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.



NIH: National Alzheimer’s Coordinating Center (U24 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)

In an effort to encourage biomedical, social, and behavioral research and research training directed toward greater understanding of the aging process and the diseases, special problems, and needs of people as they age, this NOFO invites applications for a National Alzheimer's Coordinating Center (NACC) whose purpose is to serve NIA and the Alzheimer's disease and Alzheimer's disease-related dementias (AD/ADRD) field as: 

1) A national data resource, collecting data from the Alzheimer's Disease Research Centers (ADRCs), affiliated data, and sample repositories;

2) A facilitator of current and future AD/ADRD research; and

3) The central hub for organizing and enabling communication within and outside the ADRC program, including annual meetings and steering committees.

Institutional Limit - One (1) proposal

Internal Deadline: August 25, 2025, 4:45pm

Funder Deadline: October 17, 2025, 5:00pm CT

Funding Opportunities

Sony Research Award Program

Focused Research Award

The Sony Focused Research Award provides an opportunity for university faculty, research institutes, and Sony to conduct collaborative, focused research. The award provides up to $150K USD in funds, and may be renewed for subsequent year(s). A list of candidate research topics can be found on the website.

Faculty Innovation Award

This award provides supports pioneering research in numerous prescribed areas within Information, Entertainment & Device technologies. A list of research topics can be found on the website.

Proposals Due: September 15, 2025, 11:59pm PT

NSF: EDU Core Research (ECR:Core)

The EDU Core Research (ECR) program invites proposals for fundamental research (curiosity-driven basic research and use-inspired basic research) that contributes to the general, explanatory knowledge that underlies STEM education in one or more of the three broadly conceived Research Areas: Research on STEM Learning and Learning Environments, Research on Broadening Participation in STEM fields, and Research on STEM Workforce Development. Within this framework, the ECR program supports a wide range of fundamental STEM education research activities, aimed at learners of all groups and ages in formal and informal settings.

The solicitation has three levels of funding with a range of budget sizes, and proposals may request a duration of 3 to 5 years for any level.

Proposals Due: October 2, 2025, 5:00pm CT

USDA NIFA: Agriculture and Food Research Initiative - Foundational and Applied Science Program

The purpose of AFRI is to support research, education, and extension projects that will help farmers, ranchers, foresters, and other agricultural producers address key problems of local, regional, and national importance in sustaining food and agricultural systems. This AFRI Program supports grants in six priority areas to advance knowledge in both fundamental and applied sciences important to agriculture:

• Plant Health and Production and Plant Products;
• Animal Health and Production and Animal Products;
• Food Safety, Nutrition, and Health;
• Bioenergy, Natural Resources, and Environment;
• Agriculture Systems and Technology; and
• Agriculture Economics and Rural Communities.

Research-only, extension-only, and integrated research, education and/or extension projects are solicited in this RFA.

Proposals Due by Topic: October 5 - November 6, 2025, 5:00pm ET

(See pages 5&6 of the RFA for exact dates per topic)

Clark Fellowships in Art History and Visual Culture

The Clark Art Institute invites applications for its special fellowships for established and promising scholars with the aim of fostering a critical commitment to inquiry in the theory, history, and interpretation of art and visual culture. These fellowships enable scholars

time in residency at the institute. Several fellowships are available to nurture a variety of disciplinary approaches and support new voices in art.

Applications Due: October 15, 2025, 11:59pm ET

NSF: Research on Innovative Technologies for Enhanced Learning (RITEL) 

This program supports exploratory research in emerging technologies like AI, robotics, and augmented reality to enhance teaching and learning across STEM and foundational skills. It emphasizes diverse learner populations, cost-effective solutions, and multidisciplinary approaches in various educational contexts. The program accepts proposals that focus on learning, teaching, or a combination of both. The scope of the program is broad and includes teaching and learning in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) and in foundational areas that enable STEM (e.g., self-regulation, literacy, communication, collaboration, creativity, and socio-emotional skills). 

Proposals Due: November 4, 2025, 5:00pm CT

Important Updates

CCTS Mock NIH Study Sections

Sit in the Driver’s Seat – Be the Reviewer

K Grant Review – August 19, 11:00am-12:30pm via Zoom

R01 Grant Review – August 20, 2:00pm-3:30pm via Zoom

Through a facilitated simulation, participants will read, critique and score an actual grant (K or R01 application) and will see how their comments influence the discussion. Participants are able to learn how a study section operates in the review process, to better prepare their own grants for review. Register 

Be the Fly On the Wall – Observe a Study Section in Action

R01 Grant Review Observation – September 23, 12:00noon-1:30pm via Zoom

K01 Grant Review Observation – September 26, 12:00noon-1:30pm via Zoom

See the scoring and discussion unfold just like it does in an actual NIH study section. Observe how reviewers present their critiques, debate strengths and weaknesses, and arrive at a final impact score. You’ll walk away with valuable insight on how to prepare your own proposals to succeed in peer review. Register

Hanover Research Webinars

Advanced Strategies for Enhancing Your Proposal Narrative

Thursday, August 28, 2025

11:00am CT

Explore advanced strategies for developing a strong grant narrative, including how to imagine the reviewer while writing a proposal, how to identify the early elements of the proposal that are most important, and how to create a meta narrative to help reviewers identify key points in the proposal.

Register Here.

• Upcoming Webinars in 2025
• Recently posted to the archives: Storytelling in Grantwriting, Part II: The Plot Thickens

CCTS: Translational Science Symposium '25

Share Your Science!

October 30 & 31, 2025

Gulf Shores, AL

Join colleagues from across the CCTS Partner Network for the 2025 Translational Science Symposium (TSS) featuring engaging keynote presentations, workshops, networking opportunities, and the popular 3-Minute Thesis (3MT) competition. Take advantage of this incredible opportunity to disseminate your research to a lively and engaged audience and submit for 3MT consideration here.

See the Agenda

Register Here

NSF Research Security Training Update

The National Science Foundation (NSF) has announced research security training for "covered individuals" will need to be completed prior to submission of all proposals as of October 10, 2025.

Other key policy changes aimed at safeguarding the integrity of NSF-supported research include:

• Research Security Assessment and Required Recipient Documentation (Effective October 10, 2025)
• Revised Timelines for Foreign Financial Disclosures (In Effect)
• Annual Certification Requirement Regarding Prohibition on Participation in Malign Foreign Talent Recruitment Programs (In Effect)
• Prohibition on Hosting Confucius Institutes (Effective October 10)

More information on these policy changes and Research Security Training can be found here: NSF Important Notice to Awardee Organizations

It is anticipated that additional federal agencies will implement these training requirements in the fall of 2025 and details of those will be shared upon receipt.

Hanover Research Queue Proposal Review Availability

Slots available August 18 - September 5 and after September 26

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.

Council on Government Relations (COGR) Resource Page

This resource page offers continually updated information concerning the 2025 Administration Transition in regards to federal funding.

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 Funding Focus Newsletter

Do you have research updates or events that would benefit the AU research community or have internal funding opportunities you would like broadcast to faculty? If so, submit your research events and solicitations to PSFS to be published in the Funding Focus Newsletter.

Funding Focus is dedicated to providing the AU research and creative scholarship community with the latest developments, updates, events, workshops, seminars and symposia. With a subscription rate of more than 2,700 research-associated contacts, it's an excellent tool for advertising your research happenings to the target audience.

To submit your research event or funding opportunity, contact Laura Cauthen .

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.