Notices of Funding Opportunities and Awards
Featured Funding Opportunity
Washington, D.C. | September 29, 2025 | Accelerating Research Translation (25-548) | The U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) seeks to increase the scale and pace of advancing discoveries resulting from academic research into tangible solutions that benefit the public. The overarching goal for the Accelerating Research Translation (ART) program is to advance the U.S. scientific and economic leadership by building capacity and increasing the number of robust translational research ecosystems in Institutions of Higher Education (IHEs) that span across the full geography of our nation.
This updated ART solicitation expands and builds upon its previous version, NSF 23-558, by implementing Tracks that address varying stages of capacity to accelerate research translation. The ART program is aimed at providing resources that will ultimately facilitate a wide range of IHEs to achieve research translation, accelerate technology transfer, and create sustained economic and collective impacts across the U.S. It is understood that, like technology readiness levels (TRLs), there is no one measure or a combination of measures that can be used to describe the capacity of or measure the research translation readiness level (RTRL) for an IHE.
Estimated Awards: Unspecified. Total Funding: $178,000,000. Award Ceiling: $8,000,000. Closing Date: January 25 2026.
Funding Opportunities
Washington, D.C.| September 30 2025 | Drug-Free Communities (DFC) Support Program – NEW (Year 1) (CDC-RFA-CE-26-0061) | The Drug-Free Communities (DFC) Support Program was created by the Drug-Free Communities Act of 1997 (Public Law 105-20). The Executive Office of the President, Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (NCIPC) are accepting applications for Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 Drug-Free Communities (DFC) Support Program grants. The purpose of the DFC Support Program is to establish and strengthen collaboration to support the efforts of community coalitions working to prevent youth substance use. By statute, the DFC Support Program has two goals: 1) Establish and strengthen collaboration among communities, public and private non-profit agencies, as well as federal, state, local, and tribal governments to support the efforts of community coalitions working to prevent and reduce substance abuse among youth (individuals 18 years of age and younger). 2) Reduce substance abuse among youth and, over time, reduce substance abuse among adults by addressing the factors in a community that increase the risk of substance abuse and promoting the factors that minimize the risk of substance abuse. Estimated Awards: 50. Total Funding: $31,250,000. Award Ceiling: Not specified. Closing Date: April 14 2026.
Washington, D.C.| September 26 2025 | Mind and Body Interventions to Restore Whole Person Health via Emotional Well-Being Mechanisms (PAR-25-449) | The National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) announces this Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) to solicit applications for research on how mind and body interventions through psychological and/or physical inputs (e.g., mindfulness meditation, yoga, acupuncture, massage, and other brain and/or body based interventions) impact mechanisms of emotional well-being (EWB) and their associations with whole person health (WPH), consistent with the NIH priority to address the health needs of the American people and improve their well-being. The NOFO will support rigorous and well-powered mechanistic research studies that are supported by strong preliminary data. The studies should examine the effects of mind and body interventions on innovative mechanisms of EWB (as the primary outcome), as well as the associated relationship with the Whole Person Health Index (WPHI, as a secondary outcome). Estimated Awards: 3. Total Funding: $2,000,000. Award Ceiling: Unspecified. Closing Date: June 7 2028.
Washington, D.C.| September 26 2025 | NSF National Innovation Corps Teams (NSF National I-Corps (TM) Teams) program (25-549) | The NSF National I-Corps program is designed to support the commercialization of “deep technologies,” those revolving around foundational discoveries in science and engineering. The NSF National I-Corps program addresses the skill and knowledge gaps associated with the transformation of basic research into deep technology ventures (DTVs). The purpose of the NSF National I-Corps Teams program is to provide NSF-funded researchers additional support in the form of entrepreneurial education, mentoring, and funding to accelerate the translation of knowledge derived from foundational research into emerging products, processes, and services that may attract subsequent third-party funding.The outcomes of NSF National I-Corps Teams’ projects are threefold: 1) a decision on a clear path forward based on an assessment of the business model, 2) substantial first-hand evidence for or against product-market fit, with the identification of customer segments and corresponding value propositions, and 3) a narrative of a technology demonstration for potential partners. Estimated Awards: Unspecified. Total Funding: $12,000,000. Award Ceiling: Unspecified. Closing Date: Proposals accepted anytime.
