The Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education – Special Projects (FIPSE-SP) program, administered by the Office of Postsecondary Education within the U.S. Department of Education, is designed to support institutions of higher education and nonprofit entities undertaking innovative projects that address key national needs in postsecondary education. The fiscal year 2025 competition targets four primary areas: artificial intelligence (AI) in education, civil discourse on campuses, accreditation reform, and capacity-building for high-quality short-term programs. This competition operates under the authority of Section 744 of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended.
A total of $167 million in discretionary funding is available, with dedicated allocations to each thematic area. Grants may range between $600,000 and $4,000,000 over a project period of up to 48 months. This program supports projects that align with one of seven absolute priorities across the four national need categories. For instance, AI-focused priorities aim to improve student learning through integration of AI tools or train educators in computer science, while civil discourse grants fund seminars, visiting professorships, and speaker series to encourage diverse perspectives. Accreditation-related priorities seek to support institutions changing accreditors or help launch new accrediting agencies. Meanwhile, short-term program funding assists in the creation or expansion of high-demand, workforce-aligned educational tracks.
Eligible applicants include institutions of higher education, consortia thereof, and other public or private nonprofit institutions and agencies. Each entity may submit one application per area of national need as the lead applicant, but may participate as a partner in multiple submissions. No cost-sharing or matching is required, and indirect cost recovery is limited to 8 percent of the modified total direct cost base.
Applications must be submitted electronically via the Department’s portal, following the Common Instructions for Department of Education Discretionary Grant Programs. The application period opens on November 12, 2025, and closes December 3, 2025, with an intergovernmental review deadline of December 12, 2025. Project abstracts must identify which national need is addressed and how the proposed project aligns with relevant absolute and competitive preference priorities.
Evaluation of applications will consider significance (30 points), quality of project design (45 points), management plan (10 points), and evaluation methods (15 points). Successful applications must include performance measures and targets aligned to the project’s goals. Awards will be announced before the end of the funding availability period on December 31, 2025. This program anticipates recurring future rounds, with additional awards potentially drawn from the pool of unfunded applications from this competition.
Highlight strong integration of innovation with measurable student outcomes; align with one Absolute Priority and performance metrics.
