Partnerships for Innovation | Apply Online

Opportunity Summary:

The National Science Foundation (NSF) Partnerships for Innovation (PFI) grant opportunity (Funding Opportunity Number 08-583) is a discretionary, grant-based program designed to help move knowledge and discoveries from the research and education ecosystem into real-world innovations with measurable economic and societal impact. At its core, the program is trying to close the gap between what universities and colleges create through research and education and what communities, companies, and public agencies need to build new products, services, industries, and jobs. NSF frames this as strengthening local, regional, and national economies while also improving overall national well-being.

PFI is organized around three main goals. First, it aims to stimulate the transformation of research and educational outcomes into innovations that create new wealth and reinforce economic competitiveness. This means the program is not just interested in scientific progress in the abstract; it is explicitly oriented toward practical pathways that convert ideas into deployable solutions, commercial activity, and broader economic value. Second, it seeks to broaden participation across different types of academic institutions and across all citizens, with an emphasis on meeting diverse workforce needs in the national innovation enterprise. In practice, this signals interest in partnerships and project designs that expand who gets access to innovation-focused opportunities and who is prepared to fill emerging technical and innovation-related roles. Third, the program intends to catalyze or strengthen the long-term enabling infrastructure required to support innovation sustainably. That infrastructure can include institutional systems, partnership models, technology commercialization supports, workforce pipelines, or other durable capacities that help innovation continue after the award ends.

A defining feature of the opportunity is its focus on partnerships rather than isolated projects. NSF expected to support roughly 12 to 15 awards that bring together academe, the private sector, and state, local, or federal government participants to explore and test new approaches for sustaining innovation. The emphasis on exploring "new approaches" suggests the program values experimentation with models for collaboration, translation, and innovation capacity-building, rather than simply funding routine research activities. These partnerships are positioned as a way to generate and validate ideas about how innovation can be supported more effectively, with an eye toward solutions that can be replicated or adapted elsewhere.

From a funding standpoint, the opportunity listed an estimated total funding amount of $9.5 million, with an award ceiling of $600,000 per grant. There was no cost sharing or matching requirement stated, which lowers a common barrier to participation and can make it more feasible for institutions to propose ambitious partnership structures without needing to secure formal matching funds. The funding activity category is Science and Technology and other Research and Development, and the CFDA numbers span a wide range of NSF directorates and programs, including Engineering; Mathematical and Physical Sciences; Geosciences; Computer and Information Science and Engineering; Biological Sciences; Social, Behavioral, and Economic Sciences; Education and Human Resources; Polar Programs; the Office of International Science and Engineering; and the Office of Cyberinfrastructure. That wide coverage indicates the opportunity is broadly cross-disciplinary and welcomes innovation partnerships grounded in many areas of science, engineering, education, and related fields.

Eligibility is centered on accredited, degree-granting institutions, including U.S. universities and two- and four-year colleges located in the United States, its territories, or possessions. The solicitation also includes specific partnership-related requirements, including the expectation that at least one prior PFI graduated awardee participate in the proposal, and it references additional eligibility and partnership structure requirements in the NSF publication associated with the opportunity. Leadership requirements are also notable: the lead institution must designate a senior institutional administrator (dean-level or higher) to serve as PI or co-PI, and that administrator must have an explicitly described active role and a specified time commitment. This requirement signals that NSF wants institutional commitment at a high level, likely because building sustainable innovation infrastructure and cross-sector partnerships typically requires authority, coordination, and long-term alignment that goes beyond a single lab or department.

In terms of timing, the opportunity was posted March 4, 2009, and the original closing date was December 31, 2009, with a letter of intent due October 31, 2009 and full proposals due December 31, 2009, and the announcement notes these dates recurring annually thereafter. The record also indicates the opportunity is archived, with an archive date of March 22, 2010, and it lists the current closing date as archived. For applicants looking at this record today, the practical takeaway is that this specific listing is no longer open, but the summary still provides a clear picture of the program design and what NSF sought to fund under the PFI framework.

For reference and follow-up, the solicitation points to NSF Publication 08-583 as the additional information link, and it provides contact guidance primarily through NSF grants.gov support (grantsgovsupport@nsf.gov) for technical access issues related to the full announcement.

Browse more opportunities from the same agency: National Science Foundation

Browse more opportunities from the same category: Science and Technology and other Research and Development

Next opportunity: Discovery Research K 12

Previous opportunity: Research and Evaluation on Education in Science and Engineering

USGrants.org Applicant Portal:

Are you interested in learning about about how to apply for this government funding opportunity? You can create a free applicant account and receive instant access to our applicant portal that many business owners like you have benefited from.

Apply for 08 583

 

[Watch] how do funding administrators access proposals?

Applicants also applied for:

Applicants who have applied for this opportunity (08 583) also looked into and applied for these:

 

Grant application guides and resources

It is always free to apply for government grants. However the process may be very complex depending on the funding opportunity you are applying for. Let us help you!

Apply for Grants

 

 

Premium leads for funding administrators, grant writers, and loan issuers

Thousands of people visit our website for their funding needs every day. When a user creates a grant proposal and files for submission, we pass the information on to funding administrators, grant writers, and government loan issuers.

If you manage government grant programs, provide grant writing services, or issue personal or government loans, we can help you reach your audience.

Subscribe to Leads

 

Request more information:

Would you like to learn more about this funding opportunity, similar opportunities to "08 583", eligibility, application service, and/or application tips? Submit an inquiry below:

Don't forget to subscribe to our grant alerts mailing list to receive weekly alerts on new and updated grant funding opportunities like this one in your email.