Bentley University

Bentley University, a private tax-exempt educational institution based in Waltham, Massachusetts, operates as a recipient of federal grants and a prime contractor on a modest federal contract footprint, with no presence in subcontracting relationships to commercial primes. The university does not hold set-aside designations and competes in full-and-open federal opportunities, predominantly through NSF research grants and IRS Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) matching grants that align with the university's academic mission and community engagement capabilities.

Bentley's federal footprint centers on research and educational programs rather than commercial service delivery. On the contract side, the university holds a single purchase order from the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI) for $21,720, awarded May 29, 2023, to establish a partnership with CADS Consulting at Bentley for health disparities projects. On the grant side, Bentley functions as a recipient across a diverse set of federal programs. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has funded three VITA grants (fiscal years 2023, 2024, and 2025) supporting volunteer income tax assistance for low-income and underserved populations; the most recent award, October 1, 2025, runs through September 30, 2026. The National Science Foundation has funded multiple student travel and doctoral consortium awards: an August 1, 2024 grant supporting student travel to the 2024 Academy of Management annual meeting ($25 students, dissertation-stage focus), a July 1, 2023 grant for the Communication and Digital Technology doctoral consortium at AOM 2023, and an October 1, 2026 grant for student travel to the 2027 IEEE World Haptics Conference. The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) awarded Bentley a research grant, dated February 9, 2023, through March 10, 2025, investigating COVID-19 vaccine uptake and institutional trust. NSF's Division of Behavioral and Cognitive Sciences funded a Research at Undergraduate Institutions (RUI) project on edge perception in touch, awarded September 1, 2022, running through August 31, 2025. The Small Business Administration's Office of the Chief Operating Officer awarded Bentley a $625,000 Congressional Community Project Funding grant on August 1, 2024, through July 31, 2025, to support small business development and entrepreneurship initiatives in the Waltham area, targeting minority-owned, women-owned, and veteran-owned businesses.

Bentley's customer concentration reflects its academic profile. The Internal Revenue Service accounts for 17 awards (predominantly VITA grants); the National Science Foundation for 16 awards (research and student travel); and the Department of the Army for 10 awards. Seventy-six awards across 22 distinct customer agencies make up the portfolio, with 95% prime awards and 5% sub-awards. On the sub side, Bentley subcontracts to the Trustees of Boston University on an NIH-funded Alzheimer's disease research project (awarded January 27, 2025) and to Harvard College on two sub-awards (August 14, 2024 and February 13, 2024) for a research project on text-based outcomes in randomized education trials, led by co-PI Dr. Reagan Mozer. Bentley also received a COVID-19 pandemic-related sub-award from the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency (July 10, 2023).

Award activity has declined sharply: two awards in 2022, five in 2023, four in 2024, two in 2025, and one in 2026 (as of mid-October). Combined potential value across all awards stands at $39 thousand, though obligated dollars total $25.1 million (reflecting large multi-year grant commitments obligated upfront). Only one award faces completion within the next twenty-four months, presenting minimal recompete exposure. Bentley's federal posture is characterized by research funding and community-focused grants that leverage faculty expertise and student populations rather than commercial federal contracting.