Discover Funding Opportunities for Cooperative Extension and Higher Education

Explore funding opportunities curated by the Extension Foundation currently available for Cooperative Extension. New grants are added twice a month, so make sure to check back frequently! 

National Opportunities

Artificial Intelligence (AI) & Digital Infrastructure

  • Artificial Intelligence and Cybersecurity Education Innovation and Scholarship for Service (CyberAI SFS) | U.S. National Science Foundation
    Eligibility label: Both
    Amount: $300,000–$2,500,000
    Estimated number of awards: 1 to 25
    Synopsis: NSF’s CyberAI SFS program supports AI and cybersecurity education capacity, including scholarship-track projects that place students into government cybersecurity work and innovation-track projects that strengthen AI/cyber education models. Four-year IHEs may apply directly under the Scholarship Track, while two- and four-year IHEs, including community colleges, may apply directly under the Innovation Track. (NSF – U.S. National Science Foundation)
    Best-fit screen: Strong fit for land-grant institutions with cybersecurity, AI, public-sector talent pipeline, and workforce-development capacity; especially worth review where Extension or public-service missions connect to cyber workforce needs. (NSF – U.S. National Science Foundation)
    Deadline: Full proposal deadline, July 21, 2026
    Link: NSF 26-503: Artificial Intelligence and Cybersecurity Education Innovation and Scholarship for Service (NSF – U.S. National Science Foundation)

  • FY 2026 U.S. Leadership in Education, Advanced Manufacturing, and Digital Skills (U.S. LEADS) Program | U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs
    Eligibility label: Direct Applicant Eligible
    Amount: $2,500,000
    Estimated number of awards: 1
    Synopsis: U.S. LEADS will showcase U.S. leadership in advanced manufacturing, AI, supply chains, and workforce training through a Washington summit and regional exchanges for about 100 higher-education officials, commerce leaders, and policymakers from strategically important countries. Public and private IHEs are explicitly eligible applicants. (Simpler Grants)
    Best-fit screen: Best for community colleges and land-grant universities with strong industry partnerships, workforce systems relationships, and international programming infrastructure. (Simpler Grants)
    Deadline: Application deadline, May 18, 2026
    Link: FY 2026 U.S. Leadership in Education, Advanced Manufacturing, and Digital Skills (U.S. LEADS) Program (Simpler Grants)

Workforce Preparation & Job Readiness

  • Improving Undergraduate STEM Education: Directorate for STEM Education (IUSE: EDU) | U.S. National Science Foundation
    Eligibility label: Direct Applicant Eligible
    Amount: $200,000–$2,000,000
    Estimated number of awards: Not stated
    Synopsis: IUSE: EDU supports evidence-based projects to improve undergraduate STEM teaching, learning, and institutional change. The program is open to all institutions of higher education and associated organizations. (Simpler Grants)
    Best-fit screen: Strong fit for universities seeking to improve STEM student success, transfer, and workforce preparation at scale; especially relevant where undergraduate teaching innovation and institutional transformation are priorities. (Simpler Grants)
    Deadline: Full application closing date, July 15, 2026
    Link: Improving Undergraduate STEM Education: Directorate for STEM Education (Simpler Grants)

  • FY 2026 Global Undergraduate Exchange Program (Global UGRAD) | U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs
    Eligibility label: Direct Applicant Eligible
    Amount: Approximately $4,800,000
    Estimated number of awards: 1
    Synopsis: Global UGRAD funds the administration of an undergraduate exchange program that places participants at a broad range of U.S. colleges and universities, explicitly including land-grant institutions, rural campuses, and community colleges. Eligible applicants include U.S. not-for-profit public and private educational institutions.
    Best-fit screen: Best for institutions with strong international exchange administration and campus-hosting capacity; especially attractive for land-grant campuses that want to connect rural place-based education with strategic workforce fields.
    Deadline: Application deadline, June 2, 2026
    Link: FY 2026 Global Undergraduate Exchange Program (Simpler Grants)

  • Exemplary Pathways to STEM Graduate Education | Alfred P. Sloan Foundation
    Eligibility: U.S. higher education institutions and organizations working in partnership
    Amount: Up to $500,000
    Deadline: LOI due June 1, 2026
    Why it fits: Supports institutional partnerships that expand access and opportunity in STEM graduate education, with explicit attention to broad-access institutions, two-year colleges, and strong-access-mission institutions. (Alfred P. Sloan Foundation)

  • Strategically Responsive Grants / LOI Process | ECMC Foundation
    Eligibility: Postsecondary institutions and systems or their affiliated/supporting foundations
    Amount: Not stated
    Deadline: Rolling LOI
    Why it fits: ECMC is explicitly interested in projects that improve postsecondary persistence, completion, and career success for underserved students; national higher-ed institutions may submit LOIs directly. (ecmcfoundation.org)

