Supporting Statement for Focus group for National Science Foundation (NSF) Centers for Chemical Innovation (CCI) Program Grantee

Request for Approval under the “Generic Clearance for the Collection of
Routine Customer Feedback” (OMB Control Number: 3145-0215)
TITLE OF INFORMATION COLLECTION: Focus group for National Science Foundation
(NSF) Centers for Chemical Innovation (CCI) Program Grantees
PURPOSE: The National Science Foundation intends to leverage the October 11, 2018 Centers
for Chemical Innovation (CCI) Program Phase II Principal Investigator (PI) Meeting to collect
information through facilitated focus groups with twelve project staff from six active Phase II
projects participating in the meeting.
The core mission of the Division of Chemistry in the Directorate of Mathematical and Physical
Sciences (MPS) at the National Science Foundation (NSF) is to support innovative research,
integrated with education, in the chemical sciences. In fiscal year 2004, the Division of
Chemistry introduced the Centers for Chemical Innovation (CCI) Program (initially called
Chemical Bonding Centers) to support research centers focused on major, long-term,
fundamental chemical research challenges. The goals that NSF set forth for the CCI Program
include that Centers will (a) produce transformative research, leading to innovation, and attract
broad scientific and public interest; (b) be agile structures that can respond rapidly to emerging
opportunities through enhanced collaborations; and (c) integrate research, innovation, education,
broaden participation, and informal science communication. The Division of Chemistry has
initiated a comprehensive assessment with Abt Associates to evaluate the extent to which and in
what ways the CCI program is achieving its goals.
The purpose of the facilitated focus groups is to gain information from project staff that will
inform adjustments and improvements in program design, respective vehicles that convey
funding opportunities, (e.g., program solicitations, Dear Colleague Letters, etc.), and strategy for
outreach to and community-building activities for relevant research communities.
For Center Directors: The goal of the focus group is to help NSF better understand how the CCI
community selects important chemistry challenges, what is the best way to identify and approach
these types of challenges in the future, and centers’ efforts and needs related to monitoring
and/or evaluation. For Managing Directors: The goal of the focus group is to help NSF better
understand how the CCI community selects broader impact activities, which center activities are
best addressed through a coordinated effort such as CCI, and centers’ efforts and needs related to
monitoring and/or evaluation.
By gathering information through facilitated focus groups, the information collection may serve
to simultaneously catalyze opportunities for networking, collaboration, and early coordination of
future research, broader impact activities, and other center-activities, such as monitoring and/or
evaluation, among the participants.
DESCRIPTION OF RESPONDENTS: Respondents are twelve Center Directors (award
Principal Investigators) and Managing Directors representing six active Phase II Center projects
that are participating in the October 11, 2018 PI Meeting in Alexandria, VA. All twelve Center
and Managing Directors staff will be invited to participate in a facilitated focus group. The
information collection will occur during a facilitated 90-minute session, following a short
presentation about the ongoing Evaluation of the CCI Program.
TYPE OF COLLECTION: (Check one)

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[ ] Customer Comment Card/Complaint Form
[ ] Usability Testing (e.g., Website or Software
[X ] Focus Group

[ ] Customer Satisfaction Survey
[ ] Small Discussion Group
[ ] Other: Questionnaire

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? [ ] Yes [X ] No
2. If Yes, will any information that is collected be included in records that are subject to the
Privacy Act of 1974? [ ] Yes [ X ] No
3. If Yes, has an up-to-date System of Records Notice (SORN) been published? [ ]Yes [X ] 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
Participation
Respondents Time
12
30 minutes
each
12
30 minutes
each

Individuals (focus group)
Totals

Burden
6 hours
6 hours

FEDERAL COST: This will be incorporated into the plans of running the program.
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

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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?
[X ] Yes
[ ]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?
Respondents will be a convenience sample that emerges from self-selected, voluntary
participation of individuals among the twelve Center and Managing Directors representing six
active Phase II Center projects that are participating in the October 11, 2018 PI Meeting in
Alexandria, VA.
Administration of the Instrument
1. How will you collect the information? (Check all that apply)
[ ] Web-based or other forms of Social Media
[ ] Telephone
[X] In-person
[ ] Mail
[ ] Other, Explain
2. Will interviewers or facilitators be used? [X] Yes [ ] No
Please make sure that all instruments, instructions, and scripts are submitted with the
request.

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Focus Group Protocols
NSF’s Centers for Chemical Innovation (CCI) program
PI and Managing Director Convening
September 24, 2018
Consent statement
• My name is [FIRST AND LAST NAME] and I am a researcher at [NSF/NSF
CONTRACTOR].
• For Center Directors: The goal of this focus group is to help NSF better understand how
the CCI community selects important chemistry challenges, what is the best way to
identify and approach these types of challenges in the future, and your center’s efforts
and needs related to monitoring and/or evaluation.
• For Managing Directors: The goal of this focus group is to help NSF better understand
how the CCI community selects broader impact activities, which center activities are best
addressed through a coordinated effort such as CCI, and your center’s efforts and needs
related to monitoring and/or evaluation.
• Our collection of information through the focus group have been reviewed and approved
under OMB Control Number 3145-0215.
• We expect the focus group to take about 45 minutes.
• We will aggregate the information that you provide for NSF and you will not be quoted
by name or in any other way that can identify you. However, since your group is small,
there is some chance that NSF might be able to infer who you are based on your answers
• Please keep the conversation in the room confidential and not to share what you've said
or heard to others who are not in this group
• Please feel free to ask for a clarification or to not answer any question
• Do you have questions for me before we proceed?
Questions for Center Directors
1. The goal of the CCI program is to “support research centers focused on major, long-term
fundamental chemical research challenges.” How did your center select your challenge?
2. What are the most important current or emerging fundamental challenges in chemistry?
3. Are these problems best approached through coordinated efforts such as the CCI
program? What are other approaches that could be considered to support the research
efforts to address these challenges?
4. What can NSF do to build the research community’s capacity to respond to these types of
challenges without significant new funding?
5. For future program planning, what are other ways, in addition to a competition
solicitation, to engage the community in identifying important chemical challenges?
6. What does your center currently do to monitor performance toward proposed goals? [For
those who appear to do evaluation] Do you see your approach as effective? How have
you used the evaluation findings?

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7. Do you think the centers such as CCI should include an internal evaluation component? If
yes, what types of resources or activities could help the centers implement this type of
performance monitoring?
Probe: For example, a website containing evaluation tools and program-related
results

Questions for Managing Directors
1. How did your center select the activities to meet the “broader impact” goals of the grant?
2. Have you experienced challenges implementing these activities? What were they and
were you able to resolve them?
3. What are the center activities which could be best accomplished through coordinated
efforts of the CCI community?
4. What does your center currently do to monitor performance toward proposed goals? [For
those who appear to do evaluation] Do you see your approach as effective? How have
you used the evaluation findings?
5. Do you think the centers such as CCI should include an internal evaluation component? If
yes, what types of resources or activities could help the centers implement this type of
performance monitoring?
Probe: For example, a website containing evaluation tools and program-related
results

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