Fiscal Year 2025 ED/IES SBIR Program Solicitation
Updated: November 8, 2024
The U.S. Department of Education’s and Institute of Education Sciences’ Small Business Innovation Research program, known as ED/IES SBIR, makes awards to eligible small businesses for the research and development and evaluation of the next generation of education technology products for use by learners, educators, and administrators to address pressing problems in education.
On November 8, 2024, ED/IES SBIR released its FY 2025 Phase IA, Phase IB, and Direct to Phase II solicitations. The proposal submission date and time is January 8, 2025 at 11 a.m. EST.
Phase IA solicitation #91990025R0002 is a request for proposals for $250,000 awards for 9-months for the research and development (R&D) and evaluation of prototypes of novel education technology products where no or limited previous technological development has occurred. The novel education technology product that is proposed under the Phase IA solicitation is required to be independent from (will not be integrated with) any other existing education technology prototypes or products previously developed by the small business (or a member of the project team) and is required to employ a different technological approach from any other existing education technology prototypes or products previously developed by the small business (or any member of the project team). The goal of the Phase IA track is to stimulate novel (i.e., first of its kind) approaches to solve pressing problems in education. Successful Phase IA awardees will be eligible to apply for a $1,000,000 Phase II award in FY2026 to fully develop and evaluate the new education technology product over a period of 2 years, and to prepare for commercialization.
Phase IB solicitation #91990025R0003 is a request for proposals for $250,000 awards for 9-months for R&D and evaluation of prototypes of a new component to be added to an existing research-based education technology prototype or product. The new component is required to be distinct from the existing education technology prototype or product (i.e., not a continuation or expansion of the already-developed components). The project plans for the technological approach to develop the new component is required to be different than the approach that was used to develop the existing prototype or product. The goal of the Phase IB track is to strengthen existing research-based prototypes or products in addressing pressing problems in education. Successful Phase IB awardees will be eligible to apply for a $1,000,000 Phase II award in FY 2026, to fully develop and evaluate the component and the existing education technology product over a period of 2 years, and to prepare for commercialization of a new version of the product.
The Direct to Phase II solicitation #91990025R0004 is a request for proposals for $1,000,000 awards for 2-years for R&D and evaluation of new education technology products to ready existing researcher-developed evidence-based innovations (products, interventions, practices) for use at scale, and to plan for commercialization. Projects that focus on advancing innovations that are not evidence-based are not eligible for the Direct to Phase II program. The existing education innovation must have originally been created by researchers at either universities (or other academic institutions) or non-profit education research organizations. Direct to Phase II projects are awarded without a prior Phase I award. The goal of the Direct to Phase II program is to support the successful transfer of evidence-based research to commercial products to be used at scale and sustained over time.
ED/IES Proposal Preparation Requirements
Each solicitation includes information and specifications on the requirements for that particular program. As such, “offerors” (small businesses) that are considering preparing a proposal are strongly encouraged to review these solicitations to determine the most appropriate fit for a proposed project.
Offerors are not permitted to submit the same or similar proposals under multiple 2025 (Phase IA, IB, and Direct to Phase II) solicitations. Any duplicate or similar proposals that are submitted under more than one of these 2025 solicitations will be rejected without review.
Offerors are permitted to submit multiple distinct proposals under the same or multiple solicitations, provided the proposals have different foci and goals.
ED/IES SBIR requires offerors to registered on SAM.gov (SAM.gov | Duns – Sam UEI) and to list their Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) in the proposal at the time of submission. Proposals without a UEI will be rejected without review. If you do not already have a UEI registered on SAM.com please be advised, registration can take several weeks.
ED/IES SBIR has created this Frequently Asked Questions document to assist offerors in the preparation and submission of an ED/IES SBIR proposal.
Potential offerors are permitted to email questions to the Contracts Specialist listed in each solicitation by December 2, 2024. Any reply by ED will be posted on the same SAM.gov website page as an Amendment to the solicitation.
Per U.S. Government Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR), ED/IES SBIR program personnel (including Edward Metz and Laurie Hobbs), and other government personnel are not permitted to engage with potential offerors to provide technical assistance or answer questions while the solicitations are open and during proposal review.