Research Foundation Of The City University Of New York

Research Foundation of The City University of New York, doing business as Rfcuny - New York City College of Technology, operates as a non-profit fiscal administrator for federal research funding across the CUNY system. The organization acts exclusively as a prime grant recipient for federal research agencies — it does not compete for federal contracts — and holds no SBA set-aside designations. Based in Brooklyn, New York, Rfcuny serves as the administrative vehicle through which New York City College of Technology and other CUNY institutions conduct federally funded research in STEM education, workforce development, and fundamental science.

Rfcuny's capability footprint centers on undergraduate research experiences, STEM curriculum development, applied science and engineering research, and workforce pipeline initiatives at non-R1 institutions. The organization has received $1.3 million in combined potential value across 104 prime federal grants and 11 sub-grant awards since 2007, with $52.9 million obligated against those awards — a ratio reflecting substantial federal investment in long-duration research projects. Representative work includes a $190,021 National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases grant (CFDA 93.855) awarded in August 2026 to investigate Epstein-Barr virus co-infection effects on malaria autoimmune pathology, featuring serological testing and novel in vitro models of virus-pathogen co-infection through July 2030; a $500,000 NSF Division of Undergraduate Education award (CFDA 47.076) for "Beginnings: A Quest to Understand and Experience Semiconductor Technologies for a Quantum Future," establishing experiential learning pathways in semiconductor and quantum technologies across the CUNY system through September 2028; a $681,265 NSF Division of Atmospheric and Geospace Sciences REU Site award (CFDA 47.050) for satellite and ground-based remote sensing research experiences pairing CUNY undergraduates with mentorship through June 2028; and a $1,499,481 NSF STEM Education grant (CFDA 47.076) supporting scholarships and cohort development for approximately 60 low-income built-environment majors over six years through January 2028.

Customer concentration sits heavily with the National Science Foundation, which accounts for 38 awards across multiple divisions and programs (including Undergraduate Education, Integrative Activities, and Mathematical and Physical Sciences). The Department of Education Office of Postsecondary Education has funded 9 awards, followed by the NASA Shared Services Center (8 awards, $869 thousand combined potential value), the Department of Health and Human Services Health Resources and Services Administration (6 awards), and NSF's Office of Integrative Activities (5 awards). Together, these five agencies account for 57% of recent awards and 66% of combined potential value. Activity volume has fluctuated year to year — ranging from 2 awards in 2026 (through the source date) to 12 each in 2022 and 2025 — with five awards reaching ultimate completion inside the next twenty-four months, presenting recompete opportunity.

Rfcuny's sub-grant footprint reflects its role as a fiscal intermediary within the CUNY network. Recent sub-recipients include Rutgers The State University of New Jersey (7 sub-awards for Asian health promotion and Alzheimer's dementia research), the New York State Education Department (3 sub-awards for Perkins Career and Technical Education and integrated English literacy), New York University (1 sub-award for the C2SMART University Transportation Center consortium), and Columbia University (1 sub-award for the INSPIRE Bridge Scholars and Visiting Fellows program in geoscience workforce development). These partnerships position Rfcuny as a distribution and administrative hub for research capacity building across regional higher-education networks and state vocational systems.