Conference: Increasing participation of EPSCoR states in Translational Research

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Partnerships for Innovation - Conference project will be knowledge sharing and fostering collaborations to address translational research needs in NSF’s priority areas. This workshop will generate a network to connect researchers from EPSCoR states to communicate and benefit from each other’s expertise in successful proposal writing. This workshop will target researchers and research administrators from minority serving institutions underrepresented on the overall NSF awarded funding landscape. This workshop will further promote NSF’s priority of STEM education, interdisciplinary, and convergent research in a collaborative environment. In a bottom-up approach, this workshop expects to bring administrators from research offices from EPSCoR states to convey strategies and methodologies for efficient collaborations, proposal writing, and networking. A written report outlining all key discussion items and future recommendations and an online discussion form will be important outcomes of this workshop. The proposed project will provide a venue for EPSCoR participants (researchers and research Leadership personnel such as VRPs, Deans, etc) to share a vision for research and STEM education in innovation. The conference will have cultural and social activities to promote networking among participants from the EPSCoR States. The workshop program will include presentations from NSF program directors to discuss trends and research priorities and to provide pathways to leverage NSF opportunities towards translational research in science and engineering in their respective institutions. This will empower EPSCoR participants for future proposal submission preparation and help them aim for appropriate NSF programs for future funding. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.