United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)

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Limiting Language
Each applicant, whether individually or jointly, may only submit one application for RCDI Funds under this Notice. This restriction does not preclude the applicant from providing Matching funds for other applications.

Summary
The Rural Housing Service (RHS or the Agency), a Rural Development (RD) agency of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), announces the acceptance of applications under the Rural Community Development Initiative (RCDI) program for fiscal year (FY) 2025. Approximately $5 million in funding is available for FY 2025. These grants will be made to qualified Intermediary organizations that will provide financial and Technical assistance to Recipients to develop their capacity and ability to undertake projects related to housing, community facilities, or community and economic development that will support the community. Applicants are responsible for any expenses incurred in developing their applications.

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Duplicate or Multiple Submissions – submission of duplicate or predominantly overlapping applications is not allowed. NIFA will disqualify both applications if an applicant submits multiple applications that are duplicative or substantially overlapping to NIFA programs within the same RFA fiscal year. 

The National Institute of Food and Agriculture’s Agricultural Genome to Phenome Initiative (AG2PI), Assistance Listing 10.332, is intended to:  
1. Study agriculturally significant crops and animals in production environments to achieve sustainable and secure agricultural production. 
2. Ensure that current gaps in existing knowledge of agricultural crop and animal genetics and phenomics are filled. 
3. Identify and develop a functional understanding of relevant genes from animals and agronomically relevant genes from crops that are of importance to the agriculture sector of the United States. 
4. Ensure future genetic improvement of crops and animals of importance to the agriculture sector of the United States. 
5. Study the relevance of diverse germplasm as a source of unique genes that may be of importance in the future. 
6. Enhance genetics to reduce the economic impact of pathogens on crops and animals of importance to the agriculture sector of the United States. 
7. Disseminate findings to relevant audiences.  

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NIFA requests applications for the Crop Protection and Pest Management (CPPM) program for fiscal year (FY) 2025 to address critical state, regional and national integrated pest management (IPM) needs to ensure food security and respond effectively to other major societal pest management challenges. The CPPM program supports projects that address these challenges with IPM approaches developed by coordinated state, regional, and national research, and extension efforts. The impact of these research and extension efforts will be increased by the establishment of communication networks and stakeholder participation in setting priorities. In FY 2025, NIFA will only accept competitive applications for funding in the Applied Research and Development Program (ARDP) area of CPPM. NIFA will fund current Extension Implementation Program (EIP) and Regional Coordination Program (RCP) area projects through continuation applications. 

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, NIFA’s Grants Overview provides highly recommended information about grants and other resources to help understand the Federal awards process. 

Match Required – Applicants for the ARDP areas MUST provide matching contributions on a dollar-for-dollar basis for all Federal funds awarded under the CPPM program. By statute, match may include funds from an agricultural commodity promotion, research, and information programs. Non-Federal matching funds may include in-kind support. NIFA may waive the matching funds requirement for a grant if one of the following applies: 1. The results of the project, while of particular benefit to a specific agricultural commodity, are likely to be applicable to agricultural commodities generally; or 2. The project involves a minor commodity, the project deals with scientifically important research, and the grant recipient is unable to satisfy the matching funds requirement. 

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Purpose and Priorities
The purpose of the Higher Education Challenge Grants Program, under assistance listing 10.217, is to strengthen institutional capacities, including curriculum, faculty, scientific instrumentation, instruction delivery systems, and student recruitment and retention, to respond to identified state, regional, national, or international educational needs in the food and agricultural sciences, or in rural economic, community, and business development.

