Featured Opportunities

April 15, 2026

• The National Science Foundation’s Major Research Instrumentation (MRI) program serves to increase access to multi-user scientific and engineering instrumentation for research and research training in our Nation's institutions of higher education and not-for-profit scientific/engineering research organizations. An MRI award supports the acquisition of a multi-user research instrument that is commercially available through direct purchase from a vendor, or for the personnel costs and equipment that are required for the development of an instrument with new capabilities, thereby advancing instrumentation capabilities and enhancing expertise for instrument design and fabrication at academic institutions. MRI instruments are, in general, too costly and/or not appropriate for support through other NSF programs. MRI provides support to acquire critical research instrumentation without which advances in fundamental science and engineering research may not otherwise occur. MRI also provides support to obtain next-generation research instruments by developing instruments with new capabilities that open new opportunities to advance the frontiers in science and engineering research. Additionally, an MRI award is expected to enhance research training of students who will become the next generation of instrument users, designers and builders. Note: This program is waiting for a new RFA, likely meaning this program will accept submissions this year. Since this is a popular, limited submission program, this MRI entry has been included in the Funding Connection to remind everyone of the expected November due date and to set up a timeline for the potential internal competition if needed. Note this timeline will be revised based on the due dates in the RFA when it is released. The current notification deadline is 5 pm July 14, 2026, via ordlimitedsubs@ksu.edu.
• The purpose of the Department of Agriculture’s Specialty Crop Research Initiative (SCRI) program is to address the critical needs of the specialty crops industries (as defined in Appendix III) by awarding grants to support research and extension that address key challenges of national, regional, and multi-state importance in sustaining all components of food and agriculture, including conventional and organic food production systems. The program recognizes that for some specialty crops that are grown in a limited number of states, the multi-state nature of projects can be difficult to address. Except for Research and Extension Planning Projects, the SCRI program only considers projects that integrate research and extension activities. Applicants are strongly encouraged to propose a unique approach to solving problems facing the specialty crop industry using a systems approach.
• In 2019, the Society for Classics Studies (SCS) Board of Directors inaugurated the “Classics Everywhere” grant, which was renamed and reimagined in 2020 as the “Ancient Worlds, Modern Communities” initiative. The goal of this initiative is to engage individuals, groups, and communities in critical discussion of and creative expression related to the ancient Mediterranean, the global reception of Greek and Roman culture, and the history of teaching and scholarship in the field of classical studies. Events and programs may focus on ancient languages, works of literature, art, architecture, and culture, on ancient history, on more contemporary works inspired by or reacting against the ancient world, or on the history of classics teaching and scholarship. They can be creative, analytical, or critical in focus. The one basic requirement is that eligible programs work with their communities and/or create pathways for knowledge exchange beyond the classroom to engage broader publics.
• VIA Art Fund’s Artistic Production Grants fund the production of newly commissioned works of visual art exhibited beyond museum walls, in the public realm, or in non-traditional exhibition environments. These grants are awarded to projects that best exemplify VIA’s three core values of Artistic Production, Thought Leadership, and Public Engagement. Grant amounts range from $25,000 to $100,000.
• The Employment and Training Administration at the Department of Labor (Labor), is soliciting applications in support of the administration of the Educational Opportunity Centers Program (EOC) on behalf of the U.S. Department of Education (ED). The purposes of the EOC Program are to: provide information regarding financial and academic assistance available for qualified individuals who want to enter or continue to pursue a program of postsecondary education; provide assistance to those individuals in applying for admission to institutions that offer programs of postsecondary education, and improve the financial and economic literacy of program participants.
• To build a secure domestic supply of CMMs, the Department of Energy (DOE), through its Critical Minerals & Materials Accelerator (CMMA), aims to support collaborative industry partnerships to prototype and pilot innovative processing technologies that are currently only proven at the bench scale to address CMM challenges in high impact areas. The CMM Accelerator program will advance these mid-stage innovations through validation, benchmarking, access to national lab test beds, testing in industry relevant environments, technoeconomic analysis, and life-cycle assessment. The program establishes a pipeline to support technology maturation to ultimately unlock private capital investments. It also will leverage other DOE lab-based activities, such as the Critical Materials Innovation Hub (CMI Hub) and the Minerals to Materials Supply Chain Research Facility (METALLIC). Technologies resulting from the program are expected to have a path to domestic commercialization within 3-7 years. This is a limited submission program; thus, if you are interested in applying to this program, you must first notify (working title, team list, Topic Area/Subtopic, short synopsis) the Office of Research Development via ordlimitedsubs@ksu.edu. Note there are three different topic areas with Topics 1 and 3 having subtopic areas. Each has different submission limitations as well as submission processes.
