Two new NSF solicitations: ARI-R 2 and MRI-R 2

1. Two new NSF solicitations:ARI-R2 and MRI-R2 Webcast May 28, 2009 nsfari@tvworldwide.com Steve Meacham & Randy Phelps Office of Integrative Activities

2. Academic Research Infrastructure -Recovery and Reinvestment (ARI-R2)NSF 09-562 Update of 1990s ARI program last solicitation 1996 One-time opportunity NSF-wide program Program team: Jim French, Sherrie Green, Amber Jones, David Lambert, Duncan McBride, Steve Meacham, Denita Norris, Joy Pauschke, Randy Phelps, Lita Proctor, Jen Schopf, Don Terndrup, John Yellen nsfari@tvworldwide.com

3. Academic Research Infrastructure -Recovery and Reinvestment (ARI-R2)NSF 09-562 Repair or renovation of existing research facilities Bricks-and-mortar, mobile, or virtual New construction not supported Shared research space Shared research training space All NSF-supported research areas Eligible organizations nsfari@tvworldwide.com

4. ARI-R2 Highlights (1) Funding: $200M, all from ARRA funds Three Award Categories $250K to $2M (~100 awards) “Small” $2M to $5M (~6-10 awards) “Large” $5M to 10M (~3-5 awards) “Large” Award duration Up to 3Y for smaller awards Up to 4Y for larger awards Standard grants and cooperative agreements No cost sharing nsfari@tvworldwide.com

5. ARI-R2 Highlights (2) Limit 1 proposal per eligible organization ~500-1000 proposals (??) ~110 awards Smaller awards ~ January 2010 Larger, more complex awards ~ late April 2010 nsfari@tvworldwide.com

6. ARI-R2 Highlights (3) Review process Panels: Reviewers with research, facilities, project management experience (volunteers welcome!) Small proposals – review by panel Large proposals – two-stage panel process with reverse site visits for finalists Site visits, if necessary, during award negotiation for large/complex awards nsfari@tvworldwide.com

7. ARRA-related conditions for ARI-R2 Reporting – in addition to NSF standard annual/final reports Quarterly, to recovery.gov, ≤ 10days of end of quarter Quarterly, to NSF Additionally for > $2M: Monthly to NSF; on-site progress review Timely expenditures, particularly in first 12 months Prevailing wage requirement “… all laborers and mechanics employed by contractors and subcontractors on projects funded directly by or assisted in whole or in part by and through the Federal Government pursuant to this Act shall be paid wages at rates not less than those prevailing on projects of a character similar in the locality…” See 29 CFR Section 5.5. See www.nsf.gov/awards/managing/award_conditions.jsp?org=NSF

8. Key Elements of ARI-R2 (1) Research/research training facility: Existing shared, physical or virtual space where sponsored and/or unsponsored research and/or research training takes place Research training: Training of individuals (high school, undergraduate, or graduate students, or faculty) in research techniques that use the same type of facilities as research activities. Research training focuses on hypothesis-driven activity, e.g. students’ independent, mentored research projects. Not instructional laboratory work as part of lab courses. Combined use for research and non-research activities: Estimate % of space and % of time used for research Only that fraction of eligible costs can be included in allowable costs

9. Key Elements of ARI-R2 (2) Fixed equipment An immovable part of the facility. Essential to the conduct of research/research training. E.g. not elevators, not instrumentation (see MRI-R2). No computers or data storage systems.

10. Key Elements of ARI-R2 (3) Replacement: Takes the place of an existing research facility which is obsolete, beyond repair or for which renovation is not cost-effective. Includes: razing an existing research facility and constructing one of similar scope in its place; relocating or consolidating existing research facilities. An exceptional circumstance. Requires compelling justification that it would be unreasonable to repair or renovate the existing facility.