Specifically, applications submitted to this grants program must state how the funded project will address the HEC Program Goals:
1. To strengthen institutional capacities, including curriculum, faculty, scientific instrumentation, instruction delivery systems, and student recruitment and retention, to respond to identified State, regional, national, or international educational needs in the food and agricultural sciences, or in rural economic, community, and business development;
2. To attract and support undergraduate and graduate students in order to educate the students in national need areas of the food and agricultural sciences, or in rural economic, community, and business development;
3. To facilitate cooperative initiatives between two or more eligible institutions, or between eligible institutions and units of State government or organizations in the private sector, to maximize the development and use of resources such as faculty, facilities, and equipment to improve food and agricultural sciences teaching programs, or teaching programs emphasizing rural economic, community, and business development;
4. To design and implement food and agricultural programs, or programs emphasizing rural economic, community, and business development, to build teaching, research, and extension capacity at colleges and universities having significant minority enrollments;
5. To conduct undergraduate scholarship programs to meet national and international needs for training food and agricultural scientists and professionals, or professionals in rural economic, community, and business development; and
6. To increase the number and diversity of students who will pursue and complete a postsecondary degree in the food and agricultural sciences.
7. To enhance the quality of instruction for baccalaureate degrees, master’s degrees, and first professional degrees in veterinary sciences, in order to help meet current and future workforce needs in the food and agricultural sciences.
8. To conduct graduate and postdoctoral fellowship programs to attract highly promising individuals to research or teaching careers in the food and agricultural sciences.

Eligibility 
Duplicate or multiple submissions are not allowed. If NIFA receives more than one proposal that is the same or similar, it will consider the most recent submission. During administrative screening, any earlier entries that are found to be the same or very similar to the proposal will be declined. 

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Purpose and Priorities
For the Women and Minorities in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Fields (WAMS) program, NIFA will support projects with a target audience of K-14 students (kindergarten through twelfth grade plus two years of post-secondary schooling (e.g., vocational technical institutions or community or junior colleges)).  

Four-year undergraduate, graduate, and post-doctoral focused projects will not be awarded under this grant announcement. Projects with a primary target of four-year undergraduate, graduate, and post-doctoral studies should consider other NIFA workforce development focused programs. The purpose of this program is to support integrated education/teaching and extension/outreach projects that increase participation by women and underrepresented minorities from rural areas in STEM. For a definition of “underrepresented minorities” and “rural area” please visit Appendix III of this RFA. NIFA intends for this program to address educational needs, as determined by each institution, within broadly defined areas of food and agricultural sciences and their allied disciplines. 

Applications recommended for funding must highlight and emphasize the development of a competent and qualified workforce in the food and agricultural enterprise. WAMS-funded projects should improve the economic health and viability of rural communities by developing education and extension initiatives that focus on new and emerging employment opportunities in STEM occupations for women and underrepresented minorities. Projects that contribute to the economic viability of rural communities are also encouraged.  

Duplicate or Multiple Submission – Submissions of duplicate (other than revisions) or predominantly overlapping applications are not allowed. In FY2025, an eligible applicant may submit up to two applications on behalf of multiple institution’s staff whereas they are not essentially duplications of the same project or portions of the same project to multiple programs. NIFA will disqualify both applications if an applicant submits duplicate submissions. For additional information or clarification please contact the NIFA POC listed in this RFA. 

Limit: 1 // M. Hingle (Nutritional Sciences)

This grant program supports: (1) training students for master's and doctoral degrees in food, agricultural and natural resource sciences; and (2) Special International Study or Thesis/Dissertation Research Travel Allowances (IRTA) for eligible USDA NNF beneficiaries.

Awards are specifically intended to support traineeship programs that engage outstanding students to pursue and complete their degrees in USDA mission areas. Applicants provide clarity about the philosophy of their graduate training, and relevance to USDA mission sciences, NIFA priorities and national science education policies and statistics. Applications are being solicited from institutions that confer a graduate degree in at least one of the following Targeted Expertise Shortage Areas: 1) animal and plant production; 2) forest resources; 3) agricultural educators and communicators; 4) agricultural management and economics; 5) food science and human nutrition; 6) sciences for agricultural biosecurity; and 7) training in integrative biosciences for sustainable food and agricultural systems.

The technical assistance webinar related to this FY 2024 funding opportunity is now scheduled. Please see details about the webinar, including the registration link, date, and time, via the technical assistance webinar button below. The recording and supporting documents will also be posted to this page after the event.

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Duplicate or multiple submissions are not allowed.

