The American Museum Of Natural History

The American Museum of Natural History (AMNH), a non-profit research institution headquartered at 200 Central Park West in New York, acts as a prime recipient of federal research grants and cooperative agreements across multiple science disciplines, with no set-aside designation. AMNH operates almost exclusively as a grant recipient (96% of recent awards) rather than as a federal contractor; the institution receives funding from 48 distinct federal agencies but concentrates activity with the National Science Foundation (161 awards) and NASA's Shared Services Center (72 awards, $25 million combined potential value). The museum's federal footprint centers on basic research grants supporting astrophysics, earth sciences, paleontology, evolutionary biology, and biodiversity research, along with STEM education and public engagement initiatives.

AMNH's capability portfolio spans competitive scientific research execution, museum collections curation and digitization, workforce development through undergraduate and graduate research experiences, and public science education and outreach. Representative research grants include a $1.05 million NSF Division of Research on Learning award (September 2025) to investigate serendipitous learning in museum settings (CFDA 47.076); a $751,513 NSF Division of Environmental Biology project grant (July 2026) on kleptocnidy evolution in nudibranch sea slugs (CFDA 47.074); a $837,510 NASA research grant (September 2021) supporting the Colombia Biodiversity Observation Network; and a $704,081 NASA Science Mission Directorate grant (January 2025) for balanced science program execution including lunar and Mars exploration research (CFDA 43.001). Collections-focused grants include a $912,106 NSF award (November 2024) for rehousing and digitization of the Type and Rare Bird Collection, and a $1.038 million NSF Major Research Instrumentation award (September 2023) for acquisition of a 3D X-ray microscope serving AMNH's 34-million-specimen holdings. Cooperative agreements include a $249,198 NASA Office of STEM Engagement award (September 2025) to deliver authentic STEM learning experiences connecting students to NASA's mission.

NSF dominates AMNH's customer base across both award volume and combined potential value, with 161 awards concentrated in the Divisions of Environmental Biology (EB), Astronomical Sciences, Biological Infrastructure, and Earth Sciences. NASA Shared Services Center and NASA Goddard Space Center anchor the second tier, followed by smaller award streams from the National Endowment for the Arts (Margaret Mead Film Festival staffing), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (Climate Impact Initiative), and the Institute of Museum and Library Services (collections work). The top-five customer agencies account for 60% of recent awards by count and 74% by combined potential value; NSF and NASA awards are substantially larger in dollar magnitude than IMLS and NEA awards. Activity has remained stable across 2022–2025 (13–22 awards per year) with 24 awards totaling $17.1 million in combined potential value reaching ultimate completion within the next twenty-four months, presenting recompete exposure primarily in NSF and NASA grant lifecycles.

AMNH operates as a sub-recipient on select federal grants, with recent sub-award activity including work under the University of Texas at Austin on machine-learning-based spectral inference (October 2024), under Columbia University on IODP-related science program evaluation (July 2024), and under the Research Foundation for SUNY on remote and synchrotron studies (April 2024). The Service Contract Inventory dataset captures minimal activity at AMNH (0.9 FTEs reported as subcontractor in FY2024), reflecting the museum's positioning as a research grant recipient rather than a service contractor. AMNH's research spans five scientific divisions housing over 170 working scientists and leverages its world-class natural history collections, 630 Versa X-ray microscope, Hayden Planetarium, and Richard Gilder Graduate School to execute federally funded discovery and education programs. The institution competes in full-and-open solicitations without set-aside restrictions, drawing on its standing as a preeminent research and educational institution.