The following updates were shared on May 7 as part of a more comprehensive email from the UWM Office of Research.
Updates from the National Science Foundation
The National Science Foundation (NSF) has recently announced several major agency changes, including new agency priorities and a directive to stop awarding all funding actions until further notice. In addition, NSF will adopt standard 15% Indirect Cost Rate (IDC) for new grants and cooperative agreements awarded after May 5. (It will not apply retroactively to existing awards.) The APLU, ACE, and 13 universities have since filed a joint lawsuit to halt the new IDC policy.
NIH and DOE also have recently issued a 15% cap on IDC rates, which are also in litigation. As these lawsuits work their way through the courts, when preparing your proposal budget to any federal agency, please use UWM’s current federally negotiated rates as indicated in the UWM Budget Development Tool, posted on the Office of Research Toolbox webpage. Do not use a 15% IDC rate.
Questions? Contact the Pre-Award Specialist assigned to your unit.
Bridge Funding for Canceled NSF Grants
Due to recent abrupt shifts in federal funding for education research, the Spencer Foundation announced a new Rapid Response Bridge Funding Program for scholars and teams whose grants have recently been canceled by NSF. Grants in the amount of $25,000 will be made to address immediate needs following grant cancellations, including data collection and/or analysis, project closure with community partners, or preparing grant proposals to continue the research. Eligible applicants must be working on research on STEM and education and have had a recently terminated or canceled grant from NSF. Applications are due May 30, and June 13, 2025.
Questions? Contact the Spencer Foundation at RapidResponse@spencer.org.