NSF Revision Note: In previous years, this opportunity was not a limited submission - since 2017, now part of it is. A limit of 3 Institutional Infrastructure (II) proposals per institution was added this year.
Please note: this competition is for the Institutional Infrastructure (II) track only.
The Computer & Information Science & Engineering (CISE) Research Infrastructure (CRI) program drives discovery and learning in the core CISE disciplines of the three participating CISE divisions by supporting the creation and enhancement of world-class research infrastructure that will support focused research agendas in computer and information science and engineering. This infrastructure will enable CISE researchers to advance the frontiers of CISE research. Further, through the CRI program, CISE seeks to ensure that individuals from a diverse range of academic institutions, including minority-serving and predominantly undergraduate institutions, have access to such infrastructure.
Each Institutional Infrastructure (II) award supports the creation of new (II-NEW) CISE research infrastructure or the enhancement (IIEN) of existing CISE research infrastructure. The proposed research infrastructure must enable compelling new research opportunities for the proposing PI or team of PIs and associated students and collaborators (i.e., for individuals at the awardee and collaborating institutions). II proposals involving multiple investigators from one or more departments and/or institutions are welcome. Projects must include substantial involvement of CISE researchers and enable projects with a clear research focus related to the core CISE disciplines. II proposals that are led by or include 2-year, predominantly undergraduate, and/or minority-serving institutions are especially encouraged. II proposals may request up to $1 million total for project durations not to exceed 3 years.
Successful CISE Research Infrastructure projects often:
- Provide infrastructure that enables research with a clear intellectual focus related to the CISE core disciplines that the three participating CISE divisions support. A clear research agenda that is enabled by the implementation of the infrastructure is the central element of a successful CRI project. In particular, each CRI project demonstrates a clearly focused research agenda associated with a group of research faculty with expertise in the particular CISE sub-disciplinary focus area.
- Involve participation by a group of CISE-focused researchers and leadership by CISE discipline researchers. Projects may enable other faculty and interdisciplinary groups, but clear CISE participation, involvement, and interest in the research is essential.
- Enable innovative CISE research that is not possible without the infrastructure and that support emerging CISE research frontiers.
Award Information:
Anticipated Type of Award:
Standard Grant or Continuing Grant
Estimated Number of Awards: 25 to 30
With up to 15 Institutional Infrastructure (II) awards and up to 15 Community Infrastructure (CI) awards in each competition. The majority of the II awards will be made in the $200,000 - $750,000 range, though a small number of II awards may be made in the $750,000 - $1,000,000 range. The majority of the CI awards will be made in the $500,000 - $1,000,000 range, though a very small number of CI awards may be made in the $1,000,000 - $2,000,000 range. The majority of the Community Infrastructure Planning (CI-P) awards will be made in the $50,000 - $100,000 range.
Anticipated Funding Amount: $18,000,000 annually, subject to the availability of funds.
Interested applicants should send the following documents in sequence in one PDF (Proposal Title: Last name_NSF 17-581_2019) no later than 4:00 p.m. on the internal submission deadline:
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- Principal Investigator’s (PI's) names and departmental affiliation
- Co-PI's names and departmental affiliation(s)
- A list of possible participating organizations (if applicable)
- Proposal Title
- Project Description (no more than two pages) and identify the project scope that addresses the key aspects and elements outlined in the NSF solicitation, principal investigators, collaborators, and partner organizations.
- 2-page current NSF Bio-sketch for all PIs and Co-PIs.
Formatting Guidelines and Page Limit:
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- Font/size: Times New Roman (12 pt.)
- Document margins: 1.0” (top, bottom, left and right)
- Standard paper size (8 ½” x 11)
Questions concerning the limited submissions process may be submitted to limitedsubs@psu.edu.
Please note, as there is no limit on Community Infrastructure (CI) proposals, an internal competition will not be held for that track.