IUSE/Professional Formation of Engineers: Revolutionizing Engineering Departments
This grant provides funding to U.S. higher education institutions to implement transformative changes in engineering education, focusing on inclusive and innovative professional development for undergraduate engineering students.
The IUSE/Professional Formation of Engineers: Revolutionizing Engineering Departments (IUSE/PFE: RED) program, sponsored by the National Science Foundation (NSF), seeks to radically transform undergraduate engineering education. Managed by the NSF’s Directorate for Engineering (ENG) and Directorate for STEM Education (EDU), this initiative builds on earlier efforts that improved the freshman and senior years of engineering curricula but aims to address the often-overlooked middle years. The program supports structural, cultural, and pedagogical changes within engineering departments to foster inclusive, innovative, and holistic professional development for engineering students. The RED program supports four distinct tracks. Track 1 (Planning) offers up to $75,000 annually for two years to help select institutions build capacity for future RED proposals. This track targets two-year institutions, those in EPSCoR jurisdictions, PUIs, and MSIs. Track 2 (Adaptation & Implementation) supports efforts to adapt proven change strategies to local contexts with awards up to $1 million over five years. Track 3 (Innovation) funds revolutionary departmental changes with budgets ranging from $1 million to $2 million over five years. Track 4 (Innovation Partnerships) supports multi-institution collaborations with awards between $1.5 million and $2.5 million for five years. A total program budget of $7 million to $8 million is anticipated, with 13 to 19 awards expected depending on the track. Eligible applicants must be accredited two- or four-year Institutions of Higher Education (IHEs) located in the United States. The Principal Investigator (PI) must be a department chair or senior leader capable of leading change efforts in programs where a significant number of students graduate with a bachelor’s in engineering or technology. Track 1 eligibility is limited to institutions meeting specific criteria such as serving transfer students or being designated as MSIs or PUIs. Letters of intent and preliminary proposals are not required, but a concept outline is recommended for Track 1 applicants and must be submitted 30 days before the deadline. Proposals must include detailed project descriptions, vision statements, rationale for revolutionary change, specific actions aligned with a theory of change, anticipated barriers, advisory and evaluation plans, and dissemination and sustainability strategies. Proposals should be submitted through Research.gov or Grants.gov and comply with the NSF Proposal & Award Policies & Procedures Guide (PAPPG). The upcoming deadlines for proposal submission are September 10, 2024, and April 8, 2025. Future deadlines will continue annually on the second Tuesday of April and September. For all tracks, NSF emphasizes the inclusion of diverse perspectives, partnerships with two-year colleges, and proposals addressing national priorities such as AI, sustainability, and quantum engineering. For additional information, applicants can contact Alice L. Pawley at apawley@nsf.gov or (703) 292-7286, Christine Delahanty at cdelahan@nsf.gov or (703) 292-8492, or Matthew A. Verleger at mverlege@nsf.gov or (703) 292-2961. More information is also available on the NSF website.
Award Range
$50,000 - $2,500,000
Total Program Funding
$8,000,000
Number of Awards
19
Matching Requirement
No
Additional Details
Estimated Number of Awards: 13 to 19 The program estimates making 10-13 awards for projects in Track 1. The program estimates making a total of 3-6 awards for projects in Tracks 2, 3, & 4. The budget for Planning (Track 1) proposals is up to $75,000 per year for a duration of up to 2 years. The budget for Adaptation & Innovation (Track 2) proposals is a maximum of $1,000,000 for a duration of up to 5 years. The budget for Innovation (Track 3) proposals is between $1,000,000 and $2,000,000 for a duration of up to 5 years. The budget for Innovation Partnerships (Track 4) proposals is between $1,500,000 and $2,500,000 for collaborations across multiple institutions for a duration of up to 5 years. Anticipated Funding Amount: $7,000,000 to $8,000,000
Eligible Applicants
Additional Requirements
*Who May Submit Proposals: Proposals may only be submitted by the following: -Institutions of Higher Education (IHEs) - Two- and four-year IHEs (including community colleges) accredited in, and having a campus located in the US, acting on behalf of their faculty members.Special Instructions for International Branch Campuses of U.S. IHEs: If the proposal includes funding to be provided to an international branch campus of a U.S. institution of higher education (including through use of subawards and consultant arrangements), the proposer must explain the benefit(s) to the project of performance at the international branch campus, and justify why the project activities cannot be performed at the U.S. campus. *Who May Serve as PI: For all tracks, the Principal Investigator (PI) must be a Department Chair/Head (or equivalent) of a department for whom a significant percentage of students will graduate or transfer to a program with a bachelors degree in engineering or engineering technology. The PI must be empowered to provide leadership for the proposed change process. In cases where the institutional responsibilities of a Department Chair/Head do not enable them to support the degree of change being sought, a Dean, Provost, or other senior leader may serve as PI, provided they will be responsible for the active leadership of the RED project. The qualifications of the PI can be justified in the required letter from senior institutional leadership. It is recommended that projects consider including individuals with expertise in (a) engineering education research and (b) organizational change on the leadership team.
Geographic Eligibility
All
Application Opens
April 5, 2024
Application Closes
September 9, 2025
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