Supporting Statement for Dear Colleague Letter – Seeking Community Input for Topic Ideas to inform planning by the Office of Int

Request for Approval under the “Generic Clearance for the Collection of Routine Customer Feedback” (OMB Control Number: 3145-0215)

TITLE OF INFORMATION COLLECTION: Dear Colleague Letter – Seeking Community Input for Topic Ideas to inform planning by the Office of International Science and Engineering at the National Science Foundation

PURPOSE: The Office of International Science and Engineering (OISE) serves as a focal point for international activities at the National Science Foundation (NSF). OISE partners with the NSF Directorates and other NSF offices to support U.S. participation in international research collaborations with the goals of advancing the frontiers of science through mutually beneficial partnerships and preparing a globally engaged U.S. science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) workforce. OISE promotes the development of an integrated, NSF-wide international strategy and manages international programs that are innovative, catalytic, and responsive to priorities. The Office oversees programs to expand and enhance cutting-edge international research and education opportunities for U.S. scientists and engineers, especially at the early career stage.

As part of an ongoing programmatic realignment, OISE proposes enhanced opportunities for international research collaboration through a new program named Accelerating Research through International Networks (AccelNet). AccelNet aims to create new, or enhance existing, international research communities through network-to-network collaboration. OISE will introduce AccelNet to NSF staff and the research community in FY2017 through various inreach and outreach activities. Pending availability of funds, NSF anticipates supporting AccelNet projects starting in FY2019. OISE will lead the development of AccelNet and work with the NSF Directorates and external experts to identify topics ripe for network-to-network collaboration that could leverage expertise, data, facilities, and/or other resources.

To identify promising international network-to-network directions, OISE is conducting an information-gathering activity. Input from the science and engineering research community is an important component of the new program planning process.

DESCRIPTION OF RESPONDENTS: NSF anticipates input from interested members of the U.S. STEM community, the agency’s core constituency. International researchers may work with U.S. researchers to contribute input but cannot submit input independently.

TYPE OF COLLECTION: (Check one)

[ ] Customer Comment Card/Complaint Form [ ] Customer Satisfaction Survey

[ ] Usability Testing (e.g., Website or Software [ ] Small Discussion Group

[] Focus Group [X ] Other: SurveyMonkey responses

CERTIFICATION:

I certify the following to be true:

1. The collection is voluntary.

2. The collection is low-burden for respondents and low-cost for the Federal Government.

3. The collection is non-controversial and does not raise issues of concern to other federal agencies.

4. The results are not intended to be disseminated to the public.

5. Information gathered will not be used for the purpose of substantially informing influential policy decisions.

6. The collection is targeted to the solicitation of opinions from respondents who have experience with the program or may have experience with the program in the future.

Name:__Suzanne H. Plimpton, NSF Reports Clearance Officer_______________________

To assist review, please provide answers to the following question:

Personally Identifiable Information:

1. Is personally identifiable information (PII) collected? [ X ] Yes [ ] No

2. If Yes, is the information that will be collected included in records that are subject to the Privacy Act of 1974? [ X ] Yes [ ] No

3. If Applicable, has a System or Records Notice been published? [ ] Yes [ ] No

Gifts or Payments:

Is an incentive (e.g., money or reimbursement of expenses, token of appreciation) provided to participants? [ ] Yes [ X ] No

BURDEN HOURS

Category of Respondent	No. of Respondents	Participation Time	Burden
(2) – Note that this will include colleges/universities (private as well as public), nonprofits, and individuals who are part of the science and engineering community.	80	30 minutes	40 hours
Totals	80		40 hours

FEDERAL COST: The estimated annual cost to the Federal government is ___0.0_________

If you are conducting a focus group, survey, or plan to employ statistical methods, please provide answers to the following questions:

The selection of your targeted respondents

1. Do you have a customer list or something similar that defines the universe of potential respondents and do you have a sampling plan for selecting from this universe? [ ] Yes [X ] No

If the answer is yes, please provide a description of both below (or attach the sampling plan)? If the answer is no, please provide a description of how you plan to identify your potential group of respondents and how you will select them?

NSF is issuing a Dear Colleague Letter (DCL; attached) seeking community input. DCLs are a standard form of communicating opportunities to NSF’s core constituency, the science and engineering community. Additionally, NSF will notify its Advisory Committee for International Science and Engineering (AC-ISE), a formal Federal Advisory Committee under the Federal Advisory Committee Act, and leading professional societies through electronic communications. NSF will notify the community broadly through social media, newsletters, blogs, and webinars. Comments from all members of the interested community are welcomed.

Administration of the Instrument

1. How will you collect the information? (Check all that apply)

[ X ] Web-based or other forms of Social Media

[ ] Telephone

[ ] In-person

[ ] Mail

[ ] Other, Explain

2. Will interviewers or facilitators be used? [ ] Yes [X ] No

Please make sure that all instruments, instructions, and scripts are submitted with the request.

Instructions for completing Request for Approval under the “Generic Clearance for the Collection of Routine Customer Feedback”

TITLE OF INFORMATION COLLECTION: Provide the name of the collection that is the subject of the request. (e.g. Comment card for soliciting feedback on xxxx)

PURPOSE: Provide a brief description of the purpose of this collection and how it will be used. If this is part of a larger study or effort, please include this in your explanation.

DESCRIPTION OF RESPONDENTS: Provide a brief description of the targeted group or groups for this collection of information. These groups must have experience with the program.

TYPE OF COLLECTION: Check one box. If you are requesting approval of other instruments under the generic, you must complete a form for each instrument.

CERTIFICATION: Please read the certification carefully. If you incorrectly certify, the collection will be returned as improperly submitted or it will be disapproved.

Personally Identifiable Information: Provide answers to the questions.

Gifts or Payments: If you answer yes to the question, please describe the incentive and provide a justification for the amount.

BURDEN HOURS:

Category of Respondents: Identify who you expect the respondents to be in terms of the following categories: (1) Individuals or Households;(2) Private Sector; (3) State, local, or tribal governments; or (4) Federal Government. Only one type of respondent can be selected.

No. of Respondents: Provide an estimate of the Number of respondents.

Participation Time: Provide an estimate of the amount of time required for a respondent to participate (e.g. fill out a survey or participate in a focus group)

Burden: Provide the Annual burden hours: Multiply the Number of responses and the participation time and divide by 60.

FEDERAL COST: Provide an estimate of the annual cost to the Federal government.

If you are conducting a focus group, survey, or plan to employ statistical methods, please provide answers to the following questions:

The selection of your targeted respondents. Please provide a description of how you plan to identify your potential group of respondents and how you will select them. If the answer is yes, to the first question, you may provide the sampling plan in an attachment.

Administration of the Instrument: Identify how the information will be collected. More than one box may be checked. Indicate whether there will be interviewers (e.g. for surveys) or facilitators (e.g., for focus groups) used.

Please make sure that all instruments, instructions, and scripts are submitted with the request.

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