Springfield, Ill. | September 20 2025 | Business Attraction Prime Sites |This Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) sets forth the requirements of the Business Attraction Prime Sites program. The Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) administers grant programs designed to promote and enhance economic development. The intent of this program is to assist companies with large-scale capital investment projects that commit to significant job creation for Illinois residents as they relocate or expand operations within Illinois. Business Attraction Prime Sites grants can encompass a wide range of economic development projects and may include infrastructure and capital equipment purchases that will result in job creation in the state of Illinois. Estimated Awards: 130. Total Funding: $120,000,000. Award Ceiling: $25,000,000. Closing Date: June 30, 2026.
Washington, D.C.| September 17 2025 | BJA FY25 Office of Justice Programs Community Based Violence Intervention and Prevention Initiative (O-BJA-2025-172468) | This funding opportunity supports law enforcement efforts to reduce violent crime and improve police-community relations through a range of cross-sector enforcement, prevention, and intervention strategies that leverage active collaboration with communities through sustained partnerships and engagement. Please see the Eligible Applicants section for the eligibility criteria. Estimated Awards: Unspecified. Total Funding: $2,000,000. Award Ceiling: Unspecified. Closing Date: October 27 2025.
Washington, D.C.| September 17 2025 | OJJDP FY25 Reducing Recidivism for Female Juvenile Delinquents (O-OJJDP-2025-172458) | This NOFO will support the development, enhancement, or expansion of intervention programs for female juvenile delinquents. Funding will be used to develop and implement direct service programs for female juvenile delinquents to reduce reoffending or enhance or expand existing programs to meet their specific needs. Estimated Awards: 7. Total Funding: $3,760,000. Award Ceiling: $525,000. Closing Date: October 27 2025.
Springfield, Ill. | September 16 2025 | Federal Grant Support Program | The State of Illinois benefits economically when federal funds are invested in Illinois. However, Illinois receives less funding in federal grants per person (or per capita) than the average state, as well as states similar in population size. Federal grant funding is distributed by discretionary and non-discretionary grants. Discretionary federal grants typically require a match, which is the non-federal share of the project costs that a grantee must contribute to achieve the purposes of the award. In some instances where there is no formal matching requirement, the percentage of the match provided by the grantee is used as a metric for evaluating the competitiveness of an application. This matching grant program is intended to encourage more Illinois-based applicants to apply for federal grant opportunities, provide critical assistance to meet the minimum match eligibility requirements, increase the competitiveness of applications, and provide the State of Illinois with an opportunity to make a firm commitment and demonstration of support for projects that are well aligned with the State’s economic development goals and priorities. Estimated Awards: 30. Total Funding: $16,900,000. Award Ceiling: $2,00,000. Closing Date: No specific due dates.
Washington, D.C.| September 15, 2025 | OJJDP FY25 Mentoring for Youth Affected by Opioid and Other Substance Use(O-OJJDP-2025-172446) | This NOFO will enhance and expand mentoring services for children and youth affected by opioids and other substance use, as well as their families. Mentoring services may include one-on-one, group, or peer mentoring—or a combination of these approaches. In addition to mentoring services, this NOFO may support supplemental activities that are consistent with the proposed mentoring model and have a clear connection to the mentoring program. Up to 20 percent of the total funds may be allocated for other non-mentoring direct services, such as mental health treatment, substance use treatment, or other supportive services identified and aligned with the project design. Estimated Awards: 13. Total Funding: $15,100,000. Award Ceiling: $1,980,000. Closing Date: October 23 2025.
Washington, D.C.| September 12, 2025 | Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (OESE): Innovation and Early Learning Programs: Education Innovation and Research (EIR) Program Mid-Phase Grants (ED-GRANTS-091225-002) | The EIR program, established under section 4611 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended (ESEA), provides funding to create, develop, implement, replicate, or take to scale entrepreneurial, evidence-based (as defined in this notice), field-initiated innovations to improve student achievement and attainment for high-need students; and to rigorously evaluate such innovations. This notice invites applications for Mid-phase grants only. The notice inviting applications for Expansion grants within the EIR program is published elsewhere in this issue of the Federal Register. The Department does not intend to offer an Early-phase competition, yet may fund high-scoring, unfunded applicants from any of the FY 2024 EIR competitions. Estimated Awards: 8. Total Funding: $253,000,000. Award Ceiling: $10,000,000. Closing Date: October 14 2025.
