Website National Science Foundation
The Science and Technology Centers (STC): Integrative Partnerships program supports exceptionally innovative, complex research and education projects that require large-scale, long-term awards. STCs focus on creating new scientific paradigms, establishing entirely new scientific disciplines, and developing transformative technologies that have the potential for broad scientific or societal impact. STCs conduct world-class research through partnerships among institutions of higher education, national laboratories, industrial organizations, other public and private entities, and via international collaborations, as appropriate. They provide a means to undertake potentially groundbreaking investigations at the interfaces of disciplines and/or highly innovative approaches within disciplines. STCs may involve any area of science and engineering that NSF supports. STC investments support the NSF vision of creating and exploiting new concepts in science and engineering and providing global leadership in research and education.
Centers provide a rich environment for encouraging future scientists, engineers, and educators to take risks in pursuing discoveries and new knowledge. STCs foster excellence in education by integrating education and research, and by creating bonds between learning and inquiry so that discovery and creativity fully support the learning process. Centers must undertake activities that facilitate knowledge transfer, i.e., the exchange of scientific and technical information with the objective of disseminating and utilizing knowledge broadly in multiple sectors. Examples of knowledge transfer include technology transfer, providing key information to public policy-makers, or dissemination of knowledge from one field of science to another.
UCI may submit up to 3 preliminary proposals as lead institution in response to this call (there is no limit on the number of proposals UCI may partner on where UCI is not the lead). Interested applicants are asked to submit an internal preliminary proposal to the Office of Research (via the UCI Review application portal) by September 9th at 11:59pm. The internal application should include the following:
- 2-page project summary that outlines the rationale, mission, and vision for the proposed center.
- 1-2 page “team description” that outlines participating faculty and their expected contributions toward the goals of the proposed center (this should include UCI and partnering faculty from other Universities).
- 2-page NSF biosketches for the PI and any co-PIs.
If necessary, an ad hoc committee will convene to review the preliminary proposals and the selected PIs will be notified in time to develop their application to meet the November 20, 2024 NSF deadline for preliminary applications (full applications are by invitation only).
For the complete STC Partnerships guidelines, please visit: NSF 24-594: Science and Technology Centers: Integrative Partnerships | NSF – National Science Foundation.