U.S. ED Offers Webinar to Encourage Education Innovation and Research Grant Proposals
The U.S. Department of Education (U.S. ED) has used a competitive preference priority to encourage the development of Education Innovation and Research (EIR) STEM and computer science (CS) early-phase grant proposals. The EIR program was formerly known as Investing in Innovation or i3. This webinar, New Frontiers in K-12 Computer Science Education, features the EIR program officer and several EIR CS grantees.
December 10, 2020
1:30 pm – 3:00 pm ET
Register: HERE
IES NCER Launches New Webpage: Letters from the Commissioner
The Institute of Education Sciences (IES) National Center for Education Research (NCER) has launched a new webpage Letters from the Commissioner highlighting updates from the center. The first letter, NCER by the Numbers (FY 2020), provides a recap of NCER accomplishments during FY 2020.
GSA Extends Deadline for Transition to Unique Entity Identifier
The General Services Administration (GSA) has extended the deadline to April 2022 for completing the transition from the Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number to the new Unique Entity Identifier (UEI). Grants.gov will continue to prepare the system to accept the new applicant UEIs when they become available.
Reminder: Go to IRB’s Website for the Most Current Documents and Templates
To ensure you are using the most current documents and templates, download the latest files from the UF IRB website. The IRB has made minor administrative updates to consent templates.
UFIT Announces Timeline for HiPerGator 3.0
UFIT Research Computing has issued an end-of-semester update on the build of HiPerGator 3.0. The first 12 (of a total of 44) racks for HiPerGator AI, the NVIDIA DGX A100 SuperPOD, have arrived. The remaining 32 racks will arrive this month. Staff from Lenovo and NVIDIA are working with UFIT to complete the installation and configuration of this extremely complex system. HiPerGator 3.0 will be available in May 2021.
Awarded Projects for November 2020
Congratulations to Michelina MacDonald for her award from the National Education Association Foundation; Jennifer Park-Jadotte for her subcontract award U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Flow Through from Florida’s Office of Early Learning; and Paige Pullen and Philip Poekert for their subcontract award South Carolina Department of Education Flow Through from Charleston County School District.
For more details, see the Awarded Projects table.
Submitted Projects for November 2020
Best wishes to Benjamin Lok, Pasha Antonenko, and Srinivasa Vaddiparti Ananth for their proposal to the National Science Foundation; Kent Crippen, Bruce Carroll, and Tracy Johns for their proposal to the National Science Foundation; Lynda Hayes for her proposal to the Florida Department of Education; Jennifer Park-Jadotte for her proposal to the YMCA of San Diego County; Philip Poekert, Taryn Brown, and Chonika Coleman King for their proposal to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation; Sabine Grunwald, Ana Puig, Samuel Smidt, and Monika Ardelt their proposal to the National Science Foundation; Paige Pullen and Catherine Cavanaugh for their proposal to the Consortium on Reaching Excellence in Education; Paige Pullen and Catherine Cavanaugh for their proposal to McGraw Hill Education; Christopher Redding for his proposal to the Spencer Foundation; Philip Feng, Wanli Xing, Swarup Bhunia, and Jing Guo for their proposal to the National Science Foundation; and Wanli Xing for his subcontract proposal Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation Flow Through from Texas Tech University.
For more details, see the Submitted Projects table.
From the IES Director: Introducing Operation Reverse the Loss
In a recent blog, Institute of Education Sciences (IES) Director Mark Schneider discusses the education crisis due to COVID-19 and presents preliminary ideas for a new initiative with the working title of Operation Reverse the Loss. This effort aims to speed up the mechanisms IES uses to identify, scale, and verify the effectiveness of interventions that show promise in reversing learning loss for students at greatest risk.
Core components of Operation Reverse the Loss:
- Understand conditions on the ground by conducting School Pulse surveys modeled after the U.S. Census.
- Encourage small businesses to provide schools with innovative learning solutions by releasing Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) applications in early December.
- Grow the body of research with the greatest potential to reverse learning loss by focusing substantial funding on a few instructional practices with the strongest claims to effectiveness. An “off-cycle” RFA will systematically support rapid testing of interventions likely requiring researchers to increase their use of platforms and other tech-based delivery systems for rapid-cycle, targeted tests, and replications of interventions.
From the IES Director: Res ipsa loquitur
In a recent blog, Institute of Education Sciences (IES) Director Mark Schneider points to the Latin phrase res ipsa loquitur meaning “the thing speaks for itself.” This phrase came to mind as he reviewed the final set of results from the national 2019 reading and math assessments. The results were devastating—even more so because they mirrored the findings from 4th and 8th grade reading and math released earlier this year.
U.S. Department of Education Provides Link to Webinar: Federal STEM Education Strategic Plan 2 Years Later
In 2018, the federal government released its 5-year STEM Education Strategic Plan, Charting a Course for Success: America’s Strategy for STEM Education. In this webinar, senior federal officials from the U.S. ED, NASA, NSF, and DoD highlight the accomplishments in implementing the plan across the nation over the last 2 years.
View the webinar here: https://edstream.ed.gov/webcast/Play/f3fa61ddc9eb4ff9b31407079394b1901d
The webinar will be archived soon along with the slides at https://www.ed.gov/stem.
NIH Releases New Policy for Data Management and Sharing
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has released its Final NIH Policy for Data Management and Sharing representing a commitment to share and make broadly available the results of publicly funded research. The new requirements were formed over many years with feedback from numerous stakeholders throughout the process.
The new final policy applies to all research funded or conducted by NIH that results in the generation of scientific data. NIH is providing a 2-year implementation period, and the final policy goes into effect on January 25, 2023. The current NIH Data Sharing policy, in effect since 2003, remains in effect until January 24, 2023.
eRA Commons Provides New Features to Just-in-Time Screen
eRA Commons has enhanced the Just-in-Time screen to provide new features such as large color-coded buttons to upload, delete, or view attachments and a new navigation bar. The apps icon, when clicked, will provide a dropdown menu of eRA modules. Enhanced features also include new real-time validations and save confirmation.
UF IRB Provides Updates on Electronic Informed Consent Forms (eIC or eConsent) and Telephonic Consent
The research community is showing increasing interest in using electronic media to supplement or replace paper-based informed consent processes. An eIC may be used to provide information usually contained within the written informed consent document, evaluate the subject’s comprehension of the information presented, and document the consent of the subject or the subject’s legally authorized representative (LAR). The UF IRB has approved the REDCap version of the eIC process, and confirmed that it meets all local and federal consenting requirements. If you wish to use REDCap as your eIC option, please review our Electronic Informed Consent Forms – eIC Guideline.
The IRB must approve the use of telephonic consent as part of your routine consenting process. Unanticipated telephone consent may be allowed for certain situations, but if you perceive the need for a telephone consent process as a standard part of your research, you will need to submit a revision to your study. For more information and telephonic consent procedures, please review the IRB’s Telephonic Consent Guideline. Please also review the IRB’s Telephone Script for Recruiting Subjects Guideline as typically, a script is required when using telephonic consent.
Research Projects Card Debuts in ONE.UF
UF faculty can now quickly access valuable information about their research projects — such as the end date and how much of their budget remains — on their smartphones, tablets, or desktops through the ONE.UF electronic portal.
David Norton, UF’s vice president for research, said the Research Projects card is a good example of how UF Research is working to reduce the administrative burden on faculty as they manage their research projects.
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