DHS S&T Center of Excellence Supplement Applications | DHS 23 061 COE SUPP

Opportunity Information: Apply for DHS 23 061 COE SUPP

The DHS S&T Center of Excellence Supplement Applications opportunity (Funding Opportunity Number DHS 23 061 COE SUPP, CFDA 97.061) is a Department of Homeland Security Science and Technology (S&T) funding notice that provides supplemental cooperative agreement support to existing DHS Centers of Excellence (COEs). These COEs are university-based, multidisciplinary research and education centers that DHS relies on to produce rigorous, high-value work aligned with homeland security needs. The central idea behind the supplement is to continue and strengthen ongoing COE efforts by funding additional research and education activities that remain within each center's current approved scope of work, rather than launching entirely new standalone programs.

The program emphasizes research that is both innovative and practical for homeland security missions. DHS is explicitly looking for projects that break new theoretical and empirical ground, as well as projects that adapt and mature existing scientific or engineering approaches to close identified technology gaps. Proposed methods are expected to be rooted in solid science and engineering disciplines, with credible rigor in how studies are designed, executed, validated, and communicated. Just as important, DHS highlights that knowledge produced through COE research must be usable by, and integratable with, homeland security customers. In other words, the research portfolio is expected to lead to original and cutting-edge results, but those results should also translate into tools, insights, models, prototypes, or actionable evidence that DHS components and operational partners can realistically apply.

This notice is not open to the general public or to new applicants. Eligibility is limited only to current, specific DHS COE awardees named in the announcement. The eligible recipients are: National Counterterrorism Innovation, Technology and Education (NCITE) at the University of Nebraska Omaha; Soft Target Engineering to Neutralize the Threat Reality (SENTRY) at Northeastern University; Critical Infrastructure Resilience Institute (CIRI) at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; Coastal Resilience Center (CRC) at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; Center for Criminal Investigations and Network Analysis (CINA) at George Mason University; Center for Accelerating Operational Efficiency (CAOE) at Arizona State University; and Center for Cross-Border Threats Screening and Supply Chain Defense (CBTS) at Texas A&M University. The eligible applicant type listed is public and state-controlled institutions of higher education, which aligns with the universities hosting these centers, but the practical restriction is that only those listed COEs can submit.

From an administrative standpoint, the opportunity is categorized as discretionary and uses a cooperative agreement as the funding instrument, which typically means DHS anticipates substantial involvement in program direction, coordination, or oversight during performance (as opposed to a more hands-off grant). The funding activity category is science and technology and other research and development, and the administering office is the Office of Procurement Operations, Grants Division. The original closing date shown is May 24, 2024, and the posted award ceiling is $20,000,000. The opportunity record also indicates the notice was created on July 1, 2023. The announcement mentions "expected awards" but does not provide a number in the provided text, implying awards depend on available funds, DHS priorities, and the merit and fit of supplement requests within each COE's existing scope.

Overall, this supplement NOFO is best understood as a continuation mechanism for DHS to expand or accelerate specific research and education tasks already underway at established COEs, provided those tasks demonstrate scientific rigor, produce genuinely new knowledge or capability, and can be transitioned or integrated into real homeland security operations and decision-making.

• The Office of Procurement Operations - Grants Division in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "DHS S&T Center of Excellence Supplement Applications" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 97.061.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2023-07-01.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2024-05-24. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $20,000,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: Public and State controlled institutions of higher education.

Apply for DHS 23 061 COE SUPP

[Watch] Creating a grant proposal using the step-by-step wizard inside the applicant portal: