Office of Stem Engagement (OSTEM)

The aerospace industry must continually cultivate a highly skilled and competitive science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) workforce today and in the future to achieve and maintain America’s position as a global leader in innovation and technology. To address the growing talent gap in STEM, NASA’s Office of STEM Engagement (OSTEM) will sharpen its focus on America’s STEM workforce development needs to accelerate students toward obtaining STEM jobs.

The Office of STEM Engagement (OSTEM) seeks to:

1) attract students to STEM through unique learning opportunities that spark interest and provide connections to NASA’s mission and work;

2) engage students in authentic learning experiences with NASA’s people, content, and facilities;

3) enable students to contribute to NASA’s work in exploration and discovery through challenges and work experiences; and

4) utilize evidence-based practices to advance and stimulate STEM education and research.

Categories of organizations that may be eligible for NASA grants and cooperative agreements include: •
Institutions of Higher Education (IHE) – A two- or four-year university or college (including U.S. community
Designations
Unrestricted by Entity Type
colleges), public or private, accredited to confer degrees beyond that of the K-12 grade levels. 29 • Educational
Institutions – Non-higher-education entities, such as K-12 education groups or institutions of informal
education, are classified as Educational Institutions.2 • Non-profit Organization – An organization that: o Is
operated primarily for scientific, engineering, educational, research, or similar purposes in the public interest;
o Is not organized primarily for profit; o Uses net proceeds to maintain, improve, or expand the organization’s
operations; and o Is not an IHE. Non-profit organizations generally exclude (i) colleges and universities; (ii)
hospitals; and (iii) state, local, and Federally recognized Indian tribal governments. • For-profit Entity – An
organization of any size that is organized primarily for profit. • Federally Funded Research and Development
Center (FFRDC) – FFRDCs are under a broad charter by a Government agency for performing, analyzing, or
conducting research for the United States Government. NASA sponsors JPL as the Agency’s sole FFRDC, and
JPL is not an eligible applicant to receive a NASA-funded grant or cooperative agreement as a recipient or
subrecipient3 . However, FFRDCs sponsored by agencies other than NASA may be eligible to receive a NASAfunded
award as a recipient or subrecipient. • Non-U.S. Organizations – Organizations outside the U.S. that
meet the definitions of foreign organization or foreign public entity in 2 CFR § 200.1. Non-U.S. organizations
generally propose for opportunities on a no-exchange-of-funds basis in accordance with NASA policy. NOFOs
may be issued jointly with a non-U.S. organization (e.g., those concerning guest observing programs for jointly
sponsored space science programs) that will contain additional special guidelines for non-U.S. participants. •
State, Local, or Federally-Recognized Tribal Government Agency – o State Government means any state of the
United States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, any territory or possession of the
United States, and any agency or instrumentality of a State exclusive of its local governments

After proposals are submitted, NASA evaluates all applications to determine funding selections, and applicants
are notified of the outcome by email. Award selection announcements generally occur 150 to 220 days after the
proposal due date, following approval of NASA funding through the federal budget process. Selection timelines
may be extended due to budget delays, required final approvals and concurrence, or if additional information
is needed from the applicant, such as revised budgets or supporting details required to finalize the award.

For information on application review procedures, applicants should refer to the
applicable section of Proposal Review and Selection Criteria of the GCAM: https://www.nasa.gov/grants-policyand-
compliance-team/#Regulations