DER Weekly Newsletter, March 18th, 2022


	View in browser

March 18, 2022

Past DER Weekly Newsletters

Weekly In Progress Report

2022 NSF ENG CAREER Workshop MAY 11 - 13, 2022

The 2022 NSF ENG CAREER Workshop will be held VIRTUALLY May 11-13, 2022. The workshop aims to provide junior faculty who plan to submit a CAREER Award proposal to a program in the NSF’s Directorate for Engineering (ENG) with a CAREER proposal review experience and a forum in which they can interact with NSF Program Directors and recent NSF CAREER awardees.

Attendees of the 2022 NSF ENG CAREER Workshop will benefit from:

Mock proposal reviews by panels
Interactions with ENG Directorate Program Directors
Focus sessions with recent CAREER awardees
Interaction across disciplines and engineering schools nationwide

All activities for the 2022 NSF ENG CAREER Workshop will be conducted virtually. The Mock Panel Review session is limited to 300 participants; however, all other sessions will be open. Mock Panel participants will be selected from those who submit completed applications.

Applications are open and will close on March 28, 2022. Visit our website for details.

Submissions are encouraged from junior faculty at Non-R1 Institutions, Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs), and Primarily Undergraduate Institutions (PUIs). Women and under-represented minority junior faculty are also encouraged to apply.

About the NSF CAREER Program

CAREER: The Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program is a Foundation-wide activity that offers the National Science Foundation's most prestigious awards in support of early-career faculty who have the potential to serve as academic role models in research and education and to lead advances in the mission of their department or organization. Activities pursued by early-career faculty should build a firm foundation for a lifetime of leadership in integrating education and research. NSF encourages submission of CAREER proposals from early-career faculty at all CAREER-eligible organizations and especially encourages women, members of underrepresented minority groups, and persons with disabilities to apply.

About the Directorate for Engineering (ENG)

Investments in engineering research and education are critical building blocks for the nation's future prosperity. Engineering breakthroughs address national challenges, such as smart manufacturing, resilient infrastructure and sustainable energy systems. Engineering also brings about new opportunities in areas ranging from advanced photonics to prosthetic devices. Research funded by the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Directorate for Engineering (ENG) has enriched the understanding of natural systems, enhanced electronics, fortified the nation's infrastructure and introduced the exciting possibilities of engineering to the next generation.

2022 NSF ENG CAREER Workshop - May 11 - 13, 2022

Wednesday, May 11th 12PM – 6PM (EST)
Thursday, May 12th 12PM – 6PM (EST)
Friday, May 13th 12PM – 6PM (EST)

Questions? Send questions to careerworkshop@ccny.cuny.edu

Workshop Committee:

Rosemarie Wesson, Office of the Provost Department of Chemical Engineering - City College of New York
Alexander Leonessa, Department of Mechanical Engineering - Virginia Tech University
Paige E. Smith, Women in Engineering Program - University of Maryland
Daniel Wasserman, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering - The University of Texas at Austin
Linda Vigdor, Advanced Science Research Center (ASRC) - City University of New York (CUNY)

Additional NSF Career Proposal resources and seminars:

Building Your Broader Impacts Plan, April 5, 2022
https://events.engage.msu.edu/BYBIP
MSU Partners for Broader Impacts, April 12, 2022
https://events.engage.msu.edu/MSUPBI
Evaluating the Broader Impacts of Your Research, April 26, 2022
https://events.engage.msu.edu/EBIYR

Past NSF Career Proposal resources and seminars:

Broadening Participation in STEM Education and careers: Promising practices and resources, March 3, 2022 – This seminar recording is available on demand https://engage.msu.edu/learn/learning/broader-impacts-workshop-series.
NSF Career Awards Seminar presented by Dr. John Verboncoeur (Senior Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Studies): This is a great opportunity to learn more about the ways to achieve your NSF Career Award. This seminar recording and slides are available on demand https://www.egr.msu.edu/der/secure-page/seminar-series-schedule
NSF Program Webinars and Additional Program Resources: https://beta.nsf.gov/funding/opportunities/faculty-early-career-development-program-career

SUBJECT: Upcoming Training Sessions for the Kuali Upgrade

FROM: Laura Johnston

TO: SPA News Listserv

On April 25, 2022 an upgrade to the Research Administration System is being implemented. With this upgrade we are transitioning from Kuali Coeus (KC) to Kuali Research (KR).

Improvements

The new version of Kuali includes:

Updated user interface
New and more intuitive Conflict of Interest module
System-to-System submissions will have:

NIH Validation and PDF Image services
Direct link to Grants.gov fillable forms
Final Grants.gov zip file in KR

Support and enhancements from Kuali

Training and Resources

Four virtual training sessions will be hosted on Zoom and will cover the significant changes in the Proposal Development and Budget modules of Kuali Research. The sessions will be recorded and made available on the Kuali Research Training webpage to be viewed at any time. To receive ERA credit, you must attend one of the virtual sessions.

