NASA Headquarters Office of Education, Higher Education Division, announces a Cooperative Agreement Notice (CAN) soliciting proposals to develop and coordinate the NASA Science and Technology Scholarship Program (STSP). The STSP is a competitive scholarship program intended to guide U.S. students toward NASA-related science and engineering careers. The program will provide tuition scholarships to U.S. citizens and permanent residents, of diverse geographic and demographic backgrounds, enrolled in accredited institutions of higher education (university, college, or community college) degree programs in engineering, science, and other technology fields.
As outlined in the Vision for Space Exploration, the NASA Strategic Plan, and the NASA Education Enterprise Strategy of 2003, a strategic goal of NASA’s mission is “to inspire and motivate students to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.” STSP is a focused program to attract the “best and brightest” science and engineering students into the NASA workforce. In exchange for tuition scholarships and research stipend support, STSP students must agree to fulfill a service obligation following graduation.
An appropriated funding level of $7.5M has been established for the initial year of the NASA Science and Technology Scholarship Program. The appropriation includes scholarship funding support of up to $20,000 per academic year per student, up to $10,000 annually per student to support the applicable research internships and activities both at a designated host NASA Center and at the participant’s institution, as well as STSP administrative costs. NASA anticipates continuing support for this program for one full program cycle, contingent on the availability of funds, progress, and continued relevance to the NASA mission. An STSP program cycle is estimated to take 30 months to complete.
The authority to establish the STSP is provided to NASA in the NASA Flexibility Act of 2004 ( http://nasapeople.nasa.gov/hclwp/index.htm ). This legislation establishes, and will guide, STSP participant eligibility criteria, scholarship funding, retention requirements, service obligations, and penalties for non-completion and non-compliance. However, NASA retains flexibility regarding the development of program infrastructure, management and administration that will ultimately determine the success of this initiative. These areas are the focus of this solicitation.
Organizations or consortia of organizations interested in collaborating with NASA to develop and coordinate a competitive, high-quality, national undergraduate scholarship-for-service program are invited to submit proposals. Participation in the STSP is open to all categories of domestic organizations, including universities and colleges, professional societies, industry, nonprofit institutions, and academic organizations. Proposals from entities outside the United States will not be considered. For this solicitation, the provisions contained in the NASA Grant and Cooperative Agreement Handbook apply to both non-profit and commercial organizations. Pursuant to section 1260.4(b)(2) of the Handbook NASA does not allow for payment of profit or fee to commercial firms under this award.
NASA plans to award one (1) cooperative agreement as a result of this solicitation. The agreement is scheduled to be awarded not later than November 2004, and will continue for one full program cycle.
More information on STSP can be found at: http://education.nasa.gov/divisions/higher/overview/F_pathfinder_scholarship.html .
The anticipated release date of the CAN is September 28, 2004. Proposals must be received by 4:30 PM Eastern Time, October 28, 2004. Proposals received after the announced deadline will not be considered. In addition to paper submission and a complete electronic copy on CD-ROM or ZIP disk, a proposal cover page must be submitted electronically through the SYS-EYFUS system. Electronic submission does not take the place of the required paper submission.
The STSP solicitation will be available on the NASA Headquarters Web site: http://research.hq.nasa.gov/code_n/nra/current/NNH04ZNH002C/index.html .
The Point of Contact for questions regarding the Cooperative Agreement and the extent of NASA contribution is:
Katie Blanding
University Affairs Officer
Office of Education
NASA Headquarters
Washington, D.C. 20546
Telephone: 202-358-0402
FAX: 202-358-3032
Email: katie.blanding@nasa.gov
This is a broad agency announcement as specified in FAR 6.102 (d) (2).
Notwithstanding the posting of this opportunity at FedBizOpps.gov, Grants.gov, or at both sites, NASA reserves the right to determine the appropriate award instrument for each proposal selected pursuant to this announcement.
