Simons Centers of Excellence at Historically Black Colleges and Universities – 2027 Request for Applications: FAQs

Each Center of Excellence (CoE) must be established in an accredited Historically Black College and University (HBCU) as defined by the Higher Education Act of 1965, or an academic institute that is part of an HBCU.

The CoE must be anchored at a single HBCU institution, which will serve as the lead applicant and host of the center. However, CoEs are strongly encouraged to engage nearby institutions and establish partnerships with leading research institutions. Collaborative arrangements with other institutions should be described in the proposal.

Yes, provided the institute is part of an accredited HBCU as defined by the Higher Education Act of 1965. The relationship between the institute and the HBCU should be clearly described in the application.

The CoE program supports research in mathematics, neuroscience, physics and ecology & evolutionary biology. Proposals outside these fields will not be considered.

Yes. Interdisciplinary CoEs that span multiple eligible fields are welcome, provided the research is grounded in basic science and aligned with Simons Foundation (SF) research priorities.

The PI/Director should hold a Ph.D., be a tenured faculty member and an excellent scientist at an active stage of their research career, with a demonstrated record of recognized scholarship. Their scholarship should be comparable to that of an associate or full professor. The PI/Director will set the scientific agenda of the CoE, oversee its administration, manage its budget and serve as the primary point of contact.

Yes. Interdisciplinary groups of PIs are welcome. However, one PI must be designated as the Director and serve as the main applicant PI on the letter of intent (LOI), the primary contact with SF, and the lead on administrative and budgetary matters.

Each CoE must include a minimum of three faculty members, two graduate students and two postdoctoral researchers, in addition to the PI/Director, research scientists and a Program Administrator.

Research scientists hired by the PI must hold a Ph.D. They will engage in the research agenda defined by the PI and will be afforded the freedom to pursue their own research projects relevant to the CoE’s mission. Research scientists are also expected to help recruit and engage students in the CoE’s research activities.

The Program Administrator will report to the Director and will be responsible for the logistics and budgetary management of the CoE. This is an administrative role, not a scientific one.

Yes. CoEs will be expected to recruit and actively engage both undergraduate and graduate students in their research agenda. The student engagement plan is a required and evaluated component of the full application.

Yes. A strong measure of CoE success will be the acquisition of federal funding during or after the five-year award period. CoEs are expected to apply for NSF, NIH and other federal funding opportunities as part of their ongoing research activity. SF will offer grant-writing workshops to support this goal.

Partnerships are not strictly required, but will be an important consideration in the review. Plans for partnerships with institutions with concretely identified resources supporting scientific exchange will be viewed favorably. Proposals should name specific partner institutions and describe the nature and resources supporting the partnership.

Yes. Proposals should include funding to host annual scientific meetings and to convene an external advisory committee. These gatherings are expected to support scientific exchange, community building, and accountability for the CoE’s research agenda.

CoEs are expected to actively welcome scientists from nearby institutions to participate in their scholarly activities and to stimulate the work of younger researchers from those institutions. Proposals should outline concrete plans for how the CoE will engage the surrounding academic community, such as through visiting researcher programs, joint seminars, shared student mentoring or collaborative projects.

Yes, an institution can apply to both award programs. However, it is unlikely that an institution would be selected for both awards.

We expect to select up to two CoEs for funding through this open call.

Each CoE will receive up to $1,500,000 (including indirect costs) per year for five years, for a total of up to $7,500,000 per CoE. The total program budget is $4,500,000 annually and $22,500,000 over five years across both funded CoEs.

Indirect costs are allowed for this award and must follow our indirect cost policy (see our policies). The indirect cost rate is nonnegotiable.

Allowable expenses include personnel costs (PI, research scientists, postdoctoral researchers, graduate students, Program Administrator), travel, conference registration, materials and supplies, equipment, annual scientific meeting costs, external advisory committee convenings, publication support and research stipends for students. Please refer to our policies for more information.

Yes. Each CoE will undergo a review in year four of the award. Continued funding into year five will be contingent on satisfactory progress as determined by SF and the external review committee.

The award period runs from September 1, 2027, through August 31, 2032, a total of five years, subject to the year-four review.

