United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI)

 Limit: 1  // PI:  M. S. Austin Cantu (NAP-Education (SNAP-Ed) and the Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP))

Only one application per institution is allowed.

The CFPCGP is intended to bring together stakeholders from distinct parts of the food system and to foster understanding of national food security trends and how they might improve local food systems. Understanding that people with low incomes experience disproportionate access to healthy foods, projects should address food and nutrition security, particularly among our nation’s most vulnerable populations. Nutrition security is defined as having consistent access, availability, and affordability of foods and beverages that promote well-being. Applications from organizations that address food insecurity in rural, tribal, and underserved communities are encouraged. 

No applicants // Limit: 1 // Tickets Available: 1 

UArizona may submit one proposal. 

The overarching goals and desired outcomes for the MEE program are: Provide support to Military Service Youth Programs (CYP) staff and DoD CYP staff in delivering and promoting positive youth development programs and activities;  Coordinate the establishment, sustainment, and expansion of opportunities for military-connected children, youth, and teens in 4-H and across the Cooperative Extension System; and  Identify opportunities and needs for military-connected youth, on and off installation, through information gathering and knowledge sharing. 

Limit: 1  // PI selected: T. M. Bishop (Cooperative extension Gila County - Globe / Gila County - Payson, 4-H Youth Development)

UArizona may submit one proposal.

NIFA requests applications for the Agriculture in the Classroom (AITC) program for fiscal year (FY) 2023 to increase agricultural literacy through K-12 education. The anticipated amount available for FY 2023 is approximately $960,000 and will support funding for the initial year. Continuation funding of similar funding levels may be awarded for an additional three years provided performance has been satisfactory, appropriations are available for this purpose, and continued support is in the best interests of the Federal government and the public. Applications should be submitted for the full four years. USDA is not committed to fund any particular application or to make a specific number of awards.

The disciplines of agriculture and education have been related for much of our nation's history. When most Americans lived on farms or in small towns, students often did farm chores before and after school. Old schoolbooks have numerous agricultural references. As the farming population began to decline, agricultural emphasis decreased in educational materials as well.

A core group of educators and agriculturalists pushed for more youth education about agriculture. They recognized the interlocking role of farming and food and fiber production with environmental quality, which included wildlife habitat, clean water, and the preservation of forests.

NIFA's AITC serves nearly five million students and 60,000 teachers in developing awareness and skills as they relate to food, agriculture, and disciplines supportive of the agricultural enterprise. AITC supports this awareness through workshops, conferences, field trips, farm tours, and other educational activities and includes working with state AITC organizations and activities engaged in a variety of issues relating to agricultural literacy.

This notice identifies the objectives for AITC projects, deadlines, funding information, eligibility criteria for projects and applicants, and application forms and associated instructions.

K. Skorupski (Nutritional Sciences and Wellness)

NIFA requests applications for the Food and Agricultural Sciences National Needs Graduate and Postgraduate Fellowship (NNF) Grants Program for one funding cycle, Fiscal Year (FY) 2023, to provide traineeship programs to eligible institutions for meeting the national need to develop scientific and professional expertise in the food and agricultural sciences. The amount available for grants in FY 2023 is approximately $3,100,000.

The purpose of the Food and Agricultural Sciences National Needs Graduate and Postgraduate Fellowship (NNF) Grants Program, Assistance Listing 10.210, is to provide funding to support graduate student training and completion of master’s and/or doctoral degree programs in identified national need areas within the food and agricultural sciences. The overarching goals and objectives of these graduate fellowships are to encourage outstanding students to pursue and complete graduate degrees in the areas of food and agricultural sciences designated by NIFA as national needs. Awards made by the NNF program are specifically intended to support traineeship programs that engage outstanding students to pursue and complete their degrees in areas where there is a national need for the development of scientific and professional expertise in the food and agricultural sciences. NNF awards invest in graduate training and relevant international experiential learning for diverse individuals who demonstrate their potential to successfully complete graduate degree programs in disciplines relevant to the mission of the USDA. This funding opportunity is open to eligible institutions. Individuals are not eligible to apply.

For this award cycle, NIFA intends to support graduate Fellowship training grants for both master’s and doctoral levels of study only. Post-doctoral Fellowships will not be awarded under this grant announcement.

