Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) Workshop Opportunities | Apply Online

Opportunity Summary:

The National Science Foundation (NSF) Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) Workshop Opportunities (Funding Opportunity Number 12-588) is a discretionary grant program meant to help broaden and strengthen the national research enterprise by supporting EPSCoR jurisdictions that have historically received lower levels of NSF research and development funding. EPSCoR is structured around the idea that building durable research capacity in underrepresented jurisdictions improves the country overall by expanding where high-quality science and engineering can thrive. To do that, NSF EPSCoR encourages partnerships across state and territorial government, higher education, and industry that can produce lasting improvements in research infrastructure, research and development capacity, and long-term competitiveness for NSF funding.

This specific opportunity invites unsolicited workshop proposals from EPSCoR jurisdictions for gatherings that involve the EPSCoR community and that are designed to spark new ideas and collaborations. The workshops are expected to emphasize innovative approaches to multi-jurisdictional efforts, meaning activities that intentionally connect participants across multiple EPSCoR states or territories rather than focusing on a single local issue. NSF highlights that the workshop themes should be relevant at a regional-to-national scale and should align clearly with EPSCoR goals and the broader NSF mission of advancing scientific progress. In practical terms, these workshops are meant to be catalysts: they should convene the right mix of people, define shared research or capacity-building challenges, and help establish coordinated directions that can lead to stronger, more competitive research efforts across participating jurisdictions.

Eligibility is limited in a very specific way. Only jurisdictions that currently participate in EPSCoR may submit and lead workshop proposals. While non-EPSCoR institutions and individuals are allowed, and even encouraged, to participate as collaborators in workshop activities, they cannot be the lead proposers and they cannot receive NSF EPSCoR funds through this mechanism. The opportunity also notes that jurisdictions newly eligible for EPSCoR must first receive a planning grant before they can submit proposals to EPSCoR programs, which signals NSF’s expectation that new participants have foundational coordination and readiness in place before pursuing workshop funding.

From a funding and timing perspective, NSF indicates an estimated total program funding level of $500,000, with an award floor of $100,000. There is no cost sharing or matching requirement, which lowers the barrier for participation and allows jurisdictions to propose workshops based on need and impact rather than on the ability to provide matching funds. Proposals are accepted at any time (with submissions due by 5 p.m. local time), making this a rolling opportunity rather than a single fixed deadline competition. The original closing date listed is September 30, 2016, but the notice also states that proposals are accepted anytime, so applicants would need to confirm the current status and details via the linked NSF publication (NSF 12-588) and current NSF guidance.

The opportunity is categorized broadly under science and technology and other research and development, and it references a wide range of NSF CFDA program areas, including engineering, mathematics and physical sciences, geosciences, computer and information science and engineering, biological sciences, social, behavioral and economic sciences, education and human resources, and international science and engineering. That breadth is important because it signals that the workshops are not limited to one discipline; instead, they can be aligned with many scientific and educational domains as long as they support EPSCoR’s capacity-building and competitiveness goals and address issues of broader relevance.

For applicants needing help accessing the announcement, the listing provides NSF Grants.gov support contact information (grantsgovsupport@nsf.gov). For the definitive requirements, submission instructions, and any updated conditions, applicants are directed to the NSF publication associated with this opportunity (NSF 12-588).

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