Nurturing Strong Broader Impacts: Developing Plans for Executing a Successful Program to Incorporate in Grant Applications

The U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) receives approximately 50,000 research proposals each year, of which about 20% are funded. The NSF employs two criteria during the review process in deciding the most promising research to fund, in order to carry out its mandate to promote the progress of science; these are Intellectual Merit and Broader Impacts, defined and explained by the National Science Board. Most researchers can clearly explain intellectual merit in terms of advancing understanding in a field and disseminating the results of their research. Many investigators are unclear as to what types of activities are relevant when developing strong broader impacts programs, and how they are assessed. In this presentation, NSF supported investigators will stimulate discussion of the challenges in developing, executing, and assessing successful outreach and training programs and will conclude with a presentation and discussion by an NSF program officer listing current funding opportunities and resources available to facilitate and support outreach and training activities. All participants are welcome to attend.