BPC Supplemental Funding

• Who is eligible?
• What is the funding for?
• How to submit the supplemental funding request
• Key points to keep in mind

Who is eligible?

Supplemental funding is available for PIs with NSF approved Project BPC Plans in the following CISE programs:

• Medium and Large awards in the Computer and Information Science and Engineering (CISE): Core Programs in its Computer and Network Systems (CNS), Computing and Communication Foundations (CCF), and Information and Intelligent Systems (IIS) divisions
• Medium and Frontiers awards in Secure and Trustworthy Cyberspace (SaTC)
• Medium and Frontier awards in Cyber-Physical Systems (CPS)

What is the funding for?

As per the NSF DCL, supplemental funding can be requested for one of these following types of activities:

• Extend the reach of current BPC activities that have some evidence of effectiveness to more participants or institutions
  • Extend activities must be BPC activities that are already included in the BPC Plan and have demonstrated effectiveness.
  • e.g., Partner with community colleges to offer a summer research experience you have already implemented 
• Coordinate BPC activities within a department or similar unit that are sustainable and likely to address a stated BPC challenge.
  • Coordinate activities can include adoption of new departmental initiatives and other activities supporting organizational and cultural change for BPC, even if these activities were not specified in the BPC Plan associated with the award.
  • e.g., Develop a Departmental BPC Plan

How to submit the supplemental funding request

• Step 1: Contact the program officer for your NSF award and the CISE BPC team at cise-bpc@nsf.gov to discuss your request.
• Step 2: After confirmation from your program officer, prepare your supplement request materials as described in the DCL NSF 24-030.
  • Click here to download a template prepared by the Center for Inclusive Computing and BPCnet.org to help you prepare your supplemental funding request.
• Step 3: Submit your supplemental funding request on research.gov.

Key points to keep in mind

This section includes key points to keep in mind and answers to some of the frequently asked questions obtained from the community. It is continuously updated based on questions we receive and contributions from community members.

Budget

• For the BPC supplemental funding requests, the budget can be up to 20% of the original award amount but cannot exceed $200,000 per supplement request.
• In a collaborative proposal, each institution can only request a supplement for their part of the award. For example, if the full award amount is $800,000 and the budget for each partner is $400,000, each institution can request up to 20% of their portion with a maximum limit of $200,000 per supplement request.
• Supplements cannot be requested if the proposed work would require an extension beyond the original expiration date of the award.
• Supplement funds are subject to the PAPPG guidelines and are intended to reach participants and should not be used primarily on development.

Reporting

• PIs are required to report BPC activities and outcomes in their annual reports to NSF. This requirement applies to supplemental funding as well.

Collaboration and Personnel

• It is acceptable to involve personnel (e.g., a BPC coordinator) who are not in the original award in the BPC supplement request and, while the PI(s) needs to be involved, they don’t have to be leading the proposed BPC work. The request should clearly explain PIs and other personnel’s role in the proposed activities.
• PIs can collaborate with other PIs but the proposals will be considered independently. If collaborating with another PI, a letter of collaboration can be submitted as a supplemental document. 
• It is not a requirement for all PIs in an award to be involved in the BPC supplemental funding request. It is up to the PIs/co-PIs to determine who will be involved in the supplemental funding request.

Scope

• Can BPC supplemental funding requests include student scholarship funding?
  • If scholarships were part of the original BPC plan, this could be considered “extending the reach of current BPC activities.” Therefore, the supplement request can include scholarships as long as it is supported by evidence that the original BPC activities are having a positive impact. If scholarships were not part of the original BPC Plan, they can not be included in the supplement request since scholarships are not an example of a sustainable practice that can be considered under a “coordinate BPC activities within a department or similar unit” request.