Funding Opportunities
This page contains links to various government agencies and upcoming funding opportunities. More information can be found by visiting the Grant Development BeachBoard. Additional funding opportunities can be found by using the .
Please contact Karl Freels at Karl.Freels@csulb.edu. if you have questions about funding opportunities, SPIN, accessing the Grant Development BeachBoard, or acquiring examples of successfully funded grant submissions.
The following is a list of federal agencies who provide grants to higher education institutions. Each dropdown contains a brief synopsis of the agency mission / vision and links to their grants.gov homepage and funding opportunities. Listed opportunities include (and can be sorted by) open, closed, forecasted, and archived funding opportunities.
U.S Department of Commerce (DOC) Mission / Vision:
The U.S. Department of Commerce promotes job creation, economic growth, sustainable development and improved standards of living for all Americans by working in partnership with businesses, universities, communities, and our nation’s workers. The department touches the daily lives of the American people in many ways, with a wide range of responsibilities in the areas of trade, economic development, technology, entrepreneurship and business development, environmental stewardship, and statistical research and analysis.
U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) Mission / Vision:
The mission of the Department of Defense is to provide the military forces needed to deter war and protect the security of our country. The David L. Bowen National Security Education Act of 1991 mandates that the secretary of defense create and sustain a program to award scholarships to U.S. undergraduate students, fellowships to graduate students, and grants to U.S. institutions of higher education. These awards are for study or program development in languages and regions critical to national security.
U.S. Department of Education (ED) Mission / Vision:
The Department of Education's mission is to promote student achievement and preparation for global competitiveness by fostering educational excellence and ensuring equal access. Created in 1980 by combining offices from several federal agencies, the department's 4,400 employees and $68 billion budget are dedicated to establishing policies on federal financial aid for education, and distributing as well as monitoring those funds; collecting data on America's schools and disseminating research; focusing national attention on key educational issues; and prohibiting discrimination and ensuring equal access to education.
U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Mission / Vision:
To ensure America’s security and prosperity by addressing its energy, environmental, and nuclear challenges through transformative science and technology solutions.
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Mission / Vision:
The mission of the HHS is to enhance the health and well-being of Americans by providing for effective health and human services and by fostering sound, sustained advances in the sciences underlying medicine, public health, and social services.
U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Mission / Vision:
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security is tasked with securing the nation from any threats. Jobs range from aviation, border security, emergency response, cybersecurity, and facility inspection.
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Mission / Vision:
The mission of the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is to create strong, sustainable, inclusive communities and quality affordable homes for all. HUD is working to strengthen the housing market to bolster the economy and protect consumers; meet the need for quality affordable rental homes; utilize housing as a platform for improving quality of life; and build inclusive and sustainable communities free from discrimination.
U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) Mission / Vision:
The U.S. Department of the Interior uses sound science to manage and sustain Americans lands, water, wildlife, and energy resources, while honoring our nation's responsibilities to tribal nations and advocating for Americans island communities.
U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) Mission / Vision:
The mission of the U.S. Department of Justice is to enforce the law and defend the interests of the United States according to the law; to ensure public safety against threats foreign and domestic; to provide federal leadership in preventing and controlling crime; to seek just punishment for those guilty of unlawful behavior; and to ensure fair and impartial administration of justice for all Americans.
U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) Mission / Vision:
The mission of the U.S. Department of Labor is to foster, promote, and develop the welfare of the wage earners, job seekers, and retirees of the United States; improve working conditions; advance opportunities for profitable employment; and assure work-related benefits and rights.
U.S. Department of State (DOS) Mission / Vision:
The State Department's mission is to shape and sustain a peaceful, prosperous, just, and democratic world and foster conditions for stability and progress for the benefit of the American people and people everywhere.
U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) Mission / Vision:
The mission of the Department of Transportation is to serve the United States by ensuring a fast, safe, efficient, accessible and convenient transportation system that meets our vital national interests and enhances the quality of life of the American people, today and into the future.
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Mission / Vision:
The mission of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is to fulfill President Lincoln's promise "To care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and his orphan" by serving and honoring the men and women who are America's veterans.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Mission / Vision:
Born in the wake of elevated concern about environmental pollution, the EPA was established on December 2, 1970 to consolidate in one agency a variety of federal research, monitoring, standard-setting and enforcement activities to ensure environmental protection. Since its inception, the EPA has been working for a cleaner, healthier environment for the American people.
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Mission / Vision:
The mission directives of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) are to enable a safer, more secure, efficient, and environmentally-friendly air transportation system through aeronautics research; operate the International Space Station and prepare for human exploration beyond low Earth orbit; explore the Earth-Sun system, our own solar system, and the universe beyond; and develop the crosscutting, advanced and pioneering new technologies needed for current and future missions, benefiting the aerospace industry and other agencies, and addressing national needs.
National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) Mission / Vision:
The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) drives openness, cultivates public participation, and strengthens our nation's democracy through public access to high-value government records. The National Archives' mission is to provide public access to federal government records. Public access to government records allows Americans to claim their rights of citizenship, hold their government accountable, and understand their history so they can participate more effectively in their government.
National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Mission / Vision:
The National Endowment for the Arts is an independent federal agency that funds, promotes, and strengthens the creative capacity of our communities by providing all Americans with diverse opportunities for arts participation
National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) Mission / Vision:
The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) is an independent federal agency created in 1965. It is one of the largest funders of humanities programs in the United States. Because democracy demands wisdom, NEH serves and strengthens our republic by ÃÛÌÒÓ°Ïñexcellence in the humanities and conveying the lessons of history to all Americans. The Endowment accomplishes this mission by awarding grants for top-rated proposals examined by panels of independent, external reviewers.
National Institute of Health (NIH) Mission / Vision:
NIH is the largest public funder of biomedical research in the world and has invested in more than $32 billion a year to enhance life and reduce illness / disability. NIH funded research has led to breakthroughs and new treatments, helping people live longer, healthier lives, and building the research foundation that drives discovery.
National Science Foundation (NSF) Mission / Vision:
The National Science Foundation (NSF) is the only federal agency whose mission includes support for all fields of fundamental science and engineering, except for medical sciences. NSF is tasked with keeping the United States at the leading edge of discovery in areas from astronomy to geology to zoology. So, in addition to funding research in the traditional academic areas, the agency also supports "high-risk, high pay-off" ideas, novel collaborations and numerous projects that may seem like science fiction today, but which the public will take for granted tomorrow.
U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Mission / Vision:
USAID partners to end extreme poverty and to promote resilient, democratic societies while advancing our security and prosperity. Poverty is multi-dimensional, requiring an approach to address hunger and food insecurity, illiteracy and innumeracy, ill-health, dis-empowerment, marginalization, and vulnerability. USAID's Feed the Future, Global Health, Global Climate Change, and Power Africa initiatives target symptoms of and pathways out of poverty. USAID's work on education is already reaching millions in extreme poverty. Similarly, the organization's cross-cutting efforts in ÃÛÌÒÓ°Ïñdemocracy, rights and good governance, empowering women and girls, advancing prosperity, building resilient societies, and mitigating climate change are all essential to ending poverty.
U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Mission / Vision:
U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) provides leadership on food, agriculture, natural resources, rural development, nutrition, and related issues based on sound public policy, the best available science, and efficient management.
The USDA's vision is to expand economic opportunity through innovation, helping rural America to thrive; to promote agriculture production sustainability that better nourishes Americans while also helping feed others throughout the world; and to preserve and conserve our Nation's natural resources through restored forests, improved watersheds, and healthy private working lands.