Registration information: To register, please select the date that you would like to attend and click on the corresponding registration link. The link will take you to the Ability master calendar page where a popup will appear with the registration page for your desired course. Please make sure that you allow popups in order to complete the registration process. If you have any questions or problems with registration, please contact Amy Bane barteram@msu.edu.

March 30, 1:30-5:00 https://abilitylms.msu.edu/MSU/LearnerWeb_PTM.php?ActionID=Enroll&EventID=7810

April 5, 8:30-noon https://abilitylms.msu.edu/MSU/LearnerWeb_PTM.php?ActionID=Enroll&EventID=7811

April 13, 8:30-noon https://abilitylms.msu.edu/MSU/LearnerWeb_PTM.php?ActionID=Enroll&EventID=7812

April 21, 8:30-noon https://abilitylms.msu.edu/MSU/LearnerWeb_PTM.php?ActionID=Enroll&EventID=7813

Starting in March references and training materials on the SPA/OSP/CGA website will start transitioning from Kuali Coeus (KC) to Kuali Research (KR) and new resources for KR will be added (e.g. PowerPoint Presentations, videos, etc.). Training for the Conflict of Interest module will be done through job aids and videos. Links to these resources will be provided in the upcoming weeks before go-live.

Please contact the Kuali Helpdesk if you have questions about training resources.

Spotlight Opportunities & Information

Open Requests for Proposal - Aurora Pooled Fund Project Idea Solicitation 2022

The Aurora Program is a partnership of highway agencies (currently, 18 State Departments of Transportation) that collaborate on research, development, deployment, and advocacy of road weather information systems (RWIS) to improve the efficiency, safety, and reliability of highway transportation. Aurora is currently soliciting project ideas for the 2022 project funding cycle. Project ideas may be submitted for either broad topic areas or specific areas of interest for this funding cycle, which are both listed below.

Broad Topic Areas

Information dissemination technologies
Decision support systems
Weather modeling and analysis
Equipment evaluations
Standards and architecture
Road condition monitoring and performance measures

Topic Area for 2022 Funding Cycle

Use of virtual RWIS, including state of practice and experiences
Transition from RPUs to data loggers
Weather messaging, road conditions and RWIS data for public consumption -- noteworthy practices and public reception/ perception
Forecasting impacts of weather on motorists
Forecasting impacts of weather on CAV and electric vehicles
Turning weather forecasts into action
Automating variable speed limits (VSL) based on weather data
Establishing a business case for RWIS
Engaging transportation and freight companies regarding weather-relate impacts of on anticipated shipping
Analyzing non-winter weather events, e.g. heavy rains and dust storms
Identifying and analyzing trigger points for road shutdowns
Establishing a baseline of possible transportation system failure points
Transferring information and institutional knowledge due to staff turnover
Identifying techniques to maintain more RWIS site uptime, including identifying failure points and best practices for both routine and storm conditions
Identifying approaches to obtain more specific information from providers

Aurora projects vary in funding level and duration, typically ranging from $35,000 to over $100,000 and are between one and two years in length. Aurora does not fund development of propriety processes or products.

Please use the attached form(s) (found here) and submit ideas to Zachary Hans (zhans@iastate.edu) by Monday, April 25, 2022. Project ideas will be reviewed, voted on and ranked during the Spring Aurora Board meeting during May 2022. Aurora will then either work directly with authors of highly ranked project ideas or synthesize ideas into formal requests for proposals (RFPs). Learn more Here.

Paving a new path for the future of data science

MSU, Spelman College are creating a new degree program to help make data science more inclusive and equitable

Michigan State University and Spelman College in Atlanta are teaming up to create a new educational pipeline for data science, one of the fastest growing fields in the country. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that, by 2026, the nation will have created more than 11 million data science jobs.

“It’s also one of the highest-paid professions,” said Andrew Christlieb, an MSU Foundation Professor in the College of Natural Science. Yet statistics show that only about 3% of the jobs in a growing and rewarding tech sector are held by women of color.

“Promoting diversity is integral to everything we do,” said Monica Stephens, an associate professor and chair of mathematics at Spelman College, a historically Black liberal arts college for women. “The need to have diverse voices in data science is one that our students are well aware of.”

Supported by the Arthur P. Sloan Foundation and the National Science Foundation, or NSF, Stephens and Christlieb led the effort to create what’s known as a “3 + 2” program. Students at Spelman will complete a three-year bachelor’s program in a STEM field with unique training to prepare them for MSU’s two-year master’s program in data science.