NIFA is soliciting NNF applications in the following areas:

1. Graduate Fellowships to support the training for and completion of master’s and doctoral degree programs in the food and agricultural sciences; and 

2. Special International Study or Thesis/Dissertation Research Travel Allowances (IRTA) for NEW eligible master’s and doctoral USDA Fellows.

Duplicate or Multiple Submissions – duplicate or multiple submissions are not allowed. NIFA will disqualify both applications if an applicant submits duplicate or multiple submissions. For those new to Federal financial assistance, Grants Overview provides highly recommended information about grants and other resources to help understand the Federal awards process

No applicants // Limit: 1 // Tickets Available: 1 

The Rural Health and Safety Education Program seeks to foster quality of life in rural communities by providing the essential knowledge necessary for successful programs of rural development, improving coordination among Federal agencies, other levels of government, and institutions and private organizations in rural areas, and developing and disseminating information about rural conditions.

Per the authorizing legislation described in Part I (A) of this RFA, the RHSE program addresses the health and well-being of rural America through supporting the development and/or implementation of projects focused on:
1. Individual and family health education programs with specified contents;
2. Rural health leadership development education programs to assist rural communities in developing health care services and facilities and assist community leaders and public officials in understanding their roles and responsibilities; and
3. Farm safety education programs to provide information and training to farm workers, timber harvesters, and farm families.

In FY 2023, NIFA is soliciting applications for RHSE in the area of Individual and Family Health education

K. Sierra-Cajas (Undergraduate Research and Inquiry)

The new Beginning for Tribal Students program (NBTS) makes competitive grants to Land-grant Colleges and Universities to provide identifiable support specifically targeted for tribal students. A Land-grant College or University that receives this grant shall use funds for, but not limited to, recruiting; tuition and related fees; experiential learning; student services, including tutoring; counseling; academic advising; and other student services that would increase the retention and graduation rate of tribal students enrolled at the land-grant college or university. The maximum one state can receive is $500,000 per year. 

No applicants // Limit: 1 // Tickets Available: 1 

TERA will recognize and promote excellence in teaching in the food and agricultural sciences within colleges and universities; teaching is defined to include all aspects of developing human capital in order to help meet current and future national food, agricultural, natural resources, and human sciences (FANH) workplace needs. Examples of relevant activities under this project type include (but are not limited to) the following: formal classroom instruction; laboratory instruction; and practicum experience such as faculty development, student recruitment and services, curriculum development, and innovative teaching methodologies. It also includes activities that directly or indirectly contribute to student learning such as research, extension/outreach, and organizational arrangements needed for the proper functioning of the educational institution.

This program addresses the national priority of developing competent human capital for employment in the food, agriculture, natural resources, and human (FANH) sciences.  NIFA, subject to the availability of funds, will administer this TERA project. This cooperative agreement program also addresses the national priority of developing competent human capital for employment in the food, agriculture, natural resources, and human (FANH) sciences. USDA is designated as the lead federal agency that supports higher education in the FANH sciences. In this context, NIFA has a specific responsibility to initiate and support projects that strengthen higher education teaching programs in these areas.

Program Goals include:

• Annually recognize and honor a select group of college and university teachers who excel at teaching, research and extension.

• Help disseminate best practices in teaching through workshops, conferences, blogs, social media and other appropriate activities; and

• Increase the number and diversity of academic programs participating in TERA.

K. Fitzsimmons ( International Initiatives/ Environmental Science) - Collaboration Track

There is one slot still available for the Collaboration Track and two free slots for the Conference Track. 
UA may not submit more than two Collaboration and two Conference applications to this program, as a lead institution each year. There is no limit on the number of Regular applications submitted by an institution
 

For FY 2023, only two awards will be made to the same lead institution, with up to one being a Collaboration award each year. Conference awards are excluded from this award limitation. A Project Director may not apply for a Collaboration grant as the lead project director if they currently have an active USDA NIFA HSI Collaboration award in its first or second year of the project

The purpose of the HSI Education Grants Program is to encourage innovative teaching or education proposals with potential to impact and become models for other institutions that serve underrepresented students at the regional or national level. Projects supported by this program must include/address one or more of the following goals:

1.  Attract and support undergraduate and graduate students from underrepresented groups to prepare them for careers related to the food, agricultural natural resources, and human systems and sciences in the United States.
2.  Enhance the quality of postsecondary instruction within the above disciplines.
3. Provide opportunities and access to food and agricultural careers in the public, non-profit and private sectors.
4. Align the efforts of HSIs and other non-profit organizations to support academic development and career attainment of underrepresented groups.