Agriculture, Food Systems & Natural Resources Innovation

  • Organic Agriculture Research and Extension Initiative (OREI) | U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Institute of Food and Agriculture
    Eligibility label: Both
    Amount: $5,000–$3,500,000
    Estimated number of awards: Not stated
    Synopsis: OREI supports research, education, and extension for organic agriculture. Colleges and universities are explicitly eligible, and the program also allows groups of two or more eligible entities to apply together. (Nation Institute of Food and Agriculture)
    Best-fit screen: High-priority review for land-grant universities with Extension, experiment station, and producer-engagement capacity in organic systems, on-farm research, and education/outreach delivery. (Nation Institute of Food and Agriculture)
    Deadline: Closing date, May 14, 2026
    Link: Organic Agriculture Research and Extension Initiative (Nation Institute of Food and Agriculture)

Resilient Lands & Communities

Organizational Capacity, Professional Development & Learning Networks

  • FY 2026 Study of the U.S. Institutes for Scholars (SUSIs for Scholars) | U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs
    Eligibility label: Direct Applicant Eligible
    Amount: $1,500,000
    Estimated number of awards: 1
    Synopsis: This NOFO supports three Study of the U.S. Institutes for foreign university faculty, researchers, and practitioners on Critical Minerals, Digital Transformation, and Economics and Business. Public and private IHEs are explicitly eligible. (Simpler Grants)
    Best-fit screen: Good fit for universities with strong faculty programming, international exchange operations, and content strength in digital transformation, business, or critical minerals; less relevant for purely research-only offices. (Simpler Grants)
    Deadline: Closing date, May 11, 2026
    Link: FY 2026 Study of the U.S. Institutes for Scholars (Simpler Grants)

  • FY 2026 John McCain Study of the U.S. Institute for Student Leaders on the Rule of Law and Public Service | U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs
    Eligibility label: Direct Applicant Eligible
    Amount: $400,000
    Estimated number of awards: 1
    Synopsis: This exchange supports a five-week institute for foreign undergraduate students and recent graduates from military and law-enforcement colleges and universities, with a four-week academic residency at a U.S. educational institution and a one-week field experience. Public and private IHEs are explicitly eligible applicants. (Simpler Grants)
    Best-fit screen: Best for institutions with policy, leadership, civic education, or public-service programming and the administrative depth to host an intensive international cohort. (Simpler Grants)
    Deadline: Closing date, May 11, 2026
    Link: FY 2026 John McCain Study of the U.S. Institute for Student Leaders on the Rule of Law and Public Service (Simpler Grants)

  • Historically Black Colleges and Universities – Excellence in Research (HBCU-EiR) | U.S. National Science Foundation
    Eligibility label: Direct Applicant Eligible
    Amount: Not stated
    Estimated number of awards: 30 to 35
    Synopsis: HBCU-EiR supports research capacity and engagement with NSF at public and private HBCUs. The next required action date in-window is the required letter of intent due July 9, 2026. (NSF – U.S. National Science Foundation)
    Best-fit screen: High-priority capacity-building opportunity for 1890 land-grant institutions and other HBCUs seeking to strengthen research infrastructure, competitiveness, and NSF engagement. (NSF – U.S. National Science Foundation)
    Deadline: Letter of intent required, July 9, 2026
    Link: Historically Black Colleges and Universities – Excellence in Research (NSF – U.S. National Science Foundation)

  • Research Grants on Education: Large | The Spencer Foundation
    Eligibility: PI must be affiliated with a nonprofit or public institution serving as administering organization; examples explicitly include colleges and universities
    Amount: $125,000–$500,000
    Deadline: Full proposal due July 7, 2026
    Why it fits: Best for universities with strong education-research capacity that want foundation support for large, field-initiated research projects rather than implementation programming. (spencer.org)

  • Racial Equity Research Grants | The Spencer Foundation
    Eligibility: PI must be affiliated with a nonprofit or public institution serving as administering organization; examples explicitly include colleges and universities
    Amount: Up to $75,000
    Deadline: Intent to Apply due May 4, 2026; full proposal due July 1, 2026
    Why it fits: Supports education research on racial equity across settings including higher education; suitable for LGUs with faculty-led research agendas and institutional grants administration. (spencer.org)

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This website is supported in part by New Technologies for Ag Extension (funding opportunity no. USDA-NIFA-OP-010186), grant no. 2023-41595-41325 from the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the U.S. Department of Agriculture or the Extension Foundation.

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