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Find similar grantsHigher Education Challenge Grants Program is sponsored by National Institute of Food and Agriculture. Provides grants to institutions to enhance teaching of food and agricultural sciences, including engineering disciplines.
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Higher Education Challenge Grants Program | NIFA The lifecycle of grants and cooperative agreements consists of four phases: Pre-Award, Award, Post-Award, and Close Out. The National Institute of Food and Agriculture is committed to serving its stakeholders, Congress, and the public by using new technologies to advance greater openness.
The Data Gateway enables users to find funding data, metrics, and information about research, education, and Extension projects that have received grant awards from NIFA. This website houses a large volume of supporting materials. In this section, you can search the wide range of documents, videos, and other resources.
Technical Assistance Webinar: The Equipment Grants Program (EGP) The Equipment Grants Program seeks to provide eligible institutions with the opportunity to acquire a shared-use piece of equipment/instrument that supports their research, research training, and extension goals. The National Institute of Food and Agriculture provides leadership and funding for programs that advance agriculture-related sciences.
Higher Education Challenge Grants Program The purpose of HEC, under assistance listing 10. 217, is to strengthen institutional capacities, including curriculum, faculty, scientific instrumentation, and student recruitment and retention.
The HEC program is focused on developing and improving formal master’s or doctorate degree-level food and agricultural sciences education and first professional degree-level education in veterinary medicine, such as a doctorate in veterinary medicine (DVM). Dates may vary. Please see NOFO for exact details.
If you need a reasonable accommodation to access information related to this grant opportunity, please contact the Information Contact listed on this page no later than ten (10) days before the closing date. If you need a reasonable accommodation for the webinar or event related to this grant opportunity, please contact the event host.
NIFA offers language access services, such as interpretation and translation of vital information, free of charge. If you need interpretation or translation services, please visit NIFA Language Access Services and request service no later than ten (10) days before the closing date.
1862 Land-grant Institutions 1890 Land-grant Institutions 1994 Land-grant Institutions For-profit Organizations Other Than Small Businesses Hispanic-Serving Institutions Other or Additional Information (See below) State Controlled Institutions of Higher Ed More Information on Eligibility a) U.S. public or private, nonprofit colleges/universities offering baccalaureate or 1st professional degree in at least one discipline/area of food & agricultural sciences; b) land-grant colleges/universities (including those in Insular Areas); c) colleges/universities having significant minority enrollments and demonstrable capacity to teach food and agricultural sciences; and d) colleges/universities having demonstrable capacity to teach food and agricultural sciences.
Wednesday, August 5, 2026 For more Information Contact Higher Education Challenge (HEC) Grants Program Contact Thursday, October 15, 2026 grantapplicationquestions@usda. gov Funding Opportunity Number Assistance Listing Number Estimated Total Program Funding Cost Sharing or Matching Requirement Page last updated: August 24, 2026 Your feedback is important to us.
According to the current listing, eligibility includes: Land-grant institutions and other colleges and universities with capacity to teach food and agricultural sciences. Confirm the full requirements in the official notice before applying.
The current listing shows $150,000 - $750,000. Verify award ceilings, matching requirements, and allowable costs in the official notice.
Applications for Higher Education Challenge Grants Program are due October 15, 2026. Build your timeline backwards from this date to cover registrations, approvals, and final submission checks.
Higher Education Challenge Grants Program is funded by National Institute of Food and Agriculture. Verify program details on the funder's official page before applying.
Start from the official opportunity page linked in this listing — it carries the sponsor's submission instructions.
The purpose of HEC, under assistance listing 10.217, is to strengthen institutional capacities, including curriculum, faculty, scientific instrumentation, and student recruitment and retention. The HEC program is focused on developing and improving formal master’s or doctorate degree-level food and agricultural sciences education and first professional degree-level education in veterinary medicine, such as a doctorate in veterinary medicine (DVM). Funding Opportunity Number: USDA-NIFA-CGP-011315. Assistance Listing: 10.217. Funding Instrument: G. Category: AG. Award Amount: $150K – $750K per award.
The purpose of the NNF program, Assistance Listing 10.210, is to provide funding to support new graduate (master’s, DVM, or doctoral) student training and completion of degree programs to develop human capital to participate in meeting the mission of the USDA to increase the pipeline of domestic agricultural students. The NNF program offers funding for eligible full-time students pursuing graduate studies at the master’s, DVM, or doctoral levels within the food and agricultural sciences. The NNF program awards institutional grants to offer funding for eligible full-time students pursuing graduate studies at the master’s, DVM, and/or doctoral levels within the food and agricultural sciences. Fellows must be new graduate students (‘new’ is defined in Part III A); and citizens, nationals, or permanent residents of the United States. Awards made by the NNF program are specifically intended to support graduate programs that engage outstanding students who are citizens, nationals, or permanent residents of the United States of America to pursue and complete their degrees in areas where there is a need for the development of scientific and professional expertise in the food and agricultural sciences. NNF awards invest in graduate training and relevant experiential learning for individuals who demonstrate their potential to successfully complete graduate degree programs in disciplines relevant to the mission of the USDA. Funding Opportunity Number: USDA-NIFA-HEP-011737. Assistance Listing: 10.210. Funding Instrument: G. Category: AG. Award Amount: $78K – $705K per award.
In FY 2026, the ECDRE program, under Assistance Listing 10.309, is soliciting proposals to develop effective tactics and strategies to control HLB and its disease complex for financially sustainable citrus production in the United States. All projects funded by the ECDRE program will incorporate collaborative approaches that integrate available knowledge to develop new solutions that can be deployed by growers to manage and prevent HLB infection in the near term. Funding Opportunity Number: USDA-NIFA-SCRI-012018. Assistance Listing: 10.309. Funding Instrument: G. Category: AG. Award Amount: $500K – $15M per award.
USDA-NIFA-HEP-011737 puts $14 million behind roughly 28 awards of up to $705,000 for graduate fellowships in food and agricultural sciences. No match is required. But two eligibility rules — the new-graduate-student definition and the citizenship requirement — disqualify most of the students a department would naturally nominate.
Read articleNIFA's Hispanic-Serving Institutions Education Grants Program (USDA-NIFA-HSI-011903) posted September 10, 2026 with $30.6 million, 40 anticipated awards, and a December 3 deadline. It uses the same 25 percent enrollment definition the Justice Department has declined to defend at the Department of Education. Here is the structure, the three grant types, and the caps that decide who wins.
Read articleNIFA's FY2026 Higher Education Challenge program closes October 15, 2026 with $5.7 million and roughly 18 awards. Standard grants cap at $150,000, Collaborative Type 1 at $300,000, and Collaborative Type 2 at $750,000 — all from the same pool, all scored against each other. No match is required. Here is how the tier structure actually determines your odds.
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