Application opens: August 1, 2024
Application closes: November 1, 2024
Period of Performance: April 10, 2025 – April 9, 2026
Purpose
This grant will allow recipients to obtain additional funding for one year for their Multi-Year Funded Projects, which were submitted with the current NASA ILSGC Proposal (submitted July 10, 2024).
Eligibility
Proposals will be accepted from the lead principal investigator, who is being funded by an Illinois Space Grant for a multi-year project. Affiliates must be in good standing with the Illinois Space Grant to apply for this funding opportunity. This additional funding will be competitively awarded with other funding requests and is dependent upon the availability of funds.
Good standing means that invoices have been submitted at least quarterly, and data collection has been completed for each project upon request.
Period of Performance
Funding has been allocated to these grants for the period April 10, 2025 – April 9, 2026.
Proposal Compliance
All proposals submitted by the deadline and satisfying proposal guidelines are eligible for funding consideration. Prior to submission, the proposer’s research/grant office or financial administrator for the institution must approve the proposal. While the PI/Project Lead may submit the proposal, they should ensure that the institution’s commitment has been approved before submission.
Requirements
Additional Funding Grants must be matched (at least one-to-one) with funds from non-federal sources. Prior to the execution of a modification to the current subaward agreement, the source of matching funds must be identified and confirmed by a letter from the appropriate authority. Waived indirect costs and faculty effort can qualify as matching funds.
Proposal Guidelines
Applications must be submitted online through the application portal.
The proposal must contain the following:
- Updated Statement of Work
- Budget with cost share– Here is the template in MS Excel
- Budget Justification –The budget justification should explain details related to each expenditure and any sources of cost share. The justification should align with the activities proposed in the program description and be consistent with the detailed budget table.
Please keep in mind the following restrictions when preparing your budget:
- All individuals (including students) directly funded with ILSGC funds or contributing cost share must be U.S. citizens.
- Direct Labor costs shall be separated by titles (e.g. professor, graduate research assistant, undergraduate assistant, etc.) with estimated rates and total amounts of each. PIs should seek to leverage other sources of support for their direct labor costs (e.g., non-federal matching funds, other grants) to maximize funding provided to students. However, support for the PI is possible with strong justification citing the absence of administrative support for the grant, and is limited to $4,000.
- Domestic travel shall include the purpose, the number of travelers, the number of trips and expected location, the duration of each trip, transportation costs, and per diem. Foreign travel is not allowed.
- Unallowable items include, but are not limited to, cost overruns, retroactive funding, renovations, and any expenditures subject to Uniform Guidance, including furniture, hosting, office supplies, or “equipment”, including computers. Computer programs may be considered if specialized and directly related to the proposed project. Applicants are encouraged to contact the ILSGC staff with specific questions about the allowability of specific types of expenses. Note: The Federal Government defines ‘equipment’ as tangible personal property with a useful life of more than one year and a purchase price of $5,000 and above.
- Purchases of items considered “souvenirs” (e.g., trophies, t-shirts, etc.) are not allowed.
- Purchases of food is not allowed. (Some exceptions exist, such as per diem during travel.)
- Indirect costs for higher education institutions are limited to the federally negotiated rate of the institution.
- The amount and source of cost-shared funds must be identified.
- Proposals can include requests for Principal Investigators (PI) who are United States citizens may include direct support funds (e.g. salary, travel etc). Principal Investigators who are non- US citizens may be selected for funding provided there is NO salary, stipend, travel, or any other form of direct support is proposed.
Notice of Award:
If a proposal is approved for funding, the applicant will be notified by e-mail once the committee has had an opportunity to consider all applications. An award letter will be sent containing a start date, which is anticipated to be April 10, 2025. Funding will be released incumbent upon authorization of funds by NASA.
PLEASE NOTE: Funds will be paid through the affiliate’s subaward with Illinois Space Grant.
Post Award Expectations:
NASA’s STEM Gateway Requirement
All students and project leads/principal investigators will need to register in NASA’s STEM Gateway System.
Budget:
The awardee and their respective department/institution will monitor funding activity and expenditures. Awarded funds are limited specifically to the expenses itemized and approved as part of the original application and may not (without ILSGC approval) be utilized for any other expenditure not previously identified. Any residual funds at the close of the project will be returned to the Illinois Space Grant Consortium.
Invoicing:
- Awarded projects should be prepared to invoice the ILSGC at least quarterly but not more than monthly for project expenditures, even if no funding is used.
- Cost share should be reported on each invoice
- If you have multiple projects funded, please indicate the project that is spending the funding (can be in an email or on the invoice)
- The expectation is to send invoices to SPA spasubinvoices@illinois.edu and cc Heidi hbjerke2@illinois.edu and Missy mbeckle@illinois.edu
- Must be compliant with Uniform Guidance 200.332
Required Reporting:
The principal investigator on the awarded proposal will be contacted to complete the data collection sheet required for NASA’s data collection and reporting. The due dates are in the timeline. Here is the template of the data collection file.
- Progress reports and final reports are required for all funded programs. You will receive the spreadsheet file in the Fall, Spring, and Summer to be completed and returned.
- Comply with ILSGC, NASA, and our External Evaluator’s data requests.
- Students over the age of 18 who receive significant awards that meet one or more of the following criteria: receive $3000 or more in financial support or 160 hours of participation or greater, are considered significant. Students who are significantly funded by the project must be willing to provide their information and participate in the NASA longitudinal tracking program. Longitudinal tracking is required for all students until they take their next step. For example: if a student is a junior who receives significant funding from ILSGC, we will ask for the student’s information yearly until they enter graduate school or take a position in their career field.
- If possible, please include any photographs relevant to the program, involving participants, with captions. Each person with a recognizable face must have signed a photo-release form found here. (Heidi will contact the students and get the signed form if you provide their names and contact information).
Peer-Reviewed Presentations and Publications:
- Any publications or presentations related to the project should be submitted to ILSGC.
- Researchers submitting NASA-funded articles in peer-reviewed journals or papers from conferences now shall make their work accessible to the public through NASA’s PubSpace at Submit to PubSpace – Scientific and Technical Information Program (nasa.gov). PubSpace provides free access to NASA funded and archived scientific publications. Research papers will be available within one year of publication to download and read.
- Papers and presentations should acknowledge ILSGC funding using this statement: “The material contained in this document is based upon work supported by a National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) grant or cooperative agreement. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of NASA. This work was supported through a NASA grant awarded to the Illinois/NASA Space Grant Consortium.”
Timeline
| August 1, 2024 | Applications Open |
| November 1, 2024 | Applications Due |
| Mid December | Awards selected |
| By late January 2025 | Awards announced |
| March 15, 2025 | Subaward paperwork due |
| April 10, 2025 | New grants begin |
| August 1, 2025 | Summer data forms sent |
| September 15, 2025 | Summer data forms due |
| December 1, 2025 | Fall data forms sent |
| January 15, 2026 | Fall data forms due |
| April 9, 2026 | Grant year ends |
| May 1, 2026 | Spring data forms sent |
| June 15, 2026 | Spring data forms due |
| June 15, 2026 | All Yr 1 funds spent and invoiced |
Send questions to Heidi Bjerke at hbjerke2@illinois.edu
