Our editorial team is keeping abreast of the current status of federally funded opportunities. Such opportunities advertised here, to our knowledge at time of publication, are active. However, please continue to check solicitation websites for updates to U.S. Government opportunities of interest.

What is a Limited Submission?

A limited submission solicitation places a cap on the number of proposals Auburn may submit to a sponsor. Auburn coordinates limited submissions with notifications via this newsletter and competitions created in the Auburn University Competition Space (InfoReady). To apply to any limited submission posted in this newsletter, click on the link within the announcement. Please refer to the Limited Submission Procedures page for a general list of requirements.

Found a Limited Submission opportunity that interests you?

If so, please contact the PSFS office sooner than later so that an internal competition can be created for a timely, university-wide, fair and equitable selection process that allows for ample time for review, feedback and revisions.

NSF: Fostering Interdisciplinary Networks to Develop Emergent and Responsive Solutions Foundry (NSF FINDERS FOUNDRY)

The NSF FINDERS FOUNDRY program is designed to invest in the development of innovative, technology-based solutions that improve K-12 STEM learning and workforce development. It brings together educators, technologists, parents or guardians, and researchers to co-design tools and strategies that address real-world challenges identified by K-12 students, families, and educators. The program's purpose is to create scalable, evidence-based innovations that enhance learning outcomes and prepare students for future careers in a globally-competitive STEM workforce.

The program is implemented in two phases: Planning and Development. Planning proposals support early-stage collaboration among interdisciplinary teams. Each team must include at least one K-12 educator, one technologist, one researcher, and at least one parent or guardian of a student that is impacted by the selected challenge and that is not represented in the former three roles. These teams must use the NSF FINDERS FOUNDRY Dashboard to select a challenge track and co-design a wireframe to describe their technological solution. Only teams that receive Planning awards are eligible to submit Development proposals.

Institutional Limit: One (1) Planning Proposal
Internal Deadline: April 16, 2026, 4:45pm

Funder Deadline: May 27, 2026, 5:00pm CT

NSF: TechAccess: AI-Ready America

TechAccess: AI-Ready America is a national-scale initiative to accelerate Artificial Intelligence (AI) readiness and adoption across the U.S. by strengthening coordination, leveraging partnerships and resources, filling gaps, and scaling what works — so local and state priorities can lead in shaping an AI-driven economy that benefits all Americans.

Unlike initiatives centered around K – 16 education, AI-Ready America additionally reaches businesses, public-serving organizations, and individuals, among others, expanding access to AI knowledge, tools, and resources. The program also emphasizes practical implementation through hands-on assistance and workforce up-skilling, including experiential learning such as internships, project-based work, and apprenticeships, to ensure stakeholders can effectively apply and innovate with AI.

This funding opportunity focuses on State/Territory Coordination Hubs (Coordination Hubs) – one in every state, the District of Columbia (DC), or territory in the United States – connecting partners, strengthening planning and deployment, and rapidly scaling approaches.

Instiutional Limit: One (1) LOI

Internal Deadline: April 20, 2026, 4:45pm

Funder Deadline: June 16, 2026, 5:00pm CT

Auburn University Rural Partnership Institute Collaborative Research Projects

The Auburn University Rural Partnership Institute (AURPI) is soliciting proposals from faculty who are collaborating with industry and/or community organizations to develop and implement solutions that enhance the efficiency, sustainability, and economic viability of Alabama’s poultry and forestry industries with the ultimate goal of improving the lives of rural Alabamians. This request for proposal is intended for faculty to collaborate with industry or community organizations in support of the goals of AURPI’s project.

Projects of Interest (but not limited to):


• Develop technology solutions and market intelligence that will help producers and processors of poultry and forest products improve their competitiveness and sustainability.
• Promote technologies that will advance the poultry and forest products industries.
• Predict and protect against cyber-physical vulnerabilities in poultry and forest products sectors
• Find opportunities to better manage water and wastewater; better manage and upcycle the waste streams emanating from poultry and forest product processing facilities for beneficial use.
• Other topics of investigation into challenges facing rural Alabama, including exploratory social and health science research.

Note that current PI/co-PI on AURPI internal funding program will not be considered for this funding opportunity.

Proposals Due: June 15, 2026, 4:45pm

Funding Opportunities

Google: Accelerating Scientific Breakthroughs with the Power of AI

Google.org is launching a supercharged initiative at the intersection of artificial intelligence and scientific discovery to accelerate our understanding of key scientific questions—achieving Nobel-level breakthroughs and enabling science at digital speed. Projects must pursue high-impact research in the following areas: AI for Health & Life Sciences, AI for Climate Resilience & Environmental Science. Proposals should be evidence-based and define clear, quantifiable success metrics. AI should be a core component of the solution, developed in alignment with Google’s Responsible AI Principles and shared via open-source licensing to benefit the public.

Applications Due: April 17, 2026, 11:59pm PT

NIH: Stephen I. Katz Early Stage Investigator Research Project Grant 

This award supports an innovative project that represents a change in research direction for an early stage investigator (ESI) and for which no preliminary data exist. This NOFO is appropriate for ESIs who wish to initiate a research project in an area different from their previous research focus and/or training experience, and therefore have not produced preliminary data. Proposed research projects can rely on the PD/PI’s prior work and expertise as its foundation, but must not be an incremental advancement, expansion, or extension of a previous research effort. The change in research direction could involve, for example, a new approach, methodology, technique, discipline, therapeutic target, and/or new paradigm, different from the ESI’s previous research efforts.

