The purpose of this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) is to provide opportunities for eligible small business concerns (SBCs) to submit NIH Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) grant applications to develop interactive digital media science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) products that address student career choice and health and medicine topics for: (1) pre-kindergarten to grade 12 (P-12) students and pre- and in-service teachers and families or (2) Informal science education (ISE), i.e., outside-the-classroom resources for the general public.

Interactive digital media (IDM) are defined as products and services on digital computer-based systems which respond to the user's actions by presenting content such as text, moving image, animation, video, audio, and video games. There is a large body of evidence that IDM technology has the potential to support learning in a variety of contexts from primary and secondary schools, to universities, adult education and workplace training. IDM is widely used to train, educate, and encourage behavioral changes in a virtual world format where progressive learning, feedback on success and user control are combined into an interactive and engaging experience.

It is anticipated that this STTR FOA will facilitate the translation of new or existing health and medicine-based, P-12 STEM curricula and museum exhibits into educational IDM products that will provide a hands-on, inquiry-based and learning-by-doing experience for students, teachers and the community.

Companion FOA: PAR-20-244, R43/R44 Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Grant - Phase I, Phase II, and Fast-Track

Application Due Date(s): September 4, 2020; September 3, 2021; September 2, 2022

PAR-20-239 Expiration Date September 03, 2022