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American-Made Challenges

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MSI Contract Readiness Prize

This prize aims to increase the DOE-contract readiness of HBCUs, MSIs, and TCUs through mentoring, teaming, and technical support.

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Education Energy, Environment & Resources Government
stage:
Judging
prize:
$775,000

This challenge is closed

Education Energy, Environment & Resources Government
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About the Prize Overview Prize Timeline Eligibility

About the Prize

The MSI Contract Readiness Prize is a one-phase capacity building prize that aims to boost equity across the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) contracting for small, medium, and large Historically Black Colleges (HBCUs), Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs), and other Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs), including Asian American, Native American, Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs), Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs), and Predominantly Black Institutions (PBIs). This prize builds on the successes of the Biden Administration’s Justice40 Initiative that is working toward environmental justice for all Americans by involving MSIs as key strategic partners.

There are only a few agencies reaching out to institutions as a solution for federal requirements, which is a loss for the federal government and a missed opportunity for MSIs to gain beneficial financial resources. The goal of the MSI Contract Readiness Prize is not just a matter of increasing capacity for winning contracts, but also building a pipeline of long-term institutional support. MSIs will have a better knowledge of how to obtain future federal funding sources not only with the DOE Complex but with all federal agencies.

Overview

A total prize pool of $775,000 will be divided between approximately 35 winners, who will each receive a minimum of $15,000, based on their plans and activities that are leading to becoming DOE contract ready. To win the MSI Contract Readiness Prize, competitors will need to show they have increased their level of contract readiness. Teams will show this by developing a clear plan of action describing the steps taken to improve their contract readiness.

A successful submission should include, but is not limited to: 

  • Attending technical trainings on the federal contracting application process
  • Participating in mentoring opportunities with external partners such as the Power Connectors, DOE Mentor Protégé Program, or other partners
  • Providing information on how you will continue to train and develop staff, students, and other resources to respond to federal contract deliverables for your institution
  • Teams will be required to provide letters of support from their external partners. 

Prize Timeline

  • April 2024: Prize Launch
  • June – Sept. 2024: Submissions Open & Contract Readiness Webinars
    • June 26, 2024: Federal Contracting Basics
    • July 24, 2024: Create a Winning Capability Statement
    • Aug. 28, 2024: DOE Contact Forecasting & DOE Resources
    • Sept. 18, 2024: Win the Bid - The DOE Contract Landscape
  • Oct. 4: Submission Deadline (anticipated date)
  • Oct. 7 - Dec. 4: Review Period
  • Dec. 5: Winners Announcement (anticipated dates)

Eligibility

HBCUs, TCUs, MSIs, including AANAPISIs, HSIs, and PBIs are eligible to submit a proposal describing what their institutions are doing to become contract ready.

Teams should specify their institution size:  

  • Small institution (under 5,000 students) 
  • Medium-sized institution (5,001 - 15,000 students) 
  • Large institution (over 15,001 students) 

If you want to receive updates on the prize or have any questions, please subscribe by using the follow feature on the HeroX platform or reach out to MSIcontractingprize@nrel.gov. 

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Challenge Updates

Congratulations to the Six Winners of the MSI Contract Readiness Prize!

Nov. 21, 2024, 7:26 a.m. PST by NREL Prize Administrator

Six teams have won from $100,000 to $150,000 in cash prizes for showing an increased level of contract readiness through plans of action, technical trainings attended, mentorship opportunities seized, and letters of support received.

  

“There are only a few agencies actively reaching out to MSIs as a solution for federal requirements, which is a loss for the federal government and a missed opportunity for MSIs to gain beneficial financial resources,” said Christy L. Jackiewicz, Chief of DOE’s Minority Educational Institution Division. “The MSI Prize aimed to catalyze the pipeline of STEM leaders for the future of DOE and the American workforce.”  

 

The MSI Contract Readiness Prize aimed to bring environmental justice to all Americans by involving MSIs as key strategic partners with the federal government and building a pipeline of sustainable long-term institutional support. 

  

The following teams were named winners of the MSI Contract Readiness Prize: 

Enhancing Federal Contract Opportunities at UCR 

  • Organization: University of California, Riverside (UCR) 
  • MSI Type: Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) 
  • School Size: Large (more than 15,000 students) 
  • Amount Won: $150,000 

Sustainable Contracting Pathways: Energy & Marine 

  • Organization: Hawai'i Pacific University 
  • MSI Type: Asian American, Native American, Pacific Islander Serving Institution (AANAPISI) 
  • Size: Small (less than 5,000 students) 
  • Amount Won: $150,000 

SU POWER C4: The Future of HBCU Contract Readiness 

  • Organization: Southern University 
  • MSI Type: Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) 
  • School Size: Medium (5,000–15,000 students) 
  • Amount Won: $150,000  

Enhancing FS Contract Readiness & Capacity Building 

  • Organization: California State University Fresno 
  • MSI Type: HSI 
  • School Size: Large 
  • Amount Won: $100,000 

Howard University Data Science and Analytics 

  • Organization: Howard University 
  • MSI Type: HBCU 
  • School Size: Large 
  • Amount Won: $100,000 

Tennessee Tigers 

  • Organization: Tennessee State University 
  • MSI Type: HBCU 
  • School Size: Medium 
  • Amount: $100,000 

Learn more about open and upcoming American-Made prizes here.

Deadline TODAY

Oct. 4, 2024, 6:57 a.m. PDT by Moderator

The deadline for the MSI Contract Readiness Prize is TODAY, Friday, October 4, 2024 at 5pm Eastern.

Any started submissions will not automatically submit at the deadline, so please be sure you hit the "Submit" button and receive your confirmation email. 

If you have any problems with the submission process, please contact MSIcontractingprize@nrel.gov for assistance. Please note: only submissions received through HeroX will be eligible. No emailed submissions or supplemental documents will be reviewed. 

Two weeks until deadline

Sept. 20, 2024, 2:05 p.m. PDT by Moderator

This is a friendly reminder that the deadline for the MSI Contract Readiness Prize is TWO WEEKS away! Please be sure you are following the challenge, watch the four videos in the web series, and submit your materials by October 4, 2024!

Increased Prize Pool

Sept. 5, 2024, 1:34 p.m. PDT by Moderator

We are happy to announce that the MSI Contract Readiness Prize pool has been increased to $775,000! With this increased prize pool, approximately 35 winning MSIs will receive a minimum of $15,000 each, depending on institution size and their plans and activities that are leading to becoming DOE contract ready. The deadline is less than one month away, so be sure you watch the webinars and get your submission in by October 4, 2024. 

Final Webinar and Resources

Sept. 3, 2024, 3:42 p.m. PDT by Moderator

There is only one webinar left in the Funding Futures Webinar Series. It takes place on September 18th so register now. 

Have you missed one another webinar in this series? Links to the videos will be posted in the HeroX resources Tab for your convenience. 

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