U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Fraud Alert

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Office of Inspector General (OIG) are warning the public about a fraud scheme that uses social media and fake websites to steal money from individuals by offering fake HHS grants. The scammers may pose as a friend or someone from the HHS. Although the exact message may vary, the scammer will send you a fake HHS employee’s information or a link to a fraudulent HHS website, tell you that you will receive a free grant from the government and then ask you for money or personal information. More information about the scam and ways to protect yourself can be found here.

/by

NSF Dear Colleague Letter: Expanding Institutional Diversity in Support of STEM Research and Education Capacity

Proposals must be submitted in response to NSF’s Dear Colleague Letter: Expanding Institutional Diversity in Support of STEM Research and Education Capacity by June 1, 2023. “This Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) highlights types of proposals that may be submitted to the following Division of Equity for Excellence in STEM (EES) programs: Centers of Research Excellence in Science and Technology (CREST), Improving Undergraduate STEM Education: Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSI), Historically Black Colleges and Universities Undergraduate Program (HBCU-UP), HBCU-Research Infrastructure for Science and Engineering (HBCU-RISE), and Tribal Colleges and Universities Program (TCUP) to align with the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022 (Public Law. 117-167). Section 10325 (b) of this Act authorizes the Director to support innovative approaches for building research capacity in order to engage and retain students from a range of institutions and diverse backgrounds in STEM.” Read more about the DLC here.

/by

Fulbright Awareness Month 2023

The UF International Center and the UF Fulbright Lectures Committee announced that Fulbright Awareness Month (FAM) will be celebrated from March 7-31, 2023. FAM will include multiple informational sessions on the application process and will provide opportunities to hear experiences from Fulbright participants for scholars, faculty, staff, and students. Further information and registration for the events throughout March can be found here. Additionally, grants and fellowships are available in all fields of study. Please visit the Fulbright Scholar Program for Faculty to learn more. Those interested in applying for the Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program can gain more information by contacting Claire Anumba at canumba@ufic.ufl.edu.

/by

Human Subjects Indication in UFIRST Proposals

UF Research’s Division of Sponsored Programs (DSP) recently provided the following guidance for non-human studies in UFIRST. PIs, or those with first-hand knowledge of human work, are responsible for using the IRB tool to seek determination and for identifying the appropriate answers to the UFIRST Proposal SmartForms. If the work is determined to be non-human, users should attach the determination form from the IRB tool to the UFIRST internal documents and indicate the appropriate responses on the Human Subjects Page in the UFIRST Proposal SmartForms. Please direct any questions to DSP at ufproposals@ufl.edu.

/by

IES Director’s Blog Post

Mark Schneider, director of the Institute of Education Sciences (IES), shares in his blog post the new vision of IES to “Innovate in Education Sciences” and the most recent efforts to create an Advanced Research Projects Agency in Education (ARPA-ED). Without the passage of the NEED Act, which called for the creation of the National Center for Advanced Development in Education (NCADE) within IES, Dr. Schneider discusses the next possible steps utilizing current funds. The post discusses improving current programs, building programs for the future state of education research and development, staffing IES with the correct mindset captured by the Heilmeier Catechism, and influencing the field to harness the power of AI. The new innovative-focused unit of IES has been internally dubbed “BabyCADE”, with IES open to suggestions for an official new name.

/by

NSF’s Research.gov Account Management Expansion

The National Science Foundation’s (NSF) grants management system, Research.gov, recently announced an expansion in the Account Management system to include reviewers, which will streamline researcher’s profile information from several NSF systems into a single NSF account self-managed in Research.gov. For more details about the integration of reviewers into Account Management and additional training resources on the process, please click here.

/by

New Dimensions and Almetric Research Tools

UF Research recently announced new subscriptions to Digital Science’s Dimensions database and Almetric tool, which will provide greater insights into the University of Florida’s research enterprise. The tools allow individuals to track their work’s impact, seek collaborative opportunities, and understand funding trends. Dimensions is a research information platform providing access to millions of publications, datasets, patents, and policy documents. Almetric is embedded in the Dimensions search results – tracking research mentioned in online articles, documents, and social media. Visit the UF Research Databases page to learn more and access the schedule of training sessions.

/by

Revised NSF PAPPG Proposal Preparation and Award Administration FAQs

The National Science Foundation (NSF) has updated its Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) On Proposal Preparation and Award Administration Related to the NSF Proposal & Award Policies & Procedures Guide (PAPPG) (NSF 23-1). Contact the Policy Office in the Division of Institution and Award Support with any questions at policy@nsf.gov.

