Public Outreach and Informing the Public Grants

Submissions are no longer being accepted

APS will award several grants to encourage new outreach activities. Programs to be funded may include not only the more traditional K-12 outreach but also engaging the general public with/in physics and informing them about the importance of physics in their daily lives.

Purpose

These grants are to foster new activities and not support ongoing programs or duplicate existing APS efforts or similar NSF funded activities. Current and past APS outreach programs can be found on the PhysicsCentral website. Innovative ideas and new approaches, particularly if they have the potential to lead to sustained activities beyond the duration of the grant, are particularly encouraged. Special consideration will be given to those proposals that are exceptionally innovative and/or have high impact, for example, involvement with public media such as radio, TV, print media, social media platforms, podcasts, etc.

Award Amount

It is expected the grants will be for amounts up to $10,000, however, exceptional proposals for amounts in excess of $10,000 will be considered.

Terms

The funds are to be utilized over a period of 15 months starting May 1, 2018; recipients will be notified in February 2018. This year’s grants will be funded through a grant from the National Science Foundation grant, so we are unable to accept international proposals. All costs incurred must be after notice of NSF approval, recorded and invoiced to APS along with all receipts or record of spending within 90 days of expenditure. No reference to cost sharing with other agencies is allowed.

Grant awardees will be expected to present their work at a special session at the APS March Meeting 2019 in Boston, Massachusetts, March 4 - 8. Talks will be 10 minute contributed talks summing up the progress and outcomes of the funded program. If needed, please include travel costs in your budget.

Webinar

A webinar describing the program, the Request for Proposal process, and details of grant selection was held on November 14, 2017.

Application Process

To apply for these funds, please submit the following information as one PDF file to Rebecca Thompson at thompson@aps.org:

• Cover sheet clearly stating the name, address, phone number, and email of the main contact person for your application. Please include the name of your program and if affiliated with an institution, the department and institution you represent and provide the time period over which you project to perform this work.
• CV for main contact person.
• Narrative description (no more than three pages) of your program. Please include details of other financial support (if any), and description of personnel working on the program (instructional lab technicians, students, professors, etc).
• A budget detailing your plans for utilizing the funds including a narrative budget justification (not to exceed one page). Your grant budget must include indirect costs for all expenses except participant support.
• Completed NSF form 1030 detailing budget with indirect costs included
• Letter of support from your department chair or similar administrative official (this can be sent separately, as long as it clearly identifies the main contact person and institution).
• DUNS number and Tax ID number/Employee ID number if part of an organization, Social Security Number if an individual
• Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement (NICRA), if available, between your organization and NSF, for the period beginning January 1, 2018.
• Your APS membership status, if applicable. (Please note: APS membership is NOT a requirement.)

Important Information

These funds cannot be used for salaries, stipends, etc. of the main participants, but can be used to hire a student, an intern, or professional services if that is essential for the project. Grants will be funded by the National Science Foundation, so additional federal restrictions may apply.
NSF Reimbursement Guidelines

Questions?

Email Rebecca Thompson at thompson@aps.org.