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Proposers for SMD Education and Public Outreach Grants

NASA’s Science Mission Directorate (SMD) has an essential role in NASA's education mission "to inspire the next generation of explorers." The discoveries and new knowledge from our missions and research programs consistently engage people's imaginations, inform educators, and excite children about science and exploration. SMD encourages the development of education and public outreach programs and products that utilize and excite our audiences about SMD research, missions, and discoveries. If you have a great idea for an educational project, you might consider pursuing one of two types of grants offered by SMD:

  1. Proposals for Education and Public Outreach in Earth and Space Science (EPOESS) are requested annually, as part of NASA SMD’s Research Opportunities in Space and Earth Science (ROSES). These typically are in the range of $100,000 annually for one to three years.

Proposal Solicitation
2010 Selections
2009 Selections
2008 Selections

  1. Proposals for supplemental education and public outreach grants to ongoing SMD-funded research projects are requested twice a year. These must be proposed by the scientist leading the research project in collaboration with an educator. The parent research project must have at least 12 months remaining at the time of proposal submission. Proposals can be submitted for one of two paths:
    • Education projects (up to $15,000 for each year remaining on the parent research project). For proposal guidelines, click here.
    • Outreach projects (up to $10,000 for each year remaining on the parent research project). For proposal guidelines, click here.

2009 Education Supplements

2009 Outreach Supplement Selections

2008 Education Supplement Selections

2008 Outreach Supplement Selections

For either of these opportunities proposers are encouraged to carefully read abstracts of previously selected proposals before they begin their own proposal. We also recommend that you carefully read the evaluation criteria by which proposals are reviewed. The most up-to-date versions can be found here.

If you are interested in including students directly in your research efforts, there are several traditional pathways that NASA researchers can leverage. Such research experiences are highly valuable in helping students develop as young professionals. Undergraduate researchers can be supported through internships and as part of Research and Analysis grants. In addition, Student Collaborations, whether hands-on instrument programs or data analysis collaborations, can be important components of mission science efforts.

Internships
Research and Analysis Grants

2010
2009

Student Collaborations

You may also find solicitations for other types of education and outreach projects from other NASA divisions at NASA’s clearinghouse for proposal information (NSPIRES).