The purpose of FASLP (Assistance Listing 10.522) is to increase knowledge of agriculture and improve the nutritional health of children. The primary goals of FASLP are to:
1. Increase capacity for food, garden, and nutrition education within host organizations or entities and school cafeterias and in the classroom;
2. Complement and build on the efforts of the farm to school programs implemented under section 18(g) of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act [(42 U.S.C. 1769(g)]
3. Complement efforts by the Department and school food authorities to implement the school lunch programs established under the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1751 et seq,) and the school breakfast program established by section 4 of the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1773);
4. Carry out activities that advance the nutritional health of children and nutrition education in elementary schools and secondary schools (as those terms are defined in section 9101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C 7801); and
5. Foster higher levels of community engagement and support the expansion of national service and volunteer opportunities.

FASLP supports projects that bring together stakeholders from the distinct parts of the food system to increase the capacity for food, garden, and nutrition education within host organizations or entities, such as school cafeterias and classrooms, while fostering higher levels of community engagement between farms and school systems. The goal of these efforts is to not only increase access to school meals for underserved children, but also to dramatically improve their quality.

FASLP is also focused on the development of leadership skills, knowledge, and qualities necessary to prepare students for food and agricultural and related careers in the private sector, government, and academia.

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Duplicate or Multiple Submissions – duplicate or multiple submissions are not allowed. 

The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) National Workforce Strategy (WIC Workforce National Strategy),  is part of a joint agency initiative between the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s  (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service and National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) that is expected to cultivate comprehensive and sustained solutions for WIC workforce development. The joint agency initiative aims to strengthen the diversity and cultural competency of the WIC workforce, with the ultimate goals of increasing: 1) WIC participation through reaching those populations that are eligible, but not enrolled; and 2) WIC participants use of benefits and services, including nutrition education and breastfeeding support.

In support of the WIC Workforce National Strategy, this RFA seeks projects that will increase the diversity and cultural competency of the WIC workforce and address barriers to recruitment and retention of WIC staff. Implementation projects must respond to and implement components of the WIC Workforce National Strategy, assess and address regional and national priorities, and target critical workforce needs. 

AVERAGE INDIVIDUAL AWARD RANGE: $150,000 - $5,000,000 

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Duplicate or Multiple Submissions – duplicate or multiple submissions are not allowed. 

The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) National Workforce Strategy is part of a joint agency initiative between the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s  (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service and National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) that is expected to cultivate comprehensive and sustained solutions for WIC workforce development. The joint agency initiative aims to strengthen the diversity and cultural competency of the WIC workforce, with the ultimate goals of increasing: 1) WIC participation through reaching those populations that are eligible, but not enrolled; and 2) WIC participants use of benefits and services, including nutrition education and breastfeeding support.

For this RFA, NIFA requests applications for a WIC Workforce Evaluation and Technical Assistance Center to provide technical assistance and evaluation oversight to implementation projects that will be funded to respond to the National WIC Workforce Strategy. 

Limit: 1 // E. Orr ( Agriculture, Natural Resources and Economic Development - Arizona Cooperative Extension)

Only one project proposal may be submitted per eligible entity.

This notice announces the availability of funds for fiscal year (FY) 2024 and solicits applications from community-based and non-profit organizations, institutions of higher education, and Tribal entities to compete for financial assistance through the Outreach and Assistance for Socially Disadvantaged Farmers and Ranchers and Veteran Farmers and Ranchers Program (hereinafter referred to as the “2501 Program”). The term veteran, as used in this program, refers to military veterans.

The overall goal of the 2501 Program is to encourage and assist underserved farmers and ranchers, military veteran farmers and ranchers, and beginning farmers and ranchers with owning and operating farms and ranches and in participating equitably in the full range of agricultural, forestry, and related programs offered by USDA. It also includes projects that develop underserved youths' interest in agriculture. In partnership with the OPPE, eligible entities may compete for funding on projects that provide education and training in agriculture, agribusiness, forestry, agricultural-related services, and USDA programs, and to conduct outreach initiatives designed to accomplish those goals. This partnership includes working closely with OPPE, attend OPPE-led events in your proposed service territory, and collaborate with USDA Service Centers located in your state (Farm Service Agency, Natural Resources Conservation Service, and Rural Development).

The maximum amount of requested federal funding for projects shall not exceed $750,000 over the 3-year period.