NSF Announces Competition under Science and Technology Centers: Integrative Partnerships Program
The National Science Foundation (NSF) has announced another competition cycle for cooperative agreements under the Science and Technology Centers: Integrative Partnership program. NSF estimates a total of 5 - 7 awards with $25,000,000 for first year support of newly funded centers. Funds are approximate and subject to availability in FY 2010.

The preliminary proposal due date is September 5, 2008. The full proposal deadline is April 30, 2009 (invitation only).

Access to full solicitation.

The STC program has several objectives including:

• Engage and develop the Nation's intellectual talent, including groups underrepresented in the sciences, mathematics and engineering disciplines, in the conduct of research and education activities

• Promote organizational connections and linkages within and between campuses, schools or the world beyond (state, local, federal agencies, national labs, industry, international collaborations), capitalizing upon cyberinfrastructure to facilitate these linkages

• Focus on integrative learning and discovery and the preparation of U.S. students for a broad set of career paths.

Additional background:

The Science and Technology Centers (STC): Integrative Partnerships program supports innovative, potentially transformative, complex research and education projects that require large-scale, long-term awards. STCs conduct world-class research through partnerships among academic institutions, national laboratories, industrial organizations, and/or other public/private entities, and via international collaborations, as appropriate. They provide a means to undertake important investigations at the interfaces of disciplines and/or fresh approaches within disciplines. STC investments support the NSF vision of advancing discovery, innovation and education beyond the frontiers of current knowledge, and empowering future generations in science and engineering.

Centers provide a rich environment for encouraging future scientists, engineers, and educators to take risks in pursuing discoveries and new knowledge. STCs foster excellence in education by integrating education and research, and by creating bonds between learning and inquiry so that discovery and creativity fully support the learning process.

NSF expects STCs to demonstrate leadership in the involvement of groups traditionally underrepresented in science and engineering at all levels within the Center. To achieve their diversity objectives, STCs are expected to involve individuals from underrepresented groups as members of the Center faculty, and as students actively engaged in Center activities. STCs are strongly encouraged to form meaningful, substantive and long-term partnerships with minority-serving institutions, women's colleges and institutions serving students with disabilities, thereby providing formal connections with institutions that serve large populations of underrepresented students interested in STEM.

Centers undertake activities that will facilitate knowledge transfer, i.e., the mutual exchange of scientific and technical information among the Center partners and others with the objective of disseminating and utilizing knowledge broadly in multiple sectors.

To date, five competitions have been held to establish NSF Science and Technology Centers. The first two competitions, one in the late 1980's and one in the early 1990's, led to the establishment of 25 Science and Technology Centers, which are no longer funded as NSF centers. A third competition for Science and Technology Centers: Integrative Partnerships was held in 1999 and resulted in five new Centers. A fourth competition resulted in six new Centers.

Comment Period Remains Open for UI State Quality Service Plan (SQSP)
The Employment and Training Administration (ETA) is seeking an extension (without change) of the Unemployment Insurance (UI) State Quality Service Plan (SQSP).

The SQSP is one of several implementing documents for UI PERFORMS, that allows for an exchange of information between the Federal and State partners to enhance the ability of the program to reflect the joint commitment to continuous improvement and client centered services.

The "sixty day" notice was published on April 3, 2008.

The July 2 FEDERAL REGISTER provides full background on the comment period which extends to August 2.

Also see:

The UI Data Summary is produced quarterly from state-reported data contained in the Unemployment Insurance Data Base (UIDB) as well as UI-related data from outside sources (e.g., Bureau of Labor Statistics data on employment and unemployment and U.S. Department of Treasury data on state UI trust fund activities). This report is intended to provide the user with a quick overview of the status of the UI system at the national and state levels.

Direct Access to the First Quarter 2008 UI Data Summary

UI Periodic Data, Subject Data (Profiling, Trust Funds, etc.) Projections

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