DHS S&T initiates funding opportunity for new center of excellence

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) has announced a $36.5 million funding opportunity for a new DHS Center of Excellence (COE).

The COE’s focus would be Engineering Secure Environments from Targeted Attacks (ESE). DHS is soliciting center lead proposals from accredited United States colleges and universities.

“Partnering with universities, S&T delivers practical results by developing multidisciplinary, customer-driven solutions while training the next generation of homeland security experts,” William Bryan, acting Under Secretary for Science and Technology, said. “The challenges we face as a nation are complex. In collaboration with our academic partners, DHS is excited to launch a new COE focused on mitigating long-term threats against our nation’s surface transportation and built environments with novel engineering solutions.”

The deadline for submitting proposals is March 10, 2021, authorities noted, adding the funding opportunity is posted at www.grants.gov.

DHS plans to fund the new COE through a cooperative agreement for 10 years, with officials indicating the ESE COE would research and develop solutions to support DHS counterterrorism and violent extremism operations.

S&T is slated to conduct an informational webinar for interested applicants on Feb. 4, 2021, at 2 p.m. EST. During the call, DHS will discuss the notice of funding opportunity and allow interested applicants to ask questions.