Department of Education Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Direct to Phase II 2023- RFP

The U.S. Department of Education (Department) solicits proposals for of the 2023 Small Business Innovation Research Program (SBIR) Direct to Phase II.
The purpose of the SBIR program is to stimulate technological innovation in the private sector, strengthen the role of small business in meeting Department research and development needs, increase the commercial potential of Department-supported research results, and improve the return on investment from Federally-funded research for economic and social benefits to the Nation.
2023 Direct to Phase II Solicitation
PRIORITY AREA (1)
Projects to Develop New Education Technology Products to Ready Existing Evidence-Based Innovations for Use at Scale in Education Settings, and to Plan for Commercialization

The Department of Education’s (ED) Small Business Innovation Research Program (SBIR), administered by the Institute of Education Sciences (IES), provides awards for the research and development of new, commercially viable education technology products. Known as “ED/IES SBIR,” the program’s goal is to grow a portfolio of products that are based in research and widely deployed to address pressing needs across topic areas in education and special education.
The 2020 SBIR Policy Directive provides authorization to three agencies to make Direct to Phase II awards, including the Department of Education. As the name implies, Direct to Phase II awards bypass the requirement that offerors receive a Phase I award for project to develop and test a prototype of a new education technology product.
Solicitation #91990023R0012 invites eligible small businesses to submit a Direct to Phase II proposal for contracts for $1,000,000 over two years to ready existing evidence-based innovations (products, programs, or practices) for use at scale in education settings, and to plan for commercialization. The projects to be funded through this solicitation are intended to result in the successful transition of existing evidence-based innovations to education practice through the distribution of scalable new education technology products that are sustainable over time.
To be eligible to submit a proposal under the Direct to Phase II solicitation, projects will be required to adhere to the below specifications:
Projects must focus on readying existing evidence-based innovations for use at scale. Projects that focus on advancing innovations that are not evidence-based are not eligible for this program.

The existing evidence-based innovation is required to have originally been conceptualized and developed by an academic researcher while at a university (or academic institution) or by a researcher at a non-profit education research organization. Innovations that were originally conceptualized and developed by a small business or by an entrepreneurial developer outside of an academic institution or non-profit education research organization are not eligible for the Phase II program. Such projects may be appropriate for submission under ED/IES SBIR’s 2023 Phase IB solicitation #91990023R0011.

One (or more) of the researchers who originally conceptualized and developed the innovation must be part of the team in the proposed ED/IES SBIR project, whether as an employee/owner of the small business or as a consultant to the small business that receives the SBIR award.

The proposing small business must fit the eligibility requirements described in the solicitation.

Offerors are not permitted to submit similar proposals under either of the 2023 Phase I solicitations (Phase 1A #91990023R0001 or Phase IB #91990023R0011) and the Direct to Phase II solicitation. In such cases, all proposals will be rejected without review.

This notice is not a request for proposals at this time. Interested parties should continue to monitor this posting for updates.
For more information about the Department’s SBIR program, please see here: www.ies.ed.gov/sbir
Please note the primary means of communication with Department personnel should be via email.