The Discovery Research K-12 (DR-K12) program seeks to enable significant advances in K-12 student and teacher learning of the STEM disciplines through research about, and development and implementation of, innovative resources, models, and technologies for use by students, teachers, and policy makers. Activities funded under this solicitation begin with a research question or hypothesis about K-12 STEM learning or teaching; develop, adapt, or study innovative resources, models, or technologies; and demonstrate if, how, for whom, and why their implementation affects learning.

The primary purpose of the Strategic Technologies for Cyberinfrastructure Program (STCI) is to support work leading to the development or demonstration, or both, of innovative cyberinfrastructure services for science and engineering research and education that fill gaps left by more targeted funding opportunities. In addition, it will consider highly innovative cyberinfrastructure education, outreach and training proposals that lie outside the scope of targeted solicitations.

The National Science Foundation (NSF) provides a number of targeted funding opportunities for the development of cyberinfrastructure, for the provision of cyberinfrastructure services, and for related education, outreach and training. However, cyberinfrastructure technology and training are broad continua. It is anticipated that, at any given time, there will be ideas that do not map neatly onto the extant portfolio of cyberinfrastructure solicitations yet have a high potential impact on research and education. Accordingly, the Strategic Technologies for Cyberinfrastructure program will accept proposals for cyberinfrastructure development, demonstration, education, outreach and training activities that are not aligned with the specific goals of other existing cyberinfrastructure funding opportunities and which have the potential to transform multiple areas of research or education.

Cyber-Enabled Discovery and Innovation (CDI) is NSF's new five-year initiative to create revolutionary science and engineering research outcomes made possible by innovations and advances in computational thinking. Computational thinking is defined comprehensively to encompass computational concepts, methods, models, algorithms, and tools. Applied in challenging science and engineering research and education contexts, computational thinking promises a profound impact on the Nation's ability to generate and apply new knowledge. Collectively, CDI research outcomes are expected to produce paradigm shifts in our understanding of a wide range of science and engineering phenomena and socio-technical innovations that create new wealth and enhance the national quality of life.

The Living Stock Collections (LSC) program supports operation of and improvements in outstanding collections of living organisms used in basic biological research. The program provides support for two types of projects. Short-term projects are one-time awards (up to 36 months) leading to innovative handling of living stocks or to well-defined improvements in existing collections, including those not otherwise supported by LSC. Long-term projects (up to 60 months) support ongoing operation of significant collections. Collections receiving long-term support are expected to receive support from user fees.

The Major Research Instrumentation (MRI) Program is designed to increase access to scientific and engineering equipment for research and research training in our nation's organizations of higher education, research museums, and nonprofit research organizations. This program seeks to improve the quality and expand the scope of research and research training in science and engineering, and to foster the integration of research and education by providing instrumentation for research-intensive learning environments. The MRI program encourages the development and acquisition of research instrumentation for shared inter- or intra-organizational use and in concert with private sector partners.

The MRI program assists in the acquisition or development of major research instrumentation by organizations that is, in general, too costly for support through other NSF programs. Proposals may be for a single instrument, a large system of instruments, or multiple instruments that share a common or specific research focus.

Participating offices and directorates are the Office of Integrative Activities, Directorate for Biological Sciences, Directorate for Computer & Information Science & Engineering, Directorate for Education & Human Resources, Directorate for Engineering, Directorate for Geosciences, Directorate for Mathematical & Physical Sciences, Directorate for Social, Behavioral & Economic Sciences, Office of Polar Programs, and Office of Cyberinfrastructure.

The goal of this solicitation is to broaden the participation to all biologists including members from groups under-represented in biology, the Directorate for Biological Sciences (BIO) at NSF offers two funding opportunities under this solicitation: 1. Research Initiation Grants (RIG) and 2.Career Advancement Awards (CAA).

Currently, African Americans, Hispanics, Native Americans, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders are under-represented in biology. These grants are intended to increase the diversity of researchers who apply for and receive BIO funding to 1. initiate research programs early in their careers and 2.advance their careers by adding new approaches or directions to their on-going research programs. By providing these funding opportunities, BIO intends to further broaden participation of biological researchers who share NSF's commitment to diversity in the following ways: expand the population of role models who will interact with an increasingly diverse student population, the workforce of the future, increase the number of scientists at minority serving institutions actively and competitively engaged in research as independent investigators, thereby creating new research opportunities for students from under-represented groups, and fund biological research projects that use innovative ways to attract and retain members of under-represented groups to careers in biology.

The Alliances for Graduate Education and the Professoriate (AGEP) program is intended to increase significantly the number of domestic students receiving doctoral degrees in the sciences, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), with special emphasis on those population groups underrepresented in these fields (i.e., African Americans, Hispanics, American Indians, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, or other Pacific Islanders). In addition, AGEP is particularly interested in increasing the number of minorities who will enter the professoriate in these disciplines. Specific objectives of the AGEP program are to develop and implement innovative models for recruiting, mentoring, and retaining minority students in STEM doctoral programs, and to develop effective strategies for identifying and supporting underrepresented minorities who want to pursue academic careers.