It’s that time of year again when we remind our active grantees about the education and broadening participation supplements available to DEB awards.

We have recently updated our supplement descriptions. Additional details on the components to include in each type of supplement request and information on budgets can also be found on our supplements webpage.

Target Date:

Requests for this set of DEB supplements (RET, RAHSS, ROA, REU) should be submitted by the third Tuesday in January annually. This is a target date, requests beyond the target date will be considered only as budgets allow. Supplement requests must be submitted through FastLane.

Supplement Types:

• Research Experiences for Teachers (RET)
• Research Assistantships for High School Students (RAHSS)
• Research Opportunity Awards (ROA)
• Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU)

Other types of supplement requests should be discussed with your program officer. If you have any additional questions, please contact the relevant DEB Program (check the DEB staff listings on the NSF website).

Eligibility:

Supplements are only available to PIs and co-PIs with active DEB awards. Please note that some of the special programs accept supplement requests, and others do not. If your program is not listed here, and/or if you have questions about supplement eligibility for your current award, please contact your cognizant Program Officer.

Before submitting a supplement request, here are a few things to keep in mind:

• no supplements can be awarded if there are any overdue project reports associated with anyone on the award including co-PIs and all members of a collaborative project
• supplemental funds must be expended by the expiration date of the original award
• the IRB/IACUC documentation must be up-to-date and include the time frame of the supplement
• if the award budget already included Participant Support funds to support students or teachers, you must clearly explain the extenuating circumstances leading to the request for more such funding
• as budgets allow, DEB typically provides funds for one REU student per year, but will consider supporting two REU students if the PI can demonstrate a unique opportunity for broadening participation from traditionally underrepresented groups in the biological sciences.