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Dear CISE community.
For the past decade, we have witnessed how artificial intelligence-powered technologies have changed the way we work, learn and connect with the world around us. But as AI continues to shape our future, its benefits must reach everyone, everywhere. At the U.S. National Science Foundation, we believe that no matter who you are or where you're from, you should have the chance to be part of this incredible transformation. That's why I'm excited to highlight a few NSF initiatives at the forefront of broadening participation in computing and AI research and education.
The NSF EducateAI initiative aims to provide educators with the tools to deliver high-quality, inclusive, and audience-appropriate artificial intelligence education. It targets K-12 students, community college and four-year college students, graduate students and adults seeking formal AI training. As a first step in this initiative, NSF published the NSF EducateAI Dear Colleague Letter, which invites proposals to the NSF Computer Science for All and the NSF Improving Undergraduate STEM Education: Computing in Undergraduate Education (NSF IUSE: CUE) programs.
Projects funded under NSF EducateAI have access to resources provided through the NSF-led National Artificial Intelligence Research Resource Pilot (NAIRR Pilot). The pilot plays a crucial role in developing a diverse and well-trained AI workforce by providing computing, software, data, expertise, and other AI resources to projects that integrate cutting-edge AI education across a wide range of institutions.
Under NSF EducateAI and NSF IUSE: CUE, we funded the NSF LEVEL UP AI project, an effort that brings together educators, researchers, and professionals across the computing community to build a shared vision for expanding and diversifying AI education. This project will serve as a hub for the NAIRR Pilot Classroom Education conferences, shaping and leveraging the infrastructure necessary to deliver quality AI education experiences. We encourage you to participate in this initiative. More information can be found at this link: https://cra.org/level-up-ai/#overview.
The NSF IUSE:CUE awards portfolio also includes two projects that focus specifically on creating effective pathways to AI careers through community colleges. The first, led by Miami-Dade College, centers on designing scalable entry points for both high school students and adult learners, opening new opportunities for diverse populations to engage with AI education. The second, led by the Education Development Center, emphasizes developing seamless pathways from two-year community college programs to four-year degree programs in computer science and AI, ensuring a continuum of education and workforce readiness.
Other awards tackle critical challenges like ethics and accessibility in undergraduate education. A project led by the University of Texas at El Paso, is integrating ethical reasoning into computer science education to address the growing importance of ethics in technology; and a Cornell Tech-led project aims to equip underserved undergraduate students nationwide with essential AI and machine learning skills.
Thank you for being part of our efforts to support communities everywhere. Your dedication to learning and innovation inspires everything we do at NSF.
We hope you enjoy this month's newsletter.
Greg Hager
Assistant Director for CISE
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Funding Opportunities and Deadlines
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 Pathways to Enable Open-Source Ecosystems.
Supports new managing organizations to catalyze distributed, community-driven development and growth of open-source ecosystems.
Full proposal deadlines:
January 14, 2025.
Phase 1 proposals.
September 2, 2025.
Phase 1 and 2 proposals.
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 Quantum Leap Challenge Institutes.
Supports large-scale interdisciplinary research projects focused on advancing quantum information science, engineering and technology through collaboration, education and innovation, as part of the National Quantum Initiative.
Letter of intent deadline:
February 7, 2025.
Preliminary proposal deadline:
March 7, 2025.
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News & Announcements
AI Enters Biomedicine.
NSF-supported researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have developed a new system for training AI models that seeks to accelerate the development of less toxic treatments and new preventative strategies in medicine.
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Get more CISE News
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"CISE Advisory Committee Fall Meeting."
The Advisory Committee meeting will take place on the following dates:
Day 1: Wednesday, December 11, 2024, from 12-5 p.m.
Day 2: Thursday, December 12, 2024, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
"NSF CyberTraining Program Office Hours."
CyberTraining program officers will be available during office hours to assist with any questions regarding the solicitation and proposal submissions.
December 16, 2024. 3-4 p.m.
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Rajiv Gandhi is a professor of computer science at Rutgers University–Camden. He also teaches in the Computer and Information Science department at Penn. His research specializes in theoretical computer science, particularly approximation and randomized algorithms, which help find near-optimal solutions to optimization problems where finding an exact answer is difficult or impossible. His work has practical uses in areas like network design and optimization.
Beyond his research, Gandhi is deeply committed to education and mentorship. He collaborates with three primary groups: undergraduate students at Rutgers–Camden, high school students globally through the Program in Algorithmic and Combinatorial Thinking and students from non-elite institutions in India.
At Rutgers–Camden, Gandhi mentors a diverse group of students, including many first-generation college students and those from underrepresented backgrounds. For over two decades, Gandhi has focused on empowering students, helping them build strong careers in academia and industry. His students have achieved significant success, earning NSF Graduate Research Fellowships, undergraduate research awards and pursuing doctoral degrees. Some now hold faculty positions at top universities or are engaged in industry research.
A note from one Rutgers–Camden student reflects the profound impact of Gandhi’s mentorship: "I just wanted to reach out to say thank you. Thank you for being a mentor in my life and giving me the guidance I never had. Thank you for the financial support that helped me quit my minimum-wage job so I could devote all my time to pursuing academics. Thank you for seeing something in me that I did not see in myself. "
With support from NSF, Gandhi created the Program in Algorithmic and Combinatorial Thinking (PACT), a summer and academic-year program that trains over 150 high school students annually in theoretical computer science topics such as discrete mathematics and algorithm design. Many of these students return to PACT for one more summer to learn advanced topics such as approximation and randomized algorithms. This training enables the students to start research early, thus preparing them for advanced academic and professional opportunities.
One PACT alumnus shared:
"I was just a boy from Camden who was maybe a little more academically oriented than his classmates in a city that is unforgiving. Thank you for allowing me to attend PACT those years even though I could not afford it. Thank you for continuing to mentor me outside of the program. Thank you for remembering me, just another one of the thousands of students you have influenced over the years. I am now going to be a Penn graduate and am going ivy to ivy as I head to Cornell for my PhD in Applied Mathematics..."
Recently, Gandhi received an NSF award as a co-PI as part of the Institute for Emerging CORE Methods in Data Science, a collaboration between major institutions including UC San Diego, UCLA, UT Austin and Penn. As part of this initiative, Gandhi launched the Foundations in Data Science program, training high school students in data science fundamentals.
A passionate educator, Gandhi has shared his insights in a talk titled, "Potential to Promise: Developing Scholars One Eureka Moment at a Time." His excellence in teaching has been recognized with numerous awards including the Association for Computing Machinery Special Interest Group on Algorithms and Computation Theory Distinguished Service Award in 2022. In 2017, he was inducted into the Computer Science Alumni Hall of Fame at the University of Maryland. As a Fulbright Fellow in 2011, he mentored students in Mumbai, India, underscoring his commitment to global education.
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Division of Information and Intelligent Systems (IIS)
Supports research and education on the interrelated roles of people, computers, and information to advance knowledge of artificial intelligence, data management, assistive technologies, and human-centered computing.
Office of Advanced Cyberinfrastructure (OAC)
Supports the conceptualization, design, implementation, and operation of research cyberinfrastructure to advance and transform research and education in science and engineering.
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