11. Key Elements of ARI-R2 (4) Management plan: Provide information that the reviewers will need to assess whether the proposer will be able to execute the project successfully. Project manager Mechanisms for input by end users and by institution's physical plant personnel Schedule & logistics – can be initiated quickly and on schedule. Who will do the work? Process that will be used to manage competitive bidding of sub-contracts. Risks & contingencies Description of any regulatory permits required for initiation and completion

12. Key Elements of ARI-R2 (5) Sustainability plan: Plan for the maintenance, operation, and technical support of the facility after renovation is completed. Include management, staffing, source(s) of funding, users & how selected, administration oversight, & user input. Must undertake to maintain and operate for at least three years. If over $2M, also include a Project Execution Plan (as Supplementary Document)

13. Key Elements of ARI-R2 (6) Supplementary documents: Photographs to illustrate typical current conditions. Page-size schematic drawings showing existing conditions and work to be done. Drawings should be as extensive as possible. Itemized vendor/contractor quotes, if applicable. Budget document, OMB SF424C “Budget Information - Construction Programs.” Letter of commitment to operate the renovated facility for at least three years after project completion. Letter from the submitting organization confirming that any non-NSF funds necessary for the project are available and will be provided for the project should the proposal be funded. OMB SF424D, "Assurances - Construction Programs," signed by the Authorized Organizational Representative. If > $2 million, must include a detailed Project Execution Plan No letters of support

14. Key Elements of ARI-R2 (7) Drawings Prepare (or scan) as Portable Document Format (PDF) files and integrate with the other supplementary documents into a single PDF file for upload into the Supplementary Documents. Make sure that the paper size setting is 8.5”x11”. Selecting divisions Will help NSF form panels. Select closest division. Pick second if appropriate. Submitting collaborative proposals Choose a single institution as the institution that will administer the award. The proposal should be submitted by that institution Include sub-awards for any collaborating institutions that will receive funds. Collaborating institutions must not submit separately. Collaborating institutions must not submit additional proposals

15. Key Elements of ARI-R2 (8) Letter of Intent: Submission of a Letter of Intent is required – No more than 1 Deadline 5pm (local), July 1, 2009 Must be submitted through FastLane by the sponsored project office Should include: Project Title PI Name Name of Submitting Organization Name of facility to be renovated Project Synopsis (maximum of 2,500 characters) – Include type of renovation (e.g., wet labs, telecommunications upgrades) - See solicitation Project Personnel 1 PI, (0-4) co-PIs, and (0-10) other senior project personnel. See solicitation for format Total requested funding Proposal must match Letter of Intent Not used to determine whether a project should be funded

16. Major Research Instrumentation (MRI)General Overview Congressionally mandated program since 1990s Annual competition with January proposal deadline Supports acquisition and development of major research instruments Eligible organizations: Ph.D.-granting (>20 Ph.D./D.Sci. over 2 years) and non-Ph.D.-granting (≤20 Ph.D./D.Sci. over 2 years) academic institutions; non-degree-granting institutions Proposal limit: 3 per institution - no more than two proposals may be for instrument acquisition Award size: $100,000 to $4 million for Ph.D.-granting institutions and non-degree-granting institutions; up to $4 million (no minimum) for non-Ph.D.-granting institutions 30% cost sharing (per America COMPETES), but non-PhD-granting academic institutions are exempt http://www.nsf.gov/od/oia/programs/mri/

17. Major Research Instrumentation (MRI)Goals Supporting the acquisition of major state-of-the-art instrumentation, thereby improving access to, and increased use of, modern research and research training instrumentation by scientists, engineers, and graduate and undergraduate students; Fostering the development of the next generation of instrumentation, resulting in new instruments that are more widely used, and/or open up new areas of research and research training; Enabling academic departments, disciplinary and cross-disciplinary units, and multi-organization collaborations to create well-equipped research environments that integrate research with education; Supporting the acquisition and development of instrumentation that contributes to advancements in supercomputing technology, and/or takes advantage of existing investments in cyberinfrastructure while avoiding duplication of services already provisioned by NSF investments; Promoting substantive and meaningful partnerships for instrument development between the academic and private sectors (i.e., small businesses). Such partnerships have the potential to build capacity for instrument development in academic settings and to create new products with wide scientific and commercial impact. Partnerships with applicability to the Industry/University Cooperative Research Centers (I/UCRCs) program are encouraged. http://www.nsf.gov/od/oia/programs/mri/

18. Major Research Instrumentation (MRI)Caveats The MRI program will not support requests for: General purpose equipment, including general purpose computers or assorted instruments that do not share a common or specific research or research training focus; Instrumentation used primarily for science and engineering education courses; Renovation or modernization of research facilities, supporting equipment, and general purpose platforms. This includes “bricks-and-mortar” projects, as well as sustaining infrastructure (e.g., standard electrical/plumbing systems, elevators), supporting components (e.g., standard computer networks, clean rooms, ventilation systems) and fixed or non-fixed structures, vehicles and/or environments that host an instrument, but do not otherwise contribute directly to data gathering. Other opportunities (e.g., the Academic Research Infrastructure program) may be available to support these types of projects. http://www.nsf.gov/od/oia/programs/mri/

