Discovery Research PreK-12 Program Resource Center on Transformative Education Research and Translation | 24 602

FAQs: NSF DRK-12 Program Resource Center on Transformative Education Research and Translation (Opportunity 24-602)

1) What is this NSF funding opportunity?

This opportunity is a National Science Foundation (NSF) discretionary grant solicitation to establish and operate the Discovery Research PreK-12 (DRK-12) Program Resource Center on Transformative Education Research and Translation (the DRK-12 RC). It is listed in the Science and Technology and other Research and Development category under CFDA 47.076, with funding opportunity number 24-602.

2) What is the DRK-12 Resource Center meant to do?

The DRK-12 RC is intended to function as a coordinating and capacity-building hub for the broader DRK-12 community. Its core purpose is to serve as an intellectual partner to NSF and help expand the influence, visibility, and practical reach of DRK-12 research and development investments in STEM education across the PreK-12 space.

3) Is the DRK-12 RC a single research project?

No. The solicitation frames the Resource Center as something other than a standalone research project. It is positioned as a community-strengthening hub that makes DRK-12-funded work more usable and more widely known, while helping to build the program and its impacts.

4) Who is the Resource Center expected to serve?

The Center is expected to support and recruit diverse, multi-sector constituencies across education and research ecosystems. This includes stakeholders who may not typically work in close coordination, such as STEM education researchers, classroom educators, district and school leaders, informal learning organizations, and policymakers.

5) What does NSF mean by multi-sector constituencies in this context?

Based on the solicitation summary, multi-sector constituencies refers to a mix of research, practice, and policy communities connected to PreK-12 STEM education. The Resource Center is expected to intentionally connect these groups to advance DRK-12 field-building, knowledge-building, and partnership-building goals.

6) What are the main activity areas the DRK-12 RC must lead?

The solicitation identifies three major activity areas the Resource Center must lead, in collaboration with NSF and the DRK-12 community:

• Identifying, curating, sharing, and translating promising DRK-12 (and related) resources, tools, approaches, and research findings for practitioners and decision-makers, with feedback loops that inform use and the science.
• Facilitating communication and collaboration among current, former, and prospective DRK-12 awardees, with an explicit capacity-building goal to strengthen researchers ability to conduct rigorous, meaningful work across DRK-12 project types.
• Raising national visibility of DRK-12 program goals and impacts through coordinated outreach, narrative-building, and public-facing communication.

7) What kinds of materials or outputs is the Resource Center expected to curate and translate?

The Center is expected to identify and curate promising resources, tools, approaches, and research findings from DRK-12 and related efforts, and translate them so they are useful to practitioners and decision-makers (for example, school and district leaders, educators, and policymakers).

8) Is dissemination intended to be one-way (researchers to practitioners)?

No. The summary explicitly notes that this is not one-way dissemination. The Resource Center is expected to engage teachers, school leaders and administrators, and policymakers to gather feedback. That feedback is intended to improve strategic use of products and inform advancement of the science.

9) What does capacity-building mean for the DRK-12 community?

In this solicitation, capacity-building is tied to strengthening researchers ability to conduct rigorous, meaningful work across the full range of project types supported by DRK-12. The Resource Center is expected to facilitate communication and collaboration among current, former, and prospective DRK-12 awardees in service of that goal.

10) Who should the Resource Center connect within the DRK-12 ecosystem?

The summary emphasizes connecting current, former, and prospective DRK-12 awardees, as well as bridging research, practice, and policy stakeholders (including educators, administrators, informal learning organizations, and policymakers) to increase coordination and shared progress.

11) What does it mean to raise national visibility of the DRK-12 program?

The solicitation indicates the Resource Center should raise the national visibility of DRK-12 goals and impacts. This implies coordinated outreach, narrative-building, and public-facing communication that helps broader audiences understand what DRK-12 is accomplishing and why it matters.

12) Is collaboration with NSF required?

Yes. The summary states that the DRK-12 RC is expected to work collaboratively with NSF and with the program's constituent communities to design, implement, and evaluate the three broad activity areas.

