UCR is eligible to apply for the Implementation and
Evaluation (IEP) track.

UCR is NOT eligible to apply for the Educational
Instrumentation Track.

Implementation and Evaluation Projects (IEP) Track welcomes
projects looking to implement, adapt, or study promising practices and also
invites theoretically grounded, methodologically rigorous research projects on
undergraduate experiences in STEM at HSIs. IEP projects include activities that
are anticipated to support research and efforts to improve the HSI
undergraduate experience for STEM majors and for non-majors enrolled in STEM
courses.

Examples include, but are not limited to, the following
types of activities:

• redesigning STEM courses, degree programs, student
  support systems, or practices;
• 
  
  developing new STEM courses, certificates, minors and
  degree programs;
• 
  
  enacting professional development for faculty, staff, and
  administrators to implement student-centered pedagogy, advising, leadership or
  other practices;
• 
  
  conducting research studies to better understand aspects
  of undergraduates' STEM experiences in the focal areas of the HSI:ELPSE
  solicitation (courses, programs, departments, and schools/colleges);
• 
  
  developing institutions' understanding of their students,
  practices, and HSI designation, particularly institutions that have been
  recently classified as HSIs; and
• building out the data infrastructure and methodologies
  that would allow an institution to collect and conduct thorough analyses of
  student data.

Proposals can focus on improving student learning and
outcomes, broadening participation of historically underrepresented student
groups in STEM at HSIs, or other efforts aligned with the HSI:ELPSE
solicitation's areas of focus. The IEP track is intended to be a broad
opportunity, and encourages the submission of high-risk, high reward approaches
with transformative potential.

IEP Level 1: Up to 3 Years with a maximum budget of
$500,000.

Awards at this level will support early-stage or
exploratory projects that look to enrich the student experience, improve
teaching and learning, broaden participation in undergraduate STEM, or improve
student outcomes at HSIs. While IEP Level 1 proposals should be evidence-based
as discussed above, they may be more exploratory and would generally be of a
smaller scale than IEP Level 2 proposals.

The core activities of Level 1 projects may be wholly
novel or may center on the replication and validation of promising approaches
or high impact practices that may be novel at the institution. While STEM
education or broadening participation research plans are welcome in Level 1 IEP
proposals, they are not required. However, in the absence of a research plan,
proposals must describe a plan to generate knowledge through the analysis and
broad dissemination of data and outcomes obtained through project evaluation.

Level 1 IEP proposals are welcome to submit letters of
collaboration from internal or external partners including faculty,
administrators, corporations, non-profits or other entities as appropriate.
These letters should adhere to the guidelines outlined in Chapter II.D.2.i.(iv)
of the NSF PAPPG and should not be letters of support as described in that
section.

IEP Level 2: Up to 5 Years with a maximum budget of
$1,000,000

IEP Level 2 projects are supported for up to five years
and should include efforts that are beyond the proof-of-concept stage and have
potential to result in sustainable positive outcomes that align with the goals
of the HSI program. Level 2 projects have a scale and scope beyond what would
typically be expected for IEP Level 1 projects.

Level 2 projects must include substantial educational
research plans intended to generate new knowledge that may improve our
understanding of how to build institutional capacity at HSIs, to meet the goals
of enhancing the quality of undergraduate student experiences in STEM, and/or
improving the recruitment, retention, and graduation rates of students pursuing
STEM degrees at HSIs. Research plans should include specific and actionable
research questions, be theoretically grounded, and draw from data streams that
look beyond those traditional institutional research measures. The HSI program
has no methodological preference and welcomes qualitative, quantitative and
mixed-methods studies as appropriate given the foci of each proposed study.

Specific plans to sustain and institutionalize successful
project components should be included as part of the Project Description. All
IEP Level 2 proposals must include letters of support from upper-level
institutional administrators, at the Dean level or higher, with responsibility
for faculty affairs and/or undergraduate STEM education in the proposal's focal
unit(s). These letters should outline concrete mechanisms and institutional
commitments for institutionalization and sustainability of the project
activities and should be uploaded as supplemental documents.

Level 2 IEP proposals are welcome to submit additional
letters of collaboration from internal or external partners including faculty,
administrators, corporations, non-profits or other entities as appropriate.
These letters should adhere to the guidelines outlined in Chapter II.D.2.i.(iv)
of the NSF PAPPG and should not be letters of support as described in that
section.

Cost sharing: Inclusion of voluntary committed cost
sharing is prohibited.