Tribal Colleges and Universities Program (TCUP)

The Tribal Colleges and Universities Program (TCUP) provides awards to federally recognized Tribal Colleges and Universities, Alaska Native-serving institutions, and Native Hawaiian-serving institutions to promote high quality science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), STEM education, research, and outreach. TCUP supports transformative capacity-building, community engagement, or research projects through multiple funding tracks including Instructional Capacity Excellence in TCUP Institutions (ICE-TI), Targeted STEM Infusion Projects (TSIP), TCUP for Secondary and Elementary Teachers in STEM (TSETS), TCU Enterprise Advancement Centers (TEA Centers), Cyberinfrastructure Health, Assistance, and Improvements (CHAI), Preparing for TCUP Implementation (Pre-TI), TCUP Partnerships, and Small Grants for Research (SGR). The program aims to increase Native individuals' participation in STEM careers, improve the quality of STEM programs at TCUP-eligible institutions, and facilitate the development of a strong STEM enterprise in TCUP institutions' service areas. Projects support comprehensive institutional improvements, short-term targeted enhancements, professional development for K-12 teachers, research centers addressing tribal needs, cyberinfrastructure upgrades, preparatory planning activities, collaborative partnerships with non-TCUP institutions, and individual faculty research initiatives.