|
Spring 2026
Welcome to RDInsights, a quarterly newsletter from the USF Research Development Institute (RDI). This newsletter will be one channel through which the RDI communicates updates from the Institute, funding opportunities, and other resources to enhance research success.
| |
UPDATES FROM THE
RESEARCH DEVELOPMENT INSTITUTE (RDI)
| | |
RDI Launches New Federal Research Priorities Series
Federal research priorities lay the groundwork for what comes next—charting the future trajectory of innovation and funding. This month, the RDI will launch Federal Research Priorities in Focus, a new competitive intelligence series designed to help faculty navigate the shifting federal landscape and position their research for long‑term success.
Federal Research Priorities in Focus enables researchers to spot emerging trends, grow strategically, and respond competitively. Each session highlights a federal priority aligned with USF strengths—starting this spring with artificial intelligence and biomedical technology—and will explore expansion next academic year.
The kickoff session, Federal Research Priorities in Focus: Artificial Intelligence, will be held March 24th from 12:00–1:00 PM EST on Microsoft Teams, led by Karen Walker, RDI’s Associate Director of Competitive Intelligence.
AI is advancing at extraordinary speed—reshaping federal agendas, driving new investments and collaborations, and redefining what innovation looks like across disciplines. Our kickoff session will unpack what these shifts mean for your research strategy and competitive positioning.
Between sessions, registered participants will receive competitive intelligence updates—including trend analyses, key developments, RFIs, policy signals, and forecasted funding opportunities—to help them stay informed and ready to respond as opportunities emerge.
| | |
SBIR/STTR Overview & Matchmaking
April 8th, 2026, 12:00 – 1:00 PM EST
Microsoft Teams
SBIR and STTR unlock key, non‑dilutive funding designed to fast‑track innovative research toward real‑world market impact.
This session gives faculty a quick introduction to SBIR and STTR—federal programs that fund early-stage R&D by pairing small businesses with researchers and covering initial development costs. We’ll explain the programs, outline what makes a strong proposal, and show how to build partnerships, with USF’s support in connecting you with eligible companies and preparing submissions.
| | USF Future of Food Think Tank: One Year In—Growing a Movement and Converting Projects into Impact | The USF Future of Food Think Tank launched in January 2025 with a bold aim: to build a university–community movement capable of reshaping Tampa Bay’s food future. One year later, that movement has become a network of more than 265 members and 94 partner organizations—spanning community agencies, government, nonprofits, and industry—anchored by faculty across USF’s 14 colleges and four food‑focused centers and initiatives. Together, they’ve created a level of collaboration that turns ideas into action and action into a shared regional narrative. | | SUMMER GRANT WRITING WORKSHOPS ARE BACK | | The RDI is proud to announce--Summer Grant Writing Workshops are back to boost your funding success! In this 8‑week online certificate program, you’ll learn core grant writing techniques and build a proposal with support from curated resources—including templates, sample proposals, and the updated TAG. The workshop kicks off on June 3rd and runs through July 24th, 2026. | | |
WHAT TO EXPECT:
-
Monday Message: Your plan for the week, including funding opportunities, tools, and online resources
-
Wednesday Workshop: via Teams, live online 12-2 pm EDT
-
Funding Fridays: Invited speakers 3-5 pm EDT
-
Plus a Training & Activities Guidebook (TAG)
| | |
Now is the time to register!
USF faculty can participate for free using the code: RESEARCHBULLS26.
|
| Building the Next Generation of Health Research: Data, AI, Workforce and Collaboration | | |
In this presentation, Dr. Yanli Wang will provide an overview of the NIH funding opportunities available through the NLM Extramural Program. The talk will highlight a range of NIH grant programs and funding mechanisms, including research grants, career development awards, and training grants. Dr. Wang will also provide an update on NIH funding policies and outline NLM’s key research areas to help faculties, research fellows and students to align their grant proposals with HHS, NIH and NLM research priorities.
Dr. Wang is a Program Officer at the Extramural Program of NLM managing a grant portfolio in biomedical informatics and data science. She has held multiple positions at NIH in her over 20 years of federal service, including as a Program Officer at the Office of Data Science Strategy, an Associate Investigator and Lead Scientist at the NLM National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI), and postdoctoral fellow at the National Cancer Institute (NCI). She is a current member of several NIH committees that support trans-NIH and trans-agency programs. Dr. Wang graduated from Peking University, China, where she received training in Chemistry and Computational Biology.
| |
|
Building the Next Generation of Health Research: Data, AI, Workforce and Collaboration (Presentation)
Friday, March 27, 2026
10:00 - 11:30 am
Hybrid - In-Person in CPH 1023C / Teams
| |
Meeting ID: 224 387 350 069 87 Passcode: oE23Bi3k
Open Faculty and Student Discussion
Friday, March 27, 2026
2:00 - 4:00 pm
In-Person in CPH 1023C only
| | FEDERAL RESEARCH NEWS & INSIGHTS | | | Dept of Energy announces 26 Challenges for Genesis Mission for AI | White House stalls release of approved US science budgets - Nature | | The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) recently announced 26 science and technology challenges of national importance to advance the Genesis Mission and accelerate innovation and discovery through artificial intelligence (AI). The challenges span DOE’s discovery science, energy, and national security missions. Each was selected for its potential to deliver measurable benefits for the American people and to accelerate advancements through the Genesis Mission’s AI platforms, world-class facilities, and public-private partnerships. | Weeks after Congress rejected proposed 2026 science‑funding cuts, several federal research agencies still lack access to the budgets lawmakers approved. The Office of Management and Budget has been slow to release the funds, leaving the NIH unable to spend any of the research dollars included in the 3 February budget bill. The NSF received its authorization only last week, and NASA’s budget was approved with an unusual cap on spending across ten programs. | | | |
Additional Spring Internal Awards Announced!