The current program does not include a renewal mechanism. CoEs are expected to develop a sustainability plan and to pursue federal funding during the award period to support continuation of their research beyond 2032.

The application process has two stages. First, invited institutions submit a Letter of Intent (LOI). SF staff will review LOIs and invite approximately 12 institutions to submit a full application. Full applications will then be reviewed by an external review committee, which will make funding recommendations to SF leadership.

The LOI (two–three pages) should include: an institutional overview; the proposed research focus; a leadership and team profile; hub and partnership plans; and an institutional commitment statement from senior leadership. CVs or biosketches may be included as an appendix and do not count toward the page limit.

No. Late proposals will not be reviewed. Proposals that do not follow the guidelines in this document will not be accepted.

Eligible institutions may submit more than one LOI. Please note that it is unlikely that one institution will be awarded two CoEs.

Yes. All personnel supported by the award — including PIs, research scientists, postdoctoral researchers and graduate students — will be required to register for and maintain an ORCID iD. ORCID iDs must be collected at the time of award and included in all annual progress reports.

SF will prioritize cutting-edge computational, data-driven and theoretical research in basic science and mathematics. Proposals in which observational or experimental work meaningfully supplements a primary computational or theoretical program will be considered in exceptional cases. Primarily experimental or observational research programs will be less competitive.

A strong plan will identify the number and level of students to be supported, describe specific research roles and mentoring structures, articulate a concrete approach to supporting student science identity and sense of belonging, and include a plan for tracking student outcomes such as graduate school enrollment and co-authored publications.

CoEs will be expected to produce peer-reviewed publications in leading journals, present at major scientific conferences and disseminate findings through open-access repositories. Well-defined scholarly deliverables should be articulated in the proposal and tracked in annual progress reports.

The sustainability plan should describe how the CoE’s research community will continue to thrive beyond the five-year award period. This includes a realistic path to federal funding, plans for growing a community of scholars who will carry the research forward, and any institutional commitments to sustaining the center after the award concludes.

SF will offer grant-writing workshops, institutional reporting support and technical assistance throughout the award period to help faculty and HBCU institutions build their capacity to pursue and manage large-scale public and private research funding.

Annual progress updates will be submitted through the Simons Award Manager (SAM). PIs will be required to attend monthly faculty meetings. Undergraduate and graduate students supported by the award will be required to attend some meetings throughout the course of the award. PIs and faculty supported by the award will be required to attend the annual convening at the Simons Foundation.

Yes. Participating CoEs will be required to administer an annual survey to undergraduate participants for two to three years following the conclusion of their participation in CoE-supported research. SF will provide a standardized survey instrument.

For assistance navigating SAM, please refer to the SAM frequently asked questions and instructional videos webpage.

No. Please be advised that all deadlines are in U.S. Eastern time. We recommend registering early and submitting with ample time for corrections prior to the deadline hour. Site traffic can slow page-load times. You will not be able to submit after the deadline has passed.

If changes are required to the LOI after submission, you must first contact [email protected]. LOIs can only be changed prior to the deadline.

Only one person can edit a record at a time. A record will be locked for editing if another user already has it opened, and a gray bar will display at the bottom of the record to prevent multiple users from overwriting one another’s changes. Ask other users at your institution to close the application, then refresh your page. If this still does not correct the issue, please reach out to [email protected].

Please note that in the event of budgetary or other considerations, The Simons Foundation, Inc. (“the Foundation” or “SF”) reserves the right to refer an application to SFI for consideration and funding. SFI and SF have entered into an agreement pursuant to which SF provides program operations and grant administration services, including payment processing, to SFI. SFI grant recipients are subject to SF Policies and Procedures.

All applications must be submitted via the Simons Award Manager (SAM). Please refer to the submission instructions for detailed steps on how to complete and submit your application. You will not be able to submit if the deadline has passed. We will not accept applications or individual application materials submitted via email or mail.

If changes are required to the application after it has been sent for sign-off, the Signing Official must send the application back for revisions. Once revised, the application must be sent for sign-off again and signed by the Signing Official in order to submit by the deadline. You will not be able to submit once the deadline has passed.