Higher Education Challenge Grants Program

by: Iola Bonggay

The National Institute of Food and Agriculture, more commonly referred to as NIFA, is a United States federal government agency operating under the Department of Agriculture that is primarily responsible for consolidating all federally-funded agricultural research studies.

The establishment of NIFA was mandated under the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 in an attempt to initiate and enable technological innovations that have the potential to improve American agriculture, thus make it more productive, environmentally sustainable, and economically viable.

In accordance with this mission, the National Institute of Food and Agriculture has recently constituted the Higher Education Challenge Grants Program in an attempt to boost and enhance the quality of formal, postsecondary-level agricultural sciences education.

The projects that will be funded under this program are those that mean to work towards ensuring a competent, eligible, and diverse system that would be beneficial to the food and agricultural sciences industry.

In that context, the National Institute Food and Agriculture also wants the proposed projects to achieve the following goals:

a) Substantially increase the number of students who are willing to pursue and complete a postsecondary degree in the food and agricultural sciences.

  (continued...)

Higher Education Challenge Grants Program
  Page 2

About The Author Iola Bonggay is an editor of TopGovernmentGrants.com one the the most comprehensive Websites offering information on government grants and federal government programs. She also maintains Websites providing resources on environmental grants and grants for youth programs.

Additional Resources

category - Education Grants

Student Loans Available Directly from the Federal Government
There are different variations of a Federal Direct Student Loan available; these are dependent on whether or not the student is eligible for government assistance. Need based programs include the Stafford Loan and the Direct Subsidized Loan; while non-need based programs are the Direct PLUS program, and the Direct Unsubsidized Loan.

---

Tribal Colleges Research Grants Program
In keeping with this mission, the National Institutes of Food and Agriculture has recently established the Tribal Colleges Research Grants Program in an attempt to conduct agricultural research studies that address high priority concerns of tribal, national, or multistate significance.

---

Community College Tuition is Affordable
Community colleges are local colleges that offer two year degrees and certifications. Students can take classes at community college and earn credits toward a two year or four year degree program. C...

---

The Role of Private Enterprise in Putting Man into Space
Has NASA, the monolithic space agency, failed in it's quest to put man out into the cosmos? Will profit coupled with man's need to explore be the driving engine which sends man into the cosmos? Think...

---