There are a few more internal award cycles remaining this spring! These competitive grants are designed to empower faculty across disciplines by supporting innovative research, scholarship, and creative endeavors that elevate USF’s academic excellence.
| |
LIMITED SUBMISSION OPPORTUNITIES
(Apply through InfoReady)
| | |
The W. M. Keck Research Program provides funding for innovative and high-risk research projects in medical research and science & engineering. The program is designed to support projects that are distinctive, interdisciplinary, and have the potential to challenge prevailing paradigms or open entirely new fields of study. Projects should demonstrate transformative potential, such as enabling breakthrough technologies, methodologies, or observations. The Foundation particularly seeks proposals that fall outside the mission of public funding agencies and where Keck Foundation support is essential for success.
Internal Deadline: May 15, 2026; Agency Deadline: November 15, 2026
| | |
Changes to NIH and NSF Public Access Requirements
Effective July 2025, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) requires immediate, zero‑embargo public access to Author Accepted Manuscripts (AAMs) resulting from NIH‑funded research. This shifts from the previous allowance of a 12‑month embargo. While NIH compliance does not require paying article processing charges (APCs), some publishers may charge APCs for immediate open access—so consider budgeting for these costs when preparing proposals.
Under NIH cost principles, APCs are allowable when they are part of a journal’s standard open access fee structure, but fees solely for depositing manuscripts into PubMed Central are not.
The National Science Foundation will implement a similar zero‑embargo deposit requirement for awarded proposals submitted or due on or after January 2025.
USF Libraries Resources
|
| EXTERNAL FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES | | |
Department of Energy Early Career Research Program: The Department of Energy’s Early Career Research Program (ECRP) supports outstanding early‑career scientists by funding the development of their independent research programs across key Office of Science mission areas. It aims to advance fundamental scientific discovery, strengthen the nation’s energy and security research enterprise, and foster long‑term scientific leadership. To be eligible for the program, a researcher must be an untenured, tenure-track assistant or associate professor at a U.S. academic institution or a full-time employee at a DOE National Laboratory or Office of Science User Facility who is within 10 years of having earned a doctorate degree. Pre-Application Deadline: March 24, 2026; Application Deadline: June 2, 2026
National Academies' Gulf Research Program - Workforce Development for the Energy Transition: The Workforce Development for the Energy Transition funding opportunity from the National Academies’ Gulf Research Program supports projects that prepare Gulf Coast residents for skilled technical careers in the evolving energy sector. It provides resources for programs that help participants gain the knowledge, skills, and credentials needed to enter competitive jobs in the future energy workforce. Deadline: April 8, 2026
FY 2026 Implementation of the U.S. Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS): The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) National Ocean Service (NOS) U.S. Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS) Office is requesting proposals for 5-year awards supporting coordinated regional efforts that advance the Nation’s understanding and decision-making of its coastal ocean and Great Lakes through integrated observations, data provision and management, modeling, and engagement. Award Size: $5M/yr for up to 5 years. Deadline: April 13, 2026
National Endowment for the Humanities Fellowships: The NEH Fellowships are grants to individual scholars pursuing projects that embody exceptional humanistic research, rigorous analysis, and clear writing. Applications must clearly articulate a project’s value to humanities scholars, general audiences, or both. These awards provide recipients with time to write, to travel, and to conduct research and other project-related activities. NEH encourages submissions from independent scholars and junior scholars. Projects are eligible at any stage. The 2026 Fellowships competition will accept only projects for research in American history and culture and Western civilization. Award size: Up to $60,000 for one year. Deadline: April 22, 2026
| |
FEATURED RDinsight
The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) FY26 R&D Appropriations Report offers a clear, data‑driven breakdown of how federal research dollars are allocated across agencies and programs for the new fiscal year. The report analyzes final appropriations bills and estimates how much funding will directly support basic research, applied research, development, and research facilities across major R&D‑intensive agencies.
Why it’s useful: Researchers can use this report to spot funding shifts, anticipate agency priorities, and align future proposals with where federal investment is growing or contracting. It’s an excellent early‑stage planning tool for shaping competitive strategies and identifying where new opportunities may emerge.
| | | PRIVATE FOUNDATION FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES | | |
Burroughs Wellcome Fund - Climate Change and Human Health Seed Grants: The Climate Change and Human Health Seed Grants program supports small, early‑stage projects that spark new collaborations between researchers and practitioners working across climate, environmental, biomedical, and population‑health disciplines. It provides $2,500–$50,000 in flexible funding for innovative ideas that advance understanding, communication, or practical solutions at the intersection of climate change and human health. Deadline: April 23, 2026
Sloan Foundation's Exploratory Grantmaking in Technology: The Sloan Foundation’s Exploratory Grantmaking in Technology program supports early-stage ideas, tools, and research areas in emerging technologies that show promise but lack sufficient mainstream funding. It focuses on activities such as workshops, prototyping, landscape analyses, and proof‑of‑concept projects to help determine whether new technological domains merit deeper strategic investment. Focus includes but is not limited to AI in science (emphasizing transparency, reproducibility, and the philosophical foundations of machine learning) and automation in scientific research (such as robotics and AI in lab environments). Deadline: LOIs accepted year-round.
| | UPCOMING EVENTS & OPPRTUNITIES | | |
The National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics (NCSES) within the U.S. National Science Foundation is excited to announce an innovative new project. They are expanding the NCSES Data Tool suite to include a new data tool for Science and Engineering Indicators called the Indicators Explorer. Development is in progress, and they would like users to get a look at this tool, give their impressions, and test functionality.
To determine eligibility to participate in usability testing of the new tool, complete this brief questionnaire.
| | | | |