MSU’s data science program teaches students how to gather, analyze and work with large data sets to find trends, patterns and other actionable information that might otherwise go unnoticed. At Spelman, the focus on science, technology, engineering and math will prepare students to bring the power of data science to areas including biology, physics and more.

Monica Stephens, associate professor and chair of mathematics at Spelman College. Courtesy of Monica Stephens “If we want to have an impact on data science, Spelman is the very best partner in the universe,” Christlieb said, citing Spelman College’s excellence in STEM education. ... Learn more Here.

ARPA-E Announces $48 Million For New Program to Securely and Economically Recycle Used Nuclear Fuel

2001-2002 Project Proposal Template

The U.S. Department Of Energy (DOE) today announced up to $48 million in funding for a new ARPA-E program that will support the deployment of Advanced Nuclear Reactor (AR) technology by providing safe and sustainable domestic fuel stocks.

The Converting UNF Radioisotopes Into Energy (CURIE) program focuses on substantially reducing the disposal impact of used nuclear fuel (UNF) and supporting a comprehensive national strategy to deal with waste safely and securely.

“CURIE will fuel advanced reactors and provide important clean energy elements, all while drastically reducing waste,” said Dr. Jennifer Gerbi, Acting Director of ARPA-E. “With this new program, we’re emphasizing safeguards and lowered costs as we provide clean energy technology options for the future.”

CURIE seeks to develop innovative separations, online monitoring, and materials accountancy technologies that would support the domestic production of AR fuel feedstocks or important commercial radioisotopes and critical minerals. CURIE also aims to support system design studies related to fuel recycling, separations technologies with improved proliferation resistance, and minimization of waste volumes.

Press Release -- CURIE Program Page -- Apply for Funding

Basso appointed to prestigious National Academies board

Michigan State University ecosystems scientist Bruno Basso has been appointed a member of the Board on Agriculture and Natural Resources, the major program unit of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine.

Basso is one of BANR’s seven new board members appointed to a three-year term; BANR also reappointed six current board members to a second term. There are a total of 19 board members, plus a chair and director. As a board member, Basso will engage with federal, state and private sector sponsors seeking the National Academies’ independent, authoritative advice to develop, promote the board’s own initiatives and provide guidance to BANR staff.

“Dr. Basso’s appointment to this board is yet another affirmation of his individual research expertise, as well as the collective strength of agricultural related sciences at Michigan State,” said Doug Gage, vice president for Research and Innovation. “Serving on the BANR will provide a platform for the sharing of knowledge at the highest level benefiting both MSU and the agricultural community.”

The BANR addresses issues related to the production of food, fiber and fuel as well as the stewardship of the natural resources that support those activities. A variety of problems and causes drive BANR’s work on the issues in these fields. Often conflicts arise between growing demands for food and resources and the impacts on the natural ecosystem of developing and producing these resources. The need to sustain, restore and improve the productivity of agriculture for the economic well-being of the nation can also generate serious questions. ... Learn more Here.

ARPA-E Announced $36 Million to Reduce Waste from Advanced Nuclear Reactors

2001-2002 Project Proposal Template

ARPA-E announced $36 million for 11 projects seeking to increase the deployment, and use of, nuclear power as a reliable source of clean energy and limit the amount of waste produced from Advanced Nuclear Reactors (AR). Nuclear power is one of the most reliable sources of energy in America, and the largest domestic source of clean energy—providing approximately 50% of the nation’s carbon-free electricity, and about a fifth of U.S. electricity overall. Nuclear power production, however, produces waste which must be disposed of and safely stored. Mitigating these waste and storage concerns will support the equitable expansion of the nation’s clean energy sources, including nuclear energy.

“Developing novel approaches to safely manage nuclear waste will enable us to power even more homes and businesses in America with carbon-free nuclear energy,” said U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm. “ARPA-E is doing just that by supporting companies and universities that are working on next-generation technologies to modernize advanced reactors and strengthen the nation’s clean energy enterprise.”

Press Release -- ONWARDS Program Page -- ONWARDS Project Selections

Federal, State, and Foundation Funding

Resources for finding Federal, State and Foundation funding opportunities.

Learn more Here.

DER's Proposal Volume

The chart above shows DER's Proposal Volume from 2018 to 2022 as of (03/18/2022).

Take a closer look

DER Seminars

Available now on demand (this and other past seminars)

Roles and Responsibilities (tips for understanding roles and responsibilities at each stage of the project)

Description: The first seminar of 2022 will engage individuals from DER, OSP, and CGA to provide an overview of the lifecycle of an award - from proposal development to award close-out. Join us for a clearer understanding of the roles and responsibilities at each stage. You will be better prepared to submit fundable proposals and to effectively and efficiently manage subsequent awards from start to finish with the help of your MSU support system. All researchers are welcome and are encouraged to be prepared with any questions. Watch it now on demand!!!