The HSI Education Grants Program is aligned with the following USDA Strategic Plan FY 2022- 2026:

1. Strategic Goal 2: Ensure America’s Agricultural System is Equitable, Resilient, and Prosperous
2. Strategic Goal 4: Provide All Americans Safe, Nutritious Food

Collaboration Grant
Collaboration Grants for this program must be submitted by agroup of two or more HSIs forming a linkage arrangement for the purpose of carryingout common objective(s) on the group’s behalf. The arrangement must be formed topromote and strengthen the institutional abilities to carry out higher educationprograms related to FANH . Collaboration grants must support Education/TeachingProjects. Collaboration grants for Community Development Projects will not beaccepted.

Grants are designed to help institutions develop competitive projects and to attractnew students into careers in high-priority areas of national need. To ensure the cost- effectiveness of funded projects, the institutions will work together to recruit andgraduate a minimum of fifteen undergraduate and ten graduate students fromunderrepresented groups in an Associate, Baccalaureate, MS, or PhD degree program.The twenty-five students must be recruited during the duration of the grant.

Collaboration Grants will be funded up to approximately $1,000,000 total, and mustbe for a project period of four years.

All partners must have a significant role in the collaboration and each institution’sbudget needs to be appropriate to support its activities. More information regardingpartnership and allowed activities can be found in “HSI Education Grants ProgramSupplemental Information.”
 

Conference Grants
Conference Grants support scientific meetings that bring togethereducators to identify research, education/teaching, and/or extension needs, updateinformation, or advance an area of education/teaching. Individual conference grantsmust not exceed $50,000 total for a project period of up to three years. Conferencegrants are not renewable. Indirect costs are not permitted on Conference Grantawards.

In FY 2023, one of the conference grants will be awarded to an institution to bringtogether a diverse and representative group of HSIs for a HSI Assessment andEvaluation conference to convene HSIs from across the country and Puerto Rico.Applications are expected to propose a conference that will emphasize research andpractice as related to educational assessment and evaluation of projects fundedthrough the NIFA HSI Education Grants program. Projects should focus on thefollowing areas:

a.Measuring to what extent previously funded projects from the NIFA HSIEducation Grants Program achieve the following program goals to guidecurrently funded and future project applicants:

1.Attract and support undergraduate and graduate students fromunderrepresented groups to prepare them for careers related toFANH agricultural and natural resources systems and sciences inthe United States.

2.Enhance the quality of postsecondary instruction within the abovedisciplines.

3.Provide opportunities and access to food and agricultural careers in thepublic and private sector.

4.Align the efforts of HSIs and other non-profit organizations to supportacademic development and career attainment of underrepresented groups.

b.Capturing the outcomes and impacts of NIFA funds on student recruitment, retention, and graduation and faculty professional development, including retention and promotion. c. Disseminating and reporting outcomes, impacts, and best practices to federal agencies, the greater HSI community, and other stakeholders.

d. Promoting and strengthening the ability of HSIs to carry out education, applied research, and related community development programs.

Conference activities should bring together participants from a range of backgrounds and institution types to learn ways to evaluate and assess their projects, discuss challenges facing HSIs, and provide opportunities for participants to discuss their own experiences. Invitees will be determined in collaboration with the agency with a minimum of twenty-five institutions expected to attend. The conference date will be determined with guidance from program staff to accommodate agency and stakeholder needs.

Conference applications focused on assessment and evaluation should include 1) a comprehensive plan for outreach and ensuring attendance of a diverse and representative group of HSIs and stakeholders and 2) a robust dissemination plan for the conference proceedings.

The awardee is required to develop conference proceedings which will include, but not limited to: a) a detailed conference agenda, b) a list of the individuals, and their institutional affiliations, who participated as speakers or attendees in the formally planned sessions of the meeting, c) a summary of topics discussed, including current trends in evaluation methodology and recommendations of products that can assure preservation of and ready access to information and outputs from projects, and conclusions, and d) an analysis of HSIs’ future research, education, and extension needs in FANH as determined by the participants.

Applicants of regular, collaboration, or conference grants are encouraged, but not required, to partner with a USDA agency to leverage resources and expertise for the proposed project.

UA may submit one application.R. Tronstad