NSF 20-572: Discovery Research PreK-12
Closed
This grant is closed. A newer notice from the same program is open now: Major Research Instrumentation Program: (MRI) (NSF 27-500). Status: Closes January 29, 2027 (83 days left). It is in our archive of U.S. National Science Foundation notices from 2025.
U.S. National Science Foundation offered grants of up to $5.0 million (at least $450,000) to any type of organization. It expected to make about 60 awards worth $64.0 million in total. It is no longer open on Grants.gov.
From the official notice on Grants.gov, last changed June 7, 2025. Checked November 7, 2026.
- Award ceiling$5.0 million
- Award floor$450,000
- Total funding$64.0 million
- Expected awards60
- Cost sharingNot required
- Funding typeGrant
Key dates
| Posted | June 6, 2025 |
|---|---|
| Archived by Grants.gov | June 7, 2025 |
Who can apply
This opportunity was open to any type of organization.
- Unrestricted (i.e., open to any type of entity above), subject to any clarification in text field entitled "Additional Information on Eligibility"
Is this a realistic fit?
- Past STEM Education (formerly Education and Human Resources) awards averaged $932,576; this notice allows up to $5.0 million per award.
- Most of the program's money (90% over five years) went to colleges and universities.
- No cost sharing or match is required.
What the grant funds
The Discovery Research PreK-12 program (DRK-12) seeks to significantly enhance the learning and teaching of science, technology, engineering, mathematics and computer science (STEM) by preK-12 students and teachers, through research and development of STEM education innovations and approaches. Projects in the DRK-12 program build on fundamental research in STEM education and prior research and development efforts that provide theoretical and empirical justification for proposed projects. Projects should result in research-informed and field-tested outcomes and products that inform teaching and learning. Teachers and students who participate in DRK-12 studies are expected to enhance their understanding and use of STEM content, practices and skills. The DRK-12 program invites proposals that address immediate challenges that are facing preK-12 STEM education as well as those that anticipate radically different structures and functions of preK-12 teaching and learning. The DRK-12 program has three major research and development strands: (1) Assessment; (2) Learning; and (3) Teaching. The program recognizes the synergy among the three strands and that there is some overlap and interdependence among them. However, proposals should identify a clear focus of the proposed research efforts (i.e., assessment, learning, or teaching) consistent with the proposal’s main objectives and research questions. The program supportssix types of projects: (1) Exploratory, (2) Design and Development, (3) Impact, (4) Implementation and Improvement, (5) Syntheses, and (6) Conferences. Allsix types of projects apply to each of the three DRK-12 program strands.
Who has won STEM Education (formerly Education and Human Resources) grants before
From fiscal 2021 to 2025, STEM Education (formerly Education and Human Resources) (47.076) awarded $6.7 billion across 7,210 grant awards, an average of $932,576 per award.
| Recipient | State | Awards | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Regents of the University of California | California | 47 | $137 million |
| The Leland Stanford Junior University | California | 16 | $123 million |
| Massachusetts Institute of Technology | Massachusetts | 12 | $122 million |
| University of Wisconsin System | Wisconsin | 64 | $92.1 million |
| North Carolina State University | North Carolina | 79 | $91.2 million |
Applying now
This notice no longer takes applications. Apply under the newer notice, NSF 27-500, which is open now.
The notice on Grants.gov keeps its full text and attachments, which is useful for planning a resubmission.
Questions people ask
Is NSF 20-572 still open?
No. It is no longer open on Grants.gov. A newer notice is open: NSF 27-500, closes January 29, 2027 (83 days left).
Who can apply for Discovery Research PreK-12?
U.S. National Science Foundation accepted applications from any type of organization.
What is the deadline for Discovery Research PreK-12?
Closed. Applications are no longer accepted; the program's newer notices are on this page when there are any.
How much funding is available?
Awards of up to $5.0 million each. About $64.0 million in total across about 60 awards.
Who has won STEM Education (formerly Education and Human Resources) grants before?
The largest recipients over five fiscal years were The Regents of the University of California, The Leland Stanford Junior University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The program made 7,210 awards worth $6.7 billion in that time.