Grants / Department of Agriculture / National Institute of Food and Agriculture

Tribal Colleges Research Grants Program

Open Closes December 31, 2026 (61 days left) Opportunity USDA-NIFA-TCRGP-011697

• Award ceiling$2.5 million
• Award floor$150,000
• Expected awards15
• Total funding$11.6 million
• Cost sharingNot required
• Funding typeGrant

Key dates

Add the deadline to your calendar

Who can apply

This opportunity is open to the applicants described in the notice.

• Others (see text field entitled "Additional Information on Eligibility" for clarification)

Applicants for the TCRGP must meet all the requirements discussed in this NOFO. Failure to meet the eligibility criteria by the application deadline may result in exclusion from consideration or preclude NIFA from making an award. For those new to Federal financial assistance, NIFA’s About Grants provides highly recommended information about grants and other resources to help understand the Federal awards process. The eligible 1994s are listed below:1) Aaniiih Nakoda College2) Bay Mills Community College3) Blackfeet Community College4) Cankdeska Cikana Community College5) Chief Dull Knife College6) College of Menominee Nation7) College of the Muscogee Nation8) Dine College9) Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College10) Fort Peck Community College11) Haskell Indian Nations University12) Ilisagvik College13) Institute of American Indian and Alaska Native Culture and Arts Development.14) Keweenaw Bay Ojibwa Community College15) Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwa Community College16) Leech Lake Tribal College17) Little Big Horn College18) Little Priest Tribal College19) Navajo Technical University20) Nebraska Indian Community College21) Northwest Indian College22) Nueta Hidatsa Sahnish College23) Oglala Lakota College24) Red Lake Nation College25) Saginaw Chippewa Tribal College26) Salish Kootenai College27) Sinte Gleska University28) Sisseton Wahpeton College29) Sitting Bull College30) Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute31) Stone Child College32) Tohono O'odham Community College33) Turtle Mountain Community College34) United Tribes Technical College35) White Earth Tribal and Community College USDA will not accept competitive applications for grants and cooperative agreements submitted for dangerous gain-of-function research, as defined in Section 8 of E.O. 14292.Duplicate or Multiple Submissions – duplicate or multiple submissions are not allowed. NIFA will disqualify both applications if an applicant submits duplicate or multiple submissions.

Is this a realistic fit?

• No cost sharing or match is required.

What the grant funds

TCRGP focuses on development of research capacity at Tribal colleges, specifically in agriculture, natural resources, and human sciences. The program aims to teach leadership skills, knowledge, and qualities that are necessary to prepare students to be competitive with other students for agricultural and related careers in the private sector, government, and academia. Of interest are the projects involving innovative agricultural technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI), data science, robotics, and other cutting edge digital tools. NIFA encourages incorporation of opportunities for training undergraduate students in these areas to equip them with the foundational knowledge and skills necessary to adapt to and thrive in an increasingly digital society and expose them to educational and career pathways in AI for food and agricultural sciences.

Category: Agriculture.

How to apply

1. Read the full notice and attachments on Grants.gov and the agency's announcement. The notice is the official source for deadlines and requirements.
2. Make sure your organization has an active SAM.gov registration and Unique Entity ID; registration can take several weeks.
3. Register on Grants.gov and submit through Workspace before the deadline and time given in the notice. Our application guide walks through each step.

Questions go to Yamilis Ocasio, Grantor, grantapplicationquestions@usda.gov, 6892630095.

Open the official notice