Sponsored Projects - Funding Forecast
A periodic newsletter for Bucknell faculty researchers, scholars and grantseekers with information on external funding opportunities, recent grant successes, upcoming deadlines, and updates and resources from the Office of Sponsored Projects (OSP).
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News and Updates
OSP Drop-in Office Hours
Wednesday, September 30th, 8:30am - 12pm
Hildreth-Mirza, Seminar Room 113
The Office of Sponsored Projects (OSP) supports and partners with faculty and staff in identifying funders, developing strategies for seeking external grant support, submitting proposals to public and private organizations, and managing institutional, federal and research compliance obligations. Whether you have a specific opportunity in mind or are just starting to think about seeking external funding for a program, project or an upcoming academic leave, OSP is happy to support you. Also, if you are not sure whether your grant proposal requires internal approval prior to submission, please contact us at osp@bucknell.edu.
Once grants are awarded, we work with faculty to manage awards, institutional compliance aspects, budget revisions, no-cost extensions, and communications with sponsors. Visit the OSP staff page for staff contact information, or you can reach out to osp@bucknell.edu. Feel free to drop in anytime on September 30th!
Sabbatical and Untenured Faculty Leaves: Application Information Session
September 3, 2026 at 12pm via Zoom
Applying for sabbatical or for untenured leave this fall? Prof. Christina Hamlet (Mathematics), past co-chair of the Faculty Development Committee, and Rhonda Newton (OSP Research Development Manager) will hold an information session on Thursday, September 3rd for those who have questions about the current application process or simply wish to learn more about how the leave process works. RSVP here by September 2nd to receive the meeting zoom link or to request presentation slides.
Grants Financial Management Open House
September 23, 2026, 8:30am-11:30am
Hildreth-Mirza, Room 006
Cheryl Stiefel, Accounting Manager Grants, will be available for you to stop by and ask any questions you may have. She would be happy to go over grant-specific questions, finance related questions, Workday tips and tricks, or anything else you may want to know. This is open to anyone who works on grant financial management, not just principal investigators.
Bucknell Geisinger Research Initiative Networking Reception
September 30, 2026, 5:00-7:00pm
Bertrand Library, Traditional Reading Room, 213
RSVP here.
Please join us for a Bucknell Geisinger Research Initiative (BGRI) Networking Reception that will include an overview of this year's call for grant proposals and a networking session with breakout groups based on research interests. BGRI supports collaborative healthcare research projects between Bucknell faculty/staff and Geisinger physicians/clinicians/scientists to provide mechanisms for the establishment of long-term collaborative interactions.
Staff will share updates on the call for proposals, including this year's deadlines (January 15th for LOIs, and March 22nd for full proposals). Please see the call for proposals for funding details and the application timeline. Attendees will also have the chance to hear from previously-funded BGRI teams and meet with Geisinger reserachers, clinicians and senior administrators.
This event is being hosted by OSP at Bucknell, in coordination with Geisinger's Office of Research Administration. We hope to see you there and help make connections for new potential collaborations!
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Recent External Funding Awards
(July - August 2026)
College of Arts & Sciences
Freeman College of Management
Joe Wilck (Analytics & Operations Management). "Bridging Innovation and Industry: Understanding and Advancing AI and Automation in Rural Pennsylvania Manufacturing." Center for Rural Pennsylvania, via Penn State.
Institutional
Kathryn Maguet (Weis Center for Performing Arts). "Las Añez." National Endowment for the Arts, via Mid Atlantic Arts.
Lauren Strunk (Student Affairs). "SHIFT: Social Influencers for Healthier Traditions." Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board.
*Grant and contract awards being administered at the university, or that have been communicated to OSP and via the Sponsored Projects Approval (SPA) form.
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External Funding Opportunities and Upcoming Deadlines
Are you interested in applying for external funding to support your research, project or program at Bucknell? Here are just a few examples of opportunities, from federal, state, private and foundation sources. (For a more customized list based on your project needs, timeline and scholarship/research focus, contact OSP for a consultation or InfoGlobal SPIN database search.)NOTE: Federal opportunities linked to in this newsletter and in the "View More Grants" google document were active as of 8/20/26. We recommend checking the status of the program and reviewing the solicitation carefully before beginning a proposal, as solicitations may have been updated without notice.
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Equipment
9/25/26. NIH: S15 Small Instrumentation Grants Program. This program supports the purchase of the latest scientific equipment that will enhance and modernize research-supporting operations of existing shared biomedical research facilities, targeting laboratory research core facilities, animal research facilities, and other similar shared-use research spaces. The budget for direct costs is $50,000 to $350,000. NIH's National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) will co-fund applications from institutions which receive less than $6 million per year from NIH, which includes Bucknell, so applications from undergraduate institutions and those supporting research aligned with the NIGMS mission are encouraged.
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Multidisciplinary
11/1/26. Social Science Research Council: SSRC-JF Next Gen Japan Study Tour Grants. This program provides funding up to $32,500 for institutional study tour grants to provide travel funds to bring undergraduate and master's degree students to Japan for immersive learning experiences. The study tours must be for a minimum of five (5) students led by the applying faculty member as the project director and the Japan Stay must include a minimum of five (5) days of course-related activities which must be structured around the course in which the students are currently enrolled. Student funding support provided by this grant may only be used for travel and accommodations of those with U.S. citizenship or U.S. permanent residency. Students outside of these categories may participate but must be funded through other means.
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Social Sciences
9/30/26. AAUW: Postdoctoral Research Leave Fellowship. The AAUW American Postdoctoral Research Leave Fellowship is intended to increase the number of women in tenure-track faculty positions and promote equity for women in higher education. The fellowship is designed to assist scholars in obtaining tenure by spending a year pursuing independent research; tenured faculty are not eligible. The fellowship year runs July 1 to June 30. The Fellowship is open to women scholars in all fields of study, including the social sciences; follow the link for additional eligibility criteria.
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Natural Sciences and Mathematics
The National Science Foundation's Directorate for Mathematical and Physical Sciences (NSF MPS), Directorate for Biological Sciences (NSF BIO) and Directorate for Geosciences (NSF GEO) have issued new core research solicitations, generally with full proposals accepted anytime, though there may be recommended target dates for specific programs:
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Humanities
9/17/26. ACLS: Fellowships. This program offers six- to twelve-month fellowship opportunities in the humanities and humanistic social sciences to be initiated between July 1, 2027 and July 1, 2028 and completed by December 31, 2028. Note: The deadline is a week earlier than last year.
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Creative and Performing Arts
11/1/26. The George A. and Eliza Gardner Howard Foundation: Playwriting and Choreography (creative) and Theatre, Dance, and Performance Studies (scholarly). The Foundation will consider proposals for scholarly projects examining and interpreting Theatre, Dance, and Performance Studies from a critical point of view in any genre, place, language, time period, or format (manuscript, print, digital), including philological, historical, theoretical and comparative perspectives. Successful applicants are early mid-career who have completed at least one major project, and have up to 4 years to use the award, as the Foundation recognizes that its cycle of focus areas may not align with individuals’ career plans.
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Engineering
10/9/26. NSF: Engineering Research Initiation. This program supports investigators based at non-R1 institutions of higher education who are working in engineering fields and have not yet received significant federal research funding. Faculty of any rank who have not been a PI or Co-PI on any current or prior NSF research grant (including subaward) and have not had research support from any other federal agency totaling $200,000 or more within the past five calendar years are eligible to serve as PI.
NSF has also issued new core foundational research solicitations in its Directorate of Engineering (ENG):
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Management, Business and Commerce
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