/by

Spring 2023 NAEP Math Assessment Item Score Prediction Challenge

The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) of the Institute of Education Sciences invites researchers and assessment practitioners to develop algorithms that predict the

scores given by human raters on open-ended items for the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) mathematics assessment for students in fourth and eighth grades. The Challenge aims to help NAEP identify effective approaches, expected levels of accuracy, and methods to ensure that automated processes do not demonstrate bias based on a student’s social context or demographic factors. The current Challenge has over $100,000 available in prizes to develop a scoring engine for assessing mathematics constructed responses. The application deadline is Monday, April 17, 2023. For more information, please visit Challenge.gov or the NAEP Math Assessment Item Score Prediction Challenge Github website.

/by

Limited William T. Grant Foundation Funding Opportunity

UF Strategic Research Development and Corporate and Foundation are promoting the William T. Grant Scholars Program, which supports career development for early-career researchers investigating ways to reduce inequality in youth outcomes or improve the use of research evidence in decisions that benefit young people ages 5-25 in the United States. Each funding cycle, four to six William T. Grant Scholars are selected and awarded $350,000 over a five-year period. The award also includes a mentoring component for further support in expanding the applicant’s expertise.

The College of Education can only submit one nomination for internal consideration. If you wish to pursue this limited funding opportunity at the college level, please submit a 2-3 page concept paper to research@coe.ufl.edu on or before Monday, April 17, 2023, at noon. The UF Research internal submission deadline is Monday, May 1, 2023. Selected nominees can work on their final proposal submissions until the William T. Grant Scholars Award deadline. Mentor and reference letters must be submitted to the William T. Grant Foundation using their online application system by Wednesday, June 14, 2023, at 3 PM EST, and applications are due on Wednesday, July 5, 2023, at 3 PM EST.

/by

NSF CISE March Newsletter

The National Science Foundation (NSF) Computer and Information Science and Engineering (CISE) newsletter for March includes announcements for upcoming workshops, meetings, and proposal reminders. The virtual CISE Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program Proposal Writing workshop will be held on Monday, April 17, 2023. Guidance and support to early career faculty members planning to apply to the NSF CAREER Program will be provided. Register here for the workshop. More information on the CAREER Program can be found here. The Spring Advisory Committee (AC) Meeting provides a forum to hear AC members discuss CISE-related topics, and activities will be held on Thursday, June 8, 2023, and Friday, June 9, 2023. The meeting agenda will be available closer to the date. Lastly, National Robotics Week runs from April 8 to April 16, 2023, and acts as a reminder for researchers interested in foundational advances in robotics to submit proposals to the Foundational Research in Robotics Program (FRR). Proposals are accepted anytime.

/by

Newly Funded Awards – March 2023

Newly Funded Awards – March 2023


Congratulations to Paige Pullen and Philip Poekert for their DHHS flow through award from Florida’s Office of Early Learning and Paige Pullen for her awards from the Early Learning Coalition of Flagler and Volusia Counties, the Consortium on Reaching Excellence in Education (CORE), Administration for Children and Families flow through award from the Louisiana Department of Education, and the Early Learning Coalition of Orange County.


Newly Funded Awards – March 2023
Principal Investigator: Paige Pullen (Lastinger Center)
Co-PI: N/A
Funding Agency: Early Learning Coalition of Flagler and Volusia Counties
Project Title: Flagler ELC CoP
Project Period: 5/1/2023 – 8/30/2023
Award Amount: $18,000
Principal Investigator: Paige Pullen (Lastinger Center)
Co-PI: Philip Poekert (Lastinger Center)
Funding Agency: Florida’s Office of Early Learning (Subcontract – DHHS Flow Through)
Project Title:  VPK Literacy 2022
Project Period: 2/16/2023 – 6/30/2023
Award Amount: $363,000
Principal Investigator:  Paige Pullen (Lastinger Center)
Co-PI: N/A
Funding Agency: 1/1/2023 – 5/31/2024
Project Title: CORE Video Project
Project Period: 1/1/2023 – 5/31/2024
Award Amount: $250,000
Principal Investigator: Paige Pullen (Lastinger Center)
Co-PI: N/A
Funding Agency: Louisiana Department of Education (Subcontract – Administration for Children and Families Flow Through)
Project Title:  Louisiana Pathways (FELLA) 2023
Project Period: 3/1/2023 – 4/30/2024
Award Amount: $155,200
Principal Investigator: Paige Pullen (Lastinger Center)
Co-PI: N/A
Funding Agency: Early Learning Coalition of Orange County
Project Title: ELC of Orange County Coaching
Project Period: 2/1/2023 – 10/31/2023
Award Amount: $79,350

/by