BRC-BIO is a new solicitation intended to enhance research capacity and broaden participation of new faculty of biology at minority-serving institutions (MSIs), predominantly undergraduate institutions (PUIs), and other universities and colleges that are not among the nation’s most research-intensive and resourced institutions. 

Some key information from the solicitation:  

• Primary investigators must hold at least a 50% tenure-track (or tenure-track equivalent) position as an assistant professor (or equivalent rank), who are untenured, have both research and teaching components to their appointment, and are within the first three years of their appointment. 

• Proposed projects should enable the establishment of research programs for new faculty to position them to apply for future grants to sustain their research and should also enrich undergraduate research experiences and thereby grow the STEM workforce. 

• Projects can include biology-focused research collaborations among those in academia, or partnerships with industry or other non-academic partners that advance the PI’s research program. 

• Beyond what is typically requested in BIO core proposals, budgets may include up to $50,000 equipment and funds to buy out teaching time in each year of the project. 

Upcoming Opportunities to Learn More 

Details of this funding opportunity will be featured in the upcoming IOS VOH on November 18, at 1pm ET. Register here.

We also encourage institutions targeted in this solicitation to inquire about scheduling a virtual outreach event for faculty and administrators at your institution or in your region to learn details about this new opportunity. All questions should be directed to BRC-BIO@nsf.gov.   

Note: The initial submission window for BRC-BIO is January 3 through January 31, 2022. Please see the solicitation for subsequent submission windows.