Description

The Institute of Education Sciences (IES) and the U.S. Department of Education (ED) anticipate the release of a 2026 Small Business Innovation Research Program (SBIR) Phase IA solicitation #91990026R0003, on or about April 30, 2026. The proposal submission date will be in late June 2026, approximately 60 days after the solicitation release. The program, known as ED/IES SBIR, provides awards to eligible for-profit businesses and partners for the research and development and evaluation of new, commercially viable education technology products (“products”). The Phase IA program solicitation will invite eligible for-profit small business firms and partners to submit proposals for $250,000 for contracts to develop and evaluate a prototype of an entirely novel education technology product (where no or limited previous development has occurred) over a period of 9 months. The goal of the Phase IA track is to solicit proposals for ground-breaking high-risk high reward approaches to solve pressing problems in education. Small Business firms and partners who possess strong research and development and evaluation capabilities for education technology products in the below priority area are encouraged to participate. PRIORITY AREA IA: Prototypes of Novel Education Technology Products for Use by Learners, Educators or Administrators (or Other School Personnel) Successful Phase IA awardees under the solicitation will be eligible to apply for a Phase II award for $1,000,000 in 2027, to fully develop and evaluate the novel education technology product over a period of 2 years and to prepare for commercialization. The result from Phase IA and the subsequent Phase II funding under this solicitation will be a novel education technology product. Three other 2026 ED/IES SBIR solicitations will be released on the same day as the Phase IA solicitation: The Phase IB program solicitation 91990026R0004 will request proposals for the development of a new component to be integrated with an existing education technology prototype or product. The existing prototype or product is required to be research-based. The resulting product from Phase IB and II funding under this solicitation will be a new version of an education technology product. The Direct to Phase II program solicitation #91990026R0005 will request proposals for the development of new education technology products to ready existing evidence-based innovations (e.g., products, interventions, tools) for commercial use at scale. Awards will be for $1,000,000 over a period of 2 years. The existing evidence-based innovation is required to have originally been conceptualized and developed by an academic researcher while at an academic institution or by a researcher at a non-profit education research organization. One or more of the academic researchers that originally created the innovation are required to participate in the project team. Projects that focus on advancing innovations that are not evidence-based wi…

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