• As the Amazon Research Awards (ARA) program continues to expand in scope, so does their call for proposals list. To that end, starting March 25, they will open the spring 2026 call for proposals in seven research areas: AI for Information Security; Agentic AI; Amazon 2030; Amazon Security; Build on Trainium: Accelerating Post-Training; Build on Trainium: Kernels for ML Acceleration; and Robotics. The deadline for submissions is May 6, 2026 at 11:59PM Pacific Time. Proposals will be reviewed for the quality of their scientific content, creativity, and their potential for impact at scale. Proposals related to theory, practice, and novel techniques are all welcome.
• The National Science Foundation’s Translation to Practice (NSF TTP) program ensures that the insights and innovations developed through scientific study and experimentation have tangible, positive impacts for the Nation. These impacts include improving the quality of life, promoting economic and job growth, ensuring national security, and maintaining global competitiveness. Indeed, scientific and engineering breakthroughs have the potential to address critical societal challenges in industries such as aerospace, agriculture, communications, education, energy, healthcare, national security, and transportation – but the translation of discoveries and innovations from the laboratory to society often takes many forms including non-linear pathways. The NSF TTP program offers three tracks that represent different starting points or stages in moving discoveries and innovations from the laboratory to practice. NSF TTP-Explore (NSF TTP-E) is a pilot trackthat is likely to be the first step for researchers seeking to translate their basic research to practice. NSF TTP-Translate (NSF TTP-T) starts with use-inspired research and initial translational activities and further matures the idea(s), iterates and improves the solution(s), and lowers the barrier(s) to effective translation of research from lab to practice. NSF TTP-Partner (NSF TTP-P) supports translational efforts that demand one or more partnerships for technology development and deployment. Here, strategic partnerships with stakeholders beyond U.S. institutions of higher education are essential ingredients for success.
• The Department of Health and Human Services, NIH’s Maximizing Investigators' Research Award (MIRA, R35) provides support for individual investigators for research within the scientific mission of NIGMS via a single grant to achieve the following: Increase the stability of funding for NIGMS-supported investigators, which could enhance their ability to take on ambitious scientific projects and approach problems more creatively; Increase flexibility for investigators to follow important new research directions within the NIGMS mission as opportunities arise, rather than being bound to specific aims proposed in advance of the studies; More widely distribute funding among the nation's highly talented and promising investigators to increase overall scientific productivity and the chances for important breakthroughs; Reduce the time spent by researchers writing and reviewing grant applications, allowing them to spend more time conducting research; Reduce the administrative burden associated with a PD/PI managing multiple NIGMS research grants; and Enable PD(s)/PI(s) to devote more time and energy to mentoring junior scientists in a more stable research environment. This NOFO invites applications from eligible NIGMS-funded investigators and from New Investigators proposing research that is aligned with NIGMS' scientific mission. The NOFO also allows renewal applications from all current MIRA grantees (including those previously funded as Early-Stage Investigators). Current Early-Stage Investigators (ESIs) should apply through the ESI MIRA NOFO, not this NOFO.
• The purpose of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), NIH’s Pilot Projects Investigating Understudied Proteins Associated with Rare Diseases is to solicit applications for pilot projects to elucidate a role for understudied proteins in rare disease. Awards will support generation of preliminary data and/or tools around eligible understudied protein(s). A list of eligible proteins is provided and are members of druggable protein families that have a known association with a rare disease. This NOFO is intended to jumpstart research on understudied proteins that are associated with rare diseases and provide applicants with sufficient funding to perform basic biochemical and/or biological work to further the characterization of understudied proteins within the context of rare disease.
• The goal of the HHS, National Institute of General Medical Sciences’ (NIGMS) Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (NRSA) Predoctoral Basic Biomedical Sciences Research Training Program (T32) NOFO is to develop a pool of well-trained scientists available to address the nation’s biomedical research agenda. Specifically, this funding announcement provides support to eligible, domestic organizations to develop and implement effective, evidence-informed approaches to biomedical graduate training and mentoring that will keep pace with the rapid evolution of the biomedical research enterprise. NIGMS expects that the proposed research training programs will incorporate didactic, research, and career development elements to prepare trainees for careers that will have a significant impact on the health-related research needs of the nation.
• The purpose of HHS, NIH’s Social Disconnection and Suicide Risk Late in Life (R21) NOFO is to encourage research that addresses the link between social disconnection in late-life and late-life suicidal thoughts and behaviors. Of specific interest is research that identifies mechanisms by which social disconnection confers risk for, and social integration protects against, suicidal thoughts and behaviors in late life. Mechanisms to be considered exist at multiple levels of analysis, including but not limited to neurobiological, behavioral, and environmental.