Springfield, Ill. | September 10 2025 | Driving a Cleaner Illinois – Volkswagen | This Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) is to inform potential applicants of the availability of funds from the Volkswagen Environmental Mitigation Trust Agreement (Trust or Trust Agreement). Under this NOFO, the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (Illinois EPA or Agency) will fund a portion of the eligible costs associated with the replacement (not repower) of eligible existing and licensed on-road diesel Class 4-8 medium- and heavy-duty local freight trucks (at least 14,001 lbs. GVWR) or Class 8 port drayage trucks (at least 33,001 lbs. GVWR). Each new replacement truck must be of the same type and class as the retired truck and be a licensed on-road all-electric Class 4-8 medium- and heavy-duty local freight truck or a Class 8 port drayage truck that operates at a shipping port (hereinafter “all-electric trucks” or “electric trucks”) located and operated in any of the three priority areas outlined in the Beneficiary Mitigation Plan (BMP) and in this NOFO. Estimated Awards: 65 (trucks). Total Funding: $18,000,000. Award Ceiling: $18,000,000. Closing Date: No specific due date.
Grant Awards
Washington, D.C. | September 29 2025 | Trump admin pulls grants for bicycle lanes in Illinois | Scott Goldstein, Senior Director of Government Relations at Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, joins Jon Hansen to discuss President Trump’s administration pulling back grants to states for bicycle trails. The grants had been awarded during the Biden administration. The two discuss the impact that this will have on communities, the economic benefits of bike lanes, and what will happen to current projects that were expecting the grant.
Springfield, Ill. | September 19 2025 | Gov. JB Pritzker Awards Funding to 1,123 Artists, Arts Organizations and Communities Across Illinois | Governor JB Pritzker and the Illinois Arts Council (IAC) announce awards totaling $16.2 million in grants to 1,123 artists, arts organizations, and communities throughout Illinois. This year’s funding empowers the creative sector, bolsters youth employment in the arts, and enhances regional arts initiatives across the state. “The arts enrich our lives, our communities, and our culture,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “With key arts funding under attack at the federal level, I’m proud that Illinois is continuously investing in our state’s talented artists, encouraging young people to pursue their passions in the arts sector, and enhancing communitywide access to arts initiatives.” Grant programs funded in the first quarter of FY26 include the Creative Accelerator Fund (CAF), General Operating Support (GOS) with Youth Employment in the Arts (YEA) and Regional Arts Partner (RAP) grants. These programs fortify the state’s vibrant cultural landscape and foster community engagement.
Springfield, Ill. September 17 2025 | Lawsuit leads to release of federal funding for EV chargers in Illinois | Illinois will release a new round of federal funding to build electric vehicle charging stations after the Trump administration initially sought to withhold it. The state on Wednesday announced plans to release $18 million it received after successfully suing the Trump administration for withholding the funds that Congress had already allocated. The 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law signed by former President Joe Biden contained $148 million for Illinois to build more EV charging stations. The state received $25.3 million to build charging stations at 37 locations in 2024 as part of the first round of grant funding.
Chicago, Ill. | September 16 2025 | Feds threaten CPS magnet school grants over Black Student Success Plan, treatment of trans students | The Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights has threatened to terminate Chicago Public Schools Magnet Schools Assistance Program grant and others over its Black Student Success Plan and treatment of transgender students in accordance with state law. The cuts, detailed in a letter from Acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Craig Trainor, would total $5.8 million — about half a percent of the district’s nearly $10 billion budget. It would total around $17.5 million for the total duration of the grants.
Springfield, Ill. | September 15 2025 | Secretary of State announces $28 million for IL libraries, literacy programs | More than $28 million is going to libraries across the state — including several in Central Illinois — courtesy of Secretary of State and State Librarian Alexi Giannoulias. Giannoulias’ office announced a series of grants on Monday that will go toward regional library systems and literacy programs.
