The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) Office of University Programs has released two Requests for Proposals (RFP) totaling just over $820,000 in funding through its partnership with the Minority Serving Institution (MSI) Research and Development Consortium (MSRDC).
Interested applicants can review the RFPs posted here and here. Eligible applicants must be members of the MSRDC.
Through its collaboration with the MSRDC, DHS S&T connects high-level homeland security research and rapid development opportunities to nontraditional performers.
Two research projects aligned with the United States Coast Guard (USCG) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) mission areas are available. They include:
USCG: Improving Leeway Drift Data for the USCG Search and Rescue Optimal Planning System. USCG seeks innovative solutions to improve search patterns to account for the relative motion between the search unit and the drifting object. Project funding award up to $487,000.
CBP: Utilizing Forecasting Models for Pest or Agriculture Quarantine Smuggling Trends. CBP seeks innovative uses of the data they collect during port-of-entry inspections to better predict and mitigate pest threats approaching U.S. shores. Project funding award up to $333,980
MSIs selected for funding opportunity will serve as the primary research institution on all projects. Funding will go towards building and sustaining research capabilities and empowering MSIs to advance the common good of the United States within the homeland security enterprise.
MSRDC is a nonprofit corporation formed by the United States Department of the Army and sponsored by the Edgewood Chemical Biological Center. Consortium members include American Indian Alaska Native Serving Institutions, Asian-American and Native-American Pacific Islander-Serving Institution, Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Tribal Colleges and Universities, and other MSIs as defined by the United States Department of Education.
