminded to include with their final reports lists of participants, brief reports of the forward-looking sessions, and a statement about steps taken to disseminate the results of their conferences, workshops, symposia, or special meetings. For projects of more than a year's duration, annual reports should include these items also; they are significant measures of how effectively the project is meeting DMS priorities.
VIII. Agency Contacts
General inquiries regarding this program should be made to:
For questions related to the use of FastLane, contact:
- FastLane Help Desk, telephone: 1-800-673-6188; e-mail: fastlane@nsf.gov.
-
, telephone: (800) 673-6188, email: fastlane@nsf.gov
Appropriate Program Officer (see https://www.nsf.gov/staff/staff_list.jsp?org=DMS&from_org=DMS
IX. Other Information
The NSF Website provides the most comprehensive source of information on NSF Directorates (including contact information), programs and funding opportunities. Use of this Website by potential proposers is strongly encouraged. In addition, National Science Foundation Update is a free e-mail subscription service designed to keep potential proposers and other interested parties apprised of new NSF funding opportunities and publications, important changes in proposal and award policies and procedures, and upcoming NSF Regional Grants Conferences. Subscribers are informed through e-mail when new publications are issued that match their identified interests. Users can subscribe to this service by clicking the "Get NSF Updates by Email" link on the NSF web site.
Grants.gov provides an additional electronic capability to search for Federal government-wide grant opportunities. NSF funding opportunities may be accessed via this new mechanism. Further information on Grants.gov may be obtained at http://www.grants.gov.
About The National Science Foundation
The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent Federal agency created by the National Science Foundation Act of 1950, as amended (42 USC 1861-75). The Act states the purpose of the NSF is "to promote the progress of science; [and] to advance the national health, prosperity, and welfare by supporting research and education in all fields of science and engineering."
NSF funds research and education in most fields of science and engineering. It does this through grants and cooperative agreements to more than 2,000 colleges, universities, K-12 school systems, businesses, informal science organizations and other research organizations throughout the US. The Foundation accounts for about one-fourth of Federal support to academic institutions for basic research.
NSF receives approximately 40,000 proposals each year for research, education and training projects, of which approximately 11,000 are funded. In addition, the Foundation receives several thousand applications for graduate and postdoctoral fellowships. The agency operates no laboratories itself but does support National Research Centers, user facilities, certain oceanographic vessels and Antarctic research stations. The Foundation also supports cooperative research between universities and industry, US participation in international scientific and engineering efforts, and educational activities at every academic level.
Facilitation Awards for Scientists and Engineers with Disabilities provide funding for special assistance or equipment to enable persons with disabilities to work on NSF-supported projects. See Grant Proposal Guide Chapter II, Section D.2 for instructions regarding preparation of these types of proposals.
The National Science Foundation has Telephonic Device for the Deaf (TDD) and Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) capabilities that enable individuals with hearing impairments to communicate with the Foundation about NSF programs, employment or general information. TDD may be accessed at (703) 292-5090 and (800) 281-8749, FIRS at (800) 877-8339.
The National Science Foundation Information Center may be reached at (703) 292-5111.
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 https://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; and 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 proposer 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 or other entities needing information regarding applicants or nominees as part of a joint application review process, or in order to coordinate programs or policy; 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," 69 Federal Register 26410 (May 12, 2004), and NSF-51, "Reviewer/Proposal File and Associated Records, " 69 Federal Register 26410 (May 12, 2004). 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 Office of Management and Budget (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 the burden estimate and any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to:
Suzanne H. Plimpton
Reports Clearance Officer
Division of Administrative Services
National Science Foundation
Arlington, VA 22230