19. MRI -Snapshot of FY08 Awards Program budget $94M 810 proposals reviewed, 225 awards to 184 institutions Award Distribution All areas of NSF 186 Acquisition, 39 Development Mean Award size $451,000 Instruments 8 or more awards: Scanning Electron Microscopes; Confocal Microscopes; NMRs; Mass Spectrometers; Computer Clusters Other examples: Astronomical Spectrograph; Meteorological Radar Network; Ocean Acoustic Waveguide Remote Sensing; Genome Sequencer; Supercomputer; 5 MeV Accelerator… http://www.nsf.gov/od/oia/programs/mri/

20. Two MRI Competitions in FY 2009 (1) NSF 09-502issued last fall 824 proposals already received Deadline was January 2009 Funding: $100M from FY 2009 funds +$100M from ARRA funds ~350-400 awards total Award limit $4M No mixing of funds Awards in FY 2009 http://www.nsf.gov/od/oia/programs/mri/

21. Two MRI Competitions in FY 2009 (2)NSF 09-561MRI-R2 issued 11 May MRI-R2 - Recovery and Re-investment Funding: $200M, all from ARRA funds Award limit raised to $6M per America COMPETES Act Cost-sharing exemption extended per ACA, to non-top-100 federally funded institutions ~350-400 new awards Awards in CY 2009 http://www.nsf.gov/od/oia/programs/mri/

22. Major Research Instrumentation Recovery and Reinvestment (MRI-R2)NSF 09-561 Significant Changes (1) Eligible organizations may submit a maximum of three (3) proposals, independent of the number of proposals that may have been submitted under the NSF 09-502 MRI competition. However, proposals that wholly or substantially duplicate those that were accepted for review under NSF 09-502 will not be accepted for this competition. A maximum of two submissions can be for instrument acquisition. If three proposals are submitted, at least one submission must be for instrument development. An organization may be included as a funded subawardee in another organization's development proposal, at a level of 20% or less of that proposal's budget, without affecting the subawardee's submission limit. Inclusion as a funded subawardee in a development proposal at a budgetary level in excess of 20%, or in any acquisition proposal, must be counted against proposal submission limits. Proposal budgets may include requests from NSF in the range $100,000-$6 million from Ph.D.-granting institutions of higher education and non-degree granting organizations; up to $6 million (there is no minimum request) from non-Ph.D. granting institutions of higher education or the disciplines of mathematical sciences or social, behavioral, and economic sciences at any eligible organization. http://www.nsf.gov/od/oia/programs/mri/

23. Major Research Instrumentation Recovery and Reinvestment (MRI-R2)NSF 09-561 Significant Changes (2) Cost-sharing is required in the MRI/MRI-R2 program, with non-Ph.D.-granting academic institutions of higher education exempt from the cost-share requirement. As authorized in section 7036(c)(2)(A) of the America COMPETES Act, for this MRI-R2 competition only, cost-sharing will be further waived for those institutions of higher education that are not ranked among the top 100 of those receiving Federal research and development funding (as documented by the statistical data published by the Foundation). The list of the top 100 institutions can be found at http://www.nsf.gov/statistics/infbrief/nsf09313/. Each proposal for which this waiver is applicable must also include a certification from the institution's President or Provost stating that the project will 1) make a substantial improvement in the institution's capabilities to conduct leading-edge research; 2) provide research experiences for undergraduate students using leading-edge facilities; and 3) broaden the participation in science and engineering research by women, underrepresented minorities and persons with disabilities. This certification, with the specified format, must be submitted as a single copy document. http://www.nsf.gov/od/oia/programs/mri/

24. Impact of ARRA (MRI and MRI-R2) Adds new opportunities for acquisition and development of mid-scale instruments up to $6 million Up to ~600 additional awards this year will catalyze advances across the spectrum of fundamental research and education in the U.S. Significantly higher success rates ARRA funds reach community in 2009 Re-investment in research capability http://www.nsf.gov/od/oia/programs/mri/

25. Timelines

26. Questions nsfari@nsf.gov mri@nsf.gov