From Learning to Leading: Cultivating the Next Generation of Diverse Food and Agriculture Professionals

The primary goal of the From Learning to Leading: Cultivating the Next Generation of Diverse Food and Agriculture Professionals Program (NEXTGEN) is to enable 1890 institutions, 1994 institutions, Alaska Native-serving institutions and Native Hawaiian-serving institutions, Hispanic-serving institutions (specifically, the certified Hispanic-serving agricultural colleges and universities (HSACUs)), and insular area institutions of higher education located in the U.S. territories to build and sustain the next generation of the food, agriculture, natural resources, and human sciences (FANH) workforce including the future USDA workforce primarily through providing student scholarship support, meaningful paid internships, fellowships, and job opportunity matching, and also facilitating opportunities to learn the processes and pathways leading to training and employment in the federal sector.

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Eligibility RequirementsSection 1006 of the American Rescue Plan, as amended by Section 22007 of the Inflation Reduction Act (Pub.L 117-169) defines eligible applicants as 1890 land-grant institutions, 1994 land-grant institutions, Alaska Native serving institutions and Native Hawaiian serving institutions, Hispanic-serving institutions [specifically, the certified Hispanic-serving agricultural colleges and universities (HSACUs)], and insular area institutions of higher education located in the U.S. territories.Applicants for the NEXTGEN Program must meet all the requirements outlined in this RFA. Failure to meet an eligibility criterion by the application deadline will result in the application being excluded from consideration or, even though an application may be reviewed, will preclude NIFA from making an award. For those new to Federal financial assistance, NIFA’s Grants Overview provides highly recommended information about grants and other resources to help understand the Federal awards process.Duplicate or Multiple Submissions – submissions of duplicate or predominantly overlapping applications is not allowed. An eligible applicant may submit multiple applications on behalf of multiple project directors as long as they are not essentially duplications of the same project or portions of the same project to multiple programs. NIFA will disqualify both applications if an applicant submits duplicate or multiple submissions. For additional information or clarification please contact the NIFA POC listed in this RFA.

NIFA Support Key Information: Business hours: Monday thru Friday, 7a.m. – 5p.m. ET, except federal holidays