Interactive Digital Media STEM Resources for Pre-College and Informal Science Education Audiences (SBIR) (R43/R44 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) | PAR 20 244

Opportunity Information: Apply for PAR 20 244

The Interactive Digital Media STEM Resources for Pre-College and Informal Science Education Audiences funding opportunity (NIH SBIR; PAR-20-244) supports small businesses that want to create or adapt interactive digital media tools that teach STEM concepts connected to health and medicine, while also helping learners think about future careers. The program is framed as an NIH Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant using the R43/R44 mechanisms (Phase I and Phase II), and it explicitly does not allow clinical trials. In practical terms, the goal is to fund commercializable, research-informed educational products that can be used either in school settings (pre-kindergarten through grade 12) or in informal learning environments where the public engages with science outside the classroom.

The core focus is on interactive digital media (IDM), meaning digital products and services that respond to what a user does and then present content dynamically. This can include combinations of text, graphics, animation, video, audio, simulations, and game-like experiences. The emphasis is not simply on putting information online, but on building experiences where users make choices, explore scenarios, receive feedback, and learn by doing. NIH highlights the evidence base suggesting that well-designed IDM can improve learning across many contexts, from early grades through adult training, especially when it includes progressive learning pathways, feedback on performance, and meaningful user control.

The intended audiences fall into two broad categories. First are formal education users: P-12 students as well as the adults who support them, including pre-service and in-service teachers and families (grouped in the notice under the term "Teachers"). Second are informal science education (ISE) audiences, which typically includes the general public engaging through museums, science centers, libraries, community programs, and other out-of-school channels. A central idea behind the FOA is to help translate existing or emerging health- and medicine-based STEM curricula and museum exhibits into interactive digital formats that can scale and reach wider audiences while preserving hands-on, inquiry-driven learning.

From a project standpoint, applicants are expected to develop IDM STEM resources that make health and medicine topics engaging and understandable, while also supporting career awareness and career-choice exploration in STEM fields. The FOA points toward tools that can train, educate, and even encourage positive behavior change through immersive, interactive formats, such as virtual-world style learning experiences, guided simulations, or educational games that adapt to user input and provide immediate feedback. Strong proposals would typically demonstrate how the product design aligns with learning science, how it will be used in authentic educational or informal settings, and how it will be evaluated for usability and learning impact, consistent with SBIR expectations for innovation and a path toward real-world deployment.

Eligibility is limited to U.S. small business concerns, consistent with SBIR rules. Non-U.S. (foreign) institutions cannot apply, and non-domestic components of U.S. organizations are not eligible to apply. The notice also indicates that foreign components, as defined in the NIH Grants Policy Statement, may be allowed in some cases, which generally means limited, well-justified involvement outside the U.S. could be permissible under NIH policy, but the applicant organization itself must be an eligible U.S. small business. The sponsoring agency is the National Institutes of Health, and the program is listed under CFDA 93.859. The opportunity was created on 2020-06-25 and had an original closing date of 2022-09-02, indicating it was published as a time-bounded solicitation with SBIR Phase I/II grant support for qualifying proposals.

• The National Institutes of Health in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Interactive Digital Media STEM Resources for Pre-College and Informal Science Education Audiences (SBIR) (R43/R44 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.859.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2020-06-25.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2022-09-02. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Eligible applicants include: Small businesses.

Apply for PAR 20 244

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