Awards will be made as cooperative agreements to accredited Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs) in the United States that are eligible to apply for this NASA Research Announcement (NRA). The period of performance for an award is up to 6 months. Prospective proposers are requested to submit any questions in writing to
[email protected] no later than 10 business days before the proposal due date so that NASA will have sufficient time to respond. Proposers to this NRA are required to have the following, no later than the due date: 1) a Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number, 2) a valid registration with the System for Award Management (SAM) [formerly known as the Central Contractor Registry (CCR)], 3) a valid Commercial And Government Entity (CAGE) Code, 4) a valid registration with NASA Solicitation and Proposal Integrated Review and Evaluation System (NSPIRES) (this also applies to any entities proposed for sub-awards or subcontracts.) Consult Appendix I Section I.3 for more eligibility information. The goal of M-STAR is to provide planning grants to promote STEM literacy and to enhance the capability of institutions to participate in NASA Space Technology Mission Directorate (STMD) opportunities, such as Centennial Challenges, and to support the Agency’s advancement of technologies needed for exploration of the Moon, Mars and beyond through the development of an implementation plan for responding to STMD opportunities. M-STAR seeks to address the agency goals and objectives through increasing the institutional awareness of NASA competitive resources that can build the capacity of MSIs to offer and conduct STEM undergraduate and graduate research with a focus on NASA opportunities and connecting MSI administrators and university STEM leaders to cutting-edge initiatives at NASA that can increase interest in securing research and contracting opportunities while supporting NASA’s policy to achieve an Agency-wide goal of providing one percent of total contract value of prime and subcontracting awards to MSIs. To achieve these goals, M-STAR seeks to: expand the nation's base for space technology by fostering new research and technology development concepts aligned with NASA priorities; promote MSI participation in NASA Space Technology Mission Directorate opportunities; strengthen participation of faculty, researchers, and students at MSIs in the research programs of NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate; facilitate mechanisms to ensure the diversity of workers at NASA and in undergraduate and graduate degrees awarded to students from MSIs in NASA-related fields reflects the diversity of our nation. Every institution intending to submit a proposal to this NRA must be registered in NSPIRES. Electronic submission of proposals is required by the due date and must be submitted by an authorized official of the proposing organization. Such registration must identify the authorized organizational representative(s) who will submit the electronic proposal. All principal investigators and other participants (e.g. co-investigators) must be registered in NSPIRES regardless of submission system. Potential proposers and proposing organizations are urged to access the system(s) well in advance of the proposal due date(s) of interest to familiarize themselves with its structure and enter the requested information. Electronic proposals may be submitted via the NASA proposal data system NSPIRES. Additional programmatic information for this NRA may develop before the proposal due date. If so, such information will be added as a Frequently Asked Question (FAQ) or formal amendment to this NRA and posted on http://nspires.nasaprs.com. It is the proposer’s responsibility to check NSPIRES regularly for updates to this NRA.