Washington, D.C. | September 11 2025 | Trump administration ending grants for colleges with large minority student populations | The Education Department announced Wednesday it is ending discretionary funding to multiple Minority-Serving Institutions (MSI) grant programs. The funding violated the law, according to the Trump administration, because it goes to institutions that “meet racial or ethnic quotas.” “Discrimination based upon race or ethnicity has no place in the United States,” Education Secretary Linda McMahon said. “To further our commitment to ending discrimination in all forms across federally supported programs, the Department will no longer award Minority-Serving Institution grants that discriminate by restricting eligibility to institutions that meet government-mandated racial quotas.”
Chicago, Ill. | September 10 2025 | Press Forward Chicago awards $1.5 million in new local media grants | Today, Press Forward Chicago, a funder collaborative dedicated to strengthening and sustaining local news, announces more than $1.5 million in grants to 26 local news organizations. Housed at The Chicago Community Trust, Press Forward Chicago is a local affiliate of the national Press Forward initiative led by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation and the Knight Foundation to raise unprecedented resources to revitalize local news. The Chicago fund is supported by a growing coalition of civic-minded individuals, philanthropic leaders, and foundations interested in fostering stronger, economically stable organizations that can serve the information needs of their communities and that will inspire more residents to participate in civic life.
Chicago, Ill. | September 9 2025 | UIC researchers awarded $8.3M federal grant to study alcohol use disorder | September 9, 2025, Chicago – The University of Illinois Chicago’s Center for Alcohol Research in Epigenetics has been awarded an $8.3 million five-year grant renewal to continue its research on alcohol use disorder. The grant renewal from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, under the National Institutes of Health, will fuel cutting-edge research into cellular interaction in areas of the brain that are key to alcohol addiction.
Bloomington, Ill. | September 9 2025 | Rep. Eric Sorensen announces more than $1M towards drug addiction research | A Bloomington-based health system is receiving federal funds to address drug addiction. Rep. Eric Sorensen (IL-17) announced that Chestnut Health Systems is receiving a $1.1 million grant from the Department of Health and Human Services for research into drug addiction. The money will be used to fund a center supporting research projects studying the barriers people in the criminal justice system face in accessing safe and effective drug treatment and recovery services, Sorensen said.
Chicago, Ill. | September 5 2025| University of Chicago Joins Duke-Led Quantum Supercomputer Initiative Supported by $4 Million NSF Grant | The University of Chicago and its partners have been awarded a $4 million grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to enter the next phase of the Quantum Advantage-Class Trapped Ion System (QACTI) project. The multi-university partnership, formally known as the National Quantum Virtual Laboratory (NQVL), is led by Duke University and aims to design a quantum supercomputer with broad scientific and educational access.
Washington, D.C. | September 5 2025 | PBS cuts 15% of jobs in wake of federal funding cut | PBS’s chief executive told public television officials Thursday that it was cutting about 15% of its jobs due to the move by Republicans in Congress to eliminate all federal funding for public broadcasting starting on Oct. 1. Thirty-four PBS staffers were notified Thursday that their positions were being cut. Taken with the loss of a longstanding federal grant for an educational initiative earlier this summer, and the elimination of about three dozen other vacant positions, PBS will have lost more than 100 jobs in all.
Evanston, Ill. | September 2 2025 | Chicago Avenue upgrade in Evanston secures $10 million federal grant | Evanston’s plans to revamp Chicago Avenue with a protected bike lane and other infrastructure improvements have received a significant federal boost. The city has secured $10.06 million from the U.S. Department of Transportation to fund the project. The Chicago Avenue Multimodal Corridor Improvements Project, in development since 2020, is currently in its second of three pre-construction engineering phases…The project will extend the street’s existing two-way bike lane, which currently ends at Davis Street, by 1.9 miles to the city’s border with Chicago. In addition, the project includes upgrades to the roadway, traffic signals, bus stops, sidewalks, and crosswalks.
Post will be updated until the end of the month | Final update: October 14, 2025.
Information is provided as a courtesy | See the original notices of funding opportunities (NOFOs) for application eligibility and requirements.