Applications Due: May 27, 2026, 5:00pm CT

Caplan Foundation for Early Childhood Grants

This foundation is an incubator of promising research and development projects that appear likely to improve the welfare of young children, from infancy through 7 years, in the United States. Grants are only made if a successful project outcome will likely be of significant interest to other professionals, within the grantee’s field of endeavor, and would have a direct benefit and potential national application. The Foundation’s goal is to provide seed money to implement those imaginative proposals that exhibit the greatest chance of improving the lives of young children, on a national scale.

The Foundation provides funding in the following areas:

• Parenting Education
• Early Childhood Welfare
• Early Childhood Education and Play

LOIs Due: May 31, 2026

Alfred P. Sloan Foundation: Exemplary Pathways to STEM Graduate Education

 The foundation is seeking to invest in new and established partnerships between STEM undergraduate and graduate programs nationwide that seek to identify and remove longstanding, systemic barriers to STEM master’s and doctoral degrees in the fields of astronomy, biology, computer science, chemistry, data science, Earth sciences, economics, engineering, marine science, mathematics, physics, and/or statistics, with attention to programs that serve undergraduate students enrolled in nonprofit public and private four-year broad access institutions, two-year colleges, or baccalaureate and special focus institutions with strong access missions.

LOIs Due: June 1, 2026, 5:00pm ET

NIH: Shared Instrumentation Grant

The Shared Instrument Grant (SIG) Program encourages applications from groups of NIH-supported investigators to purchase or upgrade a single item of high-priced, specialized, commercially available instruments or integrated instrumentation system. Instruments supported include, but are not limited to: light microscopes, biomedical imagers, mass spectrometers, nuclear magnetic resonance spectrometers, flow cytometers, DNA and protein sequencers, biosensors, and X-ray diffractometers.

Applications Due: June 1, 2026, 5:00pm CT

2027 Sony Women in Technology Award

Sony and Nature magazine will recognize three inspirational women in technology who are poised to redefine the future of their fields, positively impacting our society and the planet. Early to mid-career women researchers working in academia, having obtained their undergraduate degree within the last 15 years, or experienced professionals in the mid-career phase, having graduated between 15 to 25 years ago, are welcome to apply. 

Applications Due: June 5, 2026, 7:00pm ET

Important Updates

AU Proposal Processes Training Video Now Available

The Office of Sponsored Projects now offers an on-demand video walk through of the updated AU Proposal Processes slated to take effect May 1.


To access the video, Click Here.

In-person Help Available

Any unit/researcher who would like to schedule time with the Proposal Team to review the new process is welcome to reach out to Jenny Kelley, Sr. Sponsored Program Officer, to schedule a Teams or in-person meeting. 

On-Campus Drop-In Office Hours
The Proposal Team will be holding 'office hours' on campus for any researcher or interested individual who may want to drop by to ask questions.

17th Annual Boshell Research Day 
April 17, 2026 
Auburn Marriott Opelika Resort & Spa at Grand National

Join leading experts from across the U.S. for a full day of presentations on diabetes and the role of obesity in its development, featuring keynote, plenary, and banquet speakers.

Free for Boshell members, students and postdocs. Non-members have a fee.

Registration closes April 10. 

CCTS TIERS: How to Approach Conflict Resolution in Teams
April 17, 2026
12:00 noon –1:00 pm via Zoom.

Learn practical strategies for navigating conflict in team settings, including improving communication, managing differing perspectives, and maintaining productive working relationships. Presented by Michelle Horvath, J.D.

Register Here.

Hanover Research Webinars

Pathways for Effective Research Translation

Thursday, April 30, 2026

11:00am CT

​Explore pathways for grant seekers aiming to extend their research discoveries from academic settings into real-world applications. Attendees will learn strategies for translating complex findings into accessible formats for practitioners, policymakers, and industry, increasing the impact and grant-readiness of their work. The session will highlight ways to bridge the gap between research and application, and discuss how feedback from users can inform future projects and proposals.​

Register Here.

• 2026 Calendar of Webinars
• Recently posted to the archives: Reimagining the Broader Impacts in Grant Writing

Hanover Research Queue Proposal Review Availability

Slots available April 8 - May 5, June 17 - July 19 and after August 11


Auburn University has partnered with Hanover Research for a number of grant development solutions including Pre-proposal Support; Proposal Development; and Capacity Building. Hanover's full-service grant development solutions are available to set goals, build strategies to achieve key grant-seeking objectives, and develop grant proposals that are well-planned, researched, and written. 

For information regarding Hanover’s core capabilities and project timelines, click here. If you are interested in a slot in the queue, please e-mail Tony Ventimiglia.

Hanover GLC Modules for NIH, NSF-CAREER & Grant Development


The Hanover Research Grants Learning Center (GLC) on-demand grant development training portal offers faculty enrollees the unique opportunity to receive targeted training through self-paced, interactive modules with step-by-step guidance and templates for prospective applicants to develop compelling proposals. In addition to NIH and NSF-CAREER modules, AU faculty now have access to a variety of new modules on grant seeking, development and revisions.

Auburn faculty interested in signing up for this training should contact Christine Cline for registration information.

Free CITI Training Modules

Auburn subscribes to several training modules via the CITI Program website that may be of interest to researchers and research administrators. Each module is self-paced and can be finished in one or multiple sessions. Click on the link above to read descriptions.



• Essentials of Grant Proposal Development
• Essentials of Research Administration

The federal funding landscape is changing daily, necessitating extra due diligence on the part of funding seekers. When perusing a solicitation, 1) make sure you are viewing the latest version, 2) read all notes in the headers and margins, and 3) follow provided links to ensure a solicitation is still active and accepting applications.