13) Does NSF expect the Resource Center to coordinate with other hubs or centers?

Yes. The summary notes the DRK-12 RC should not operate in isolation and is expected to work with constituent communities, including other NSF resource hubs and centers.

14) Is evaluation required as part of the Resource Center's work?

Yes. Evaluation is explicitly included in the summary. NSF signals that it expects a thoughtful approach to assessing the effectiveness of the Center's activities and using evidence to improve them over time.

15) What is the focus area of the DRK-12 program that this Resource Center supports?

The Resource Center supports DRK-12 investments in STEM education across the PreK-12 space, with an emphasis on making DRK-12-funded research and development more influential, visible, and practically usable.

16) Who is eligible to apply?

Eligibility is limited to specific categories of U.S.-based applicants identified in the summary. Eligible entities include:

• For-profit U.S. commercial organizations (including small businesses) with strong research or education capabilities and an innovation orientation
• Non-profit, non-academic organizations located in the U.S. tied to education or research activities (such as museums, observatories, research laboratories, and professional societies)
• State and local governments
• Accredited U.S.-based institutions of higher education (two-year and four-year, including community colleges) applying on behalf of faculty
• Federally recognized Tribal Nations

17) Are non-academic nonprofits eligible (for example, museums or professional societies)?

Yes. The summary explicitly lists non-profit, non-academic organizations such as museums, observatories, research laboratories, and professional societies located in the U.S. and tied to education or research activities as eligible.

18) Are for-profit organizations eligible?

Yes. The summary states that for-profit U.S. commercial organizations (including small businesses) are eligible if they have strong research or education capabilities and an innovation orientation.

19) Are state and local governments eligible?

Yes. State and local governments are included among the eligible applicant categories in the summary.

20) Are U.S. colleges and universities eligible?

Yes. Accredited U.S.-based institutions of higher education (two-year and four-year, including community colleges) are eligible, applying on behalf of faculty.

21) Are federally recognized Tribal Nations eligible?

Yes. Federally recognized Tribal Nations are listed as eligible applicants in the summary.

22) Can an international branch campus of a U.S. institution be funded under this opportunity?

If a proposal involves funding for an international branch campus of a U.S. institution (including via subawards or consultants), the proposer must explain the benefits of performing work at the international branch campus and justify why the activities cannot be performed at the U.S. campus.

23) What if a proposal uses subawards or consultants connected to an international branch campus?

The summary states that the same requirement applies: if funding involves an international branch campus (including via subawards or consultants), the proposal must explain the benefits and justify why the work cannot be done at the U.S. campus.

24) What is the opportunity number and official title?

The opportunity number is 24-602. The funding opportunity title is "Discovery Research PreK-12 Program Resource Center on Transformative Education Research and Translation."

25) What is the closing date?

The original closing date listed in the summary is February 28, 2025.

26) Does the summary provide the award ceiling or the expected number of awards?

No. The provided excerpt does not specify an award ceiling or the expected number of awards. It suggests those details may be provided in the full solicitation document rather than the summary text.

27) How is this opportunity described administratively?

The summary describes it as an NSF discretionary grant opportunity in the Science and Technology and other Research and Development category, under CFDA 47.076.

28) What makes the DRK-12 RC different from typical outreach?

The summary emphasizes that the Resource Center should be an intellectual partner and a hub that coordinates, builds capacity, and strengthens the DRK-12 community. It also emphasizes translation with feedback loops, active convening and collaboration among awardees, and national visibility work, rather than simple one-direction communication.

29) What is meant by operating at the intersection of research, practice, and policy?

In the summary, this means the Resource Center should intentionally connect people and organizations across these domains (researchers, educators, leaders, informal learning organizations, and policymakers) to support DRK-12 field-building, knowledge-building, and partnership-building goals.

30) What kinds of collaboration among DRK-12 awardees is expected?

The Resource Center is expected to facilitate communication and collaboration among current, former, and prospective DRK-12 awardees, with the explicit aim of building capacity for rigorous and meaningful work across DRK-12 project types.