Undergraduate education and the National Science Foundation

T he National Science Foundation (NSF) has been proactive in changing the face of mathematics, science, and engineering education since its inception in 1950. Its initiatives have included support for NSFNET, a forerunner of the Internet, and the development of the national supercomputer centers. Financial support from NSF has impacted mathematics and science education programs from kindergarten to post-graduate school. Today's investments alone total over $3.3 billion dollars and include almost 20,000 research and education projects. ~.~ With the budget constraints prevalent in higher e ~ cation, funding from external agencies and foundati like NSF can help improve computer science laborato~ ! vitalize curricula, and extend faculty knowledge whel ternal support is not available. As a computer science cator, how do you find out about this support and appl'.~ it? Where at NSF do you start looking when you have 1 first glimmer of an innovative idea for which you need st port? There are two directorates at NSF with progra impact undergraduate computer science e d u c a t i o ~ Directorate for Computer and Information S c i O n . Engineering (CISE) ( h t t p : / / w w w . c i s e . n s f . ! o ~ rectorate for Education and Human Resour x/ /www.ehr.nsf.gov). The CISE d i r e c t o r a t ~ 9asic research in the computer and informati~ [ ~ e and engineering. In addition, it is respon~~ ~ross Disciplinary Activities (CDA), w h i c h ~ ~ d to support the strengthening of the i n f r a s ~ ~mputer science. CDA activities of particular~ computer science educators are support for th~ ~pment of innovative curricula and for undergraduat:e research experiences. The mission of the Education and Human Resources (EHR) directorate is to promote the continuing growth of mathematics, science, engineering and technology education. Programs in EHR range from support for improving the educational experiences of elementary children to promotion of the early career development of scientists. The programs in EHR of most relevance to computer science educators are found in the Division of Undergraduate Education (DUE) (http://www.ehr.nsf.gov/DUE.html). Equipment acquisition, faculty development and curriculum development are all supported by DUE programs. If you have an innovative idea to develop, you want to present or attend a workshop, or you have an innovative course or courses to develop, this is where you start. A review of projects, su~p,~ed by DUE reveals that no project is too