EPSCoR Research Infrastructure Improvement Program: EPSCoR Research Incubators for STEM Excellence
Last verified by NonDilute: 2026-06-08. Official notice and agency instructions control.
If your university or research consortium is in an EPSCoR-eligible state and wants to build multi-million dollar research infrastructure around an emerging STEM discipline, this is the program.
Report stale or inaccurate summary
What this is
The E-RISE (EPSCoR Research Incubators for STEM Excellence) program provides substantial funding ($8M+) to build research infrastructure and regional STEM capacity in EPSCoR-eligible jurisdictions. Applicants must propose hypothesis- or problem-driven research aligned with their jurisdiction's S&T plan, develop skilled workforces, foster cross-institutional collaboration (including industry and government), and demonstrate clear sustainability beyond the grant period. This is ecosystem-level funding focused on transforming long-term research competitiveness, not individual investigator grants.
Who can apply
Applicants must be located in or represent an eligible EPSCoR jurisdiction (primarily non-Ph.D.-granting states, territories, or commonwealths as defined by NSF). Academic institutions, government entities, non-profits, and industry can partner. Solo founders and small businesses are ineligible; this targets regional research ecosystems and consortia.
Eligible applicant types
- Others (see text field entitled "Additional Information on Eligibility" for clarification)
Full description — from the agency
The Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) supports the mission of the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) by promoting nationwide scientific progress. Through this program, NSF fosters partnerships among academic institutions, government entities, industry, and non-profits. These collaborations aim to drive long-term improvements in research infrastructure, enhance R&D capacity, and boost the research competitiveness of eligible EPSCoR jurisdictions, including states, territories, and commonwealths. A jurisdiction’s research ecosystem is the interconnected network of institutions, organizations, researchers, trainees, community stakeholders, and resources that contribute to the process of research and innovation that advances fundamental knowledge, generates use-inspired products, and ultimately cultivates beneficial societal impacts for a jurisdiction. E-RISE supports hypothesis-driven or problem-driven research and fosters the development of research teams and products in a scientific topical area that aligns with a jurisdiction’s research ecosystem and priorities, as detailed in the jurisdiction’s Science and Technology (S&T) Plan or drawn from other jurisdiction plans, reports, or publications prepared by appropriate authorities or bodies.E-RISE invitesinnovativeproposalswithin the chosen research area thatwillleadto development and implementation of sustainable broad networks of individuals, institutions, and organizations, and that will transform the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) research capacity and competitiveness in a jurisdiction. E-RISE is particularly interested in proposals that justify exploring emerging or interdisciplinary research areas with high potential impact. E-RISE projects must have a clearly articulated research goal that will lead to new knowledge by addressing a clear hypothesis or problem. The E-RISE projectshould promote (i) areas of research capacity-building within a chosen research topic; (ii) development of a skilled workforce that is relevant to the research topic, as well as the project and its outcomes; (iii) a culture of collaboration and engagement across different types of academic institutions and organizations, as well as non-academic sectors (e.g., industry and government); (iv) integration of the research with societal impacts; and (v) a clear sustainability plan to preserve the resulting research incubator's team and products beyond E-RISE funding.
Topics: research infrastructure · STEM capacity building · epscor jurisdiction · research incubator · regional competitiveness · sustainable research networks
Public-source funding discovery only. This summary is generated from public agency data and may be incomplete or stale. NonDilute is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or acting on behalf of any government agency. Official notices and agency instructions control. NonDilute does not determine eligibility, provide grant-writing advice, or guarantee funding.