The National Science Foundation published NSF 23-115, “Advancing Microelectronics Education” in May 2023 in response to the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022 (CHIPS Act). This Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) encourages submission of proposals for projects that will excite, motivate and prepare students for participation in the microelectronics industry, in both formal and informal settings. The DCL provides information and links for existing NSF funding opportunities in the NSF Directorate for STEM Education that can support education-related research and development to prepare a diverse workforce. On

On May 25, 2023, STELAR hosted a webinar on the Innovative Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST) Program’s Solicitation (NSF 22-585). During this webinar, ITEST Program Officers Alicia Santiago, Leilah Lyons, and Robert Russell reviewed the goals of the ITEST program and highlighted key aspects of the solicitation. Access the slides here. Visit our proposal development page for resources, supports, and access to our proposal development course here.

The second webinar in support of encouraging Scaling, Expanding and Iterating Innovations (SEI) proposals invited back ITEST Principal Investigators to share their successes and challenges on scaling their work in the ITEST 2022 PI Meeting. The presentations was followed by a Q&A with PIs. Presentations by: Mary Dussault, Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory Thomas Hammond, Lehigh University, & Kate Popejoy, Popejoy STEM LLC Dayna DeFeo, University of Alaska Anchorage The ITEST proposal solicitation deadline is August 11, 2023. For resources and information about best practices in developing

The National Science Foundation’s Innovative Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST) Program supports applied research and development focused on increasing preK-12 students' interest in careers in information and communication technology and STEM through innovative technology-based learning experiences. As the resource center for the NSF ITEST Program, STELAR is charged with supporting prospective PIs in developing competitive proposals. In doing so, we encourage EPSCoR communities to take advantage of the technical assistance and support aimed at proposal development offered

With demonstrated growth in student STEM content knowledge, teacher STEM awareness, and teacher self-efficacy teaching integrated STEM, the Teachers and Researchers Advancing Integrated Lessons in STEM (TRAILS) project received an award to scale up their work to reach 10,000 students. In this clip, the presenters relate how they located partners in rural populations, and their approach adapting their curriculum and PD using place-based knowledge.

The Drone Research Opportunities for Native Elementary Students (DRONES) project is preparing for a potential scale up by expanding their research practices and understanding how they can scale their work.

ITEST Scaling, Expanding, and Iterating Innovations (SEI) projects “broaden the implementation and research of an innovation at a significant scale of five to ten times greater than the original implementation.” The Expanding Socio-Environmental Science Investigations with Geospatial Technologies in High Schools project presents how they defined scaling on their proposal and how their program officer assisted the scale-up.

The Youth Astronomy Network (YouthAstroNet) project shares how they knew they had sufficient evidence to apply for a Scaling, Expanding, and Iterating Innovations (SEI) award. They identified 34 different instructional experiences the students might have had ran a regression model and factor analysis to better understand which of these interventions mattered for learning, interest, and identity gains.

NSF Program Office Arlene de Strulle poses questions to guide researchers' proposal conceptualization for an ITEST Scaling, Expanding, and Iterating Innovations (SEI) award.