FY16 NOAA Chesapeake Bay Watershed Education and Training (B-WET) Program | NOAA NMFS NCBO 2016 2004732

Opportunity Information: Apply for NOAA NMFS NCBO 2016 2004732

The FY16 NOAA Chesapeake Bay Watershed Education and Training (B-WET) Program is a competitive federal grant opportunity designed to strengthen environmental education across the entire Chesapeake Bay watershed. The program focuses on supporting established, high-quality education efforts while also encouraging the creation of new and innovative programs. A major emphasis is on building long-term capacity and strengthening partnerships among organizations that deliver environmental education, with the broader purpose of improving environmental literacy related to the Chesapeake Bay and its connected rivers, streams, and communities.

At its core, B-WET Chesapeake aims to advance the environmental literacy goal laid out in the Chesapeake Bay Agreement and to align with the NOAA Education Strategic Plan. Funded projects are expected to provide hands-on, place-based learning that helps students understand real issues affecting the Chesapeake Bay watershed, such as water quality, habitat health, living resources, and human impacts on watershed systems. The opportunity specifically targets formal K-12 audiences, meaning projects should be built around students in grades K through 12 and the educators who support them. In addition to student learning, the program supports professional development for teachers, administrators, and other educators who work in K-12 settings, recognizing that high-quality training for educators improves the reach and sustainability of watershed education.

A defining feature of this program is its focus on Meaningful Watershed Educational Experiences (MWEEs). These experiences are not limited to classroom lessons or one-time field trips. Instead, MWEEs blend outdoor field investigations and direct experiences in the watershed with structured classroom instruction and learning activities. The intent is to create coherent learning sequences where students collect data or make observations in the field, connect what they saw to scientific concepts back in the classroom, and engage with NOAA-related science content. This integration helps students build both scientific understanding and a stronger connection to their local environment, while also reinforcing skills such as inquiry, problem-solving, and applied learning.

The grant is offered by the U.S. Department of Commerce through NOAA, and the assistance mechanism is a cooperative agreement. That structure generally signals that NOAA may have an ongoing role during the project period, such as providing guidance, coordination, or technical input, rather than simply issuing funds with minimal interaction. The opportunity is categorized as discretionary funding, and it falls under environment, natural resources, science and technology, and research and development-related activities. The CFDA number listed for the program is 11.457, and the funding opportunity number is NOAA NMFS NCBO 2016 2004732.

Eligibility is fairly broad for education and community organizations working in the watershed. Eligible applicants include K-12 public and independent schools and school systems, colleges and universities, community-based and nonprofit organizations, state and local government agencies, interstate agencies, and Indian tribal governments. The program does not allow for-profit organizations, foreign organizations, or foreign public entities to apply as the lead applicant. However, those entities can still be involved as partners on a project if an eligible organization is leading the application. Federal agencies also cannot receive federal assistance under this announcement, but they may participate as project partners, which can be useful for projects that benefit from federal scientific expertise, sites, or educational resources.

In terms of scale, the award ceiling is $150,000, and NOAA anticipated making about seven awards under this round. The opportunity was created on November 25, 2015, with an original application closing date of February 4, 2016. Overall, the program is structured to fund practical, field-connected environmental education that builds students knowledge of the Chesapeake Bay watershed while strengthening educator capacity and regional collaboration to sustain high-quality learning experiences over time.

• The Department of Commerce in the environment, natural resources, science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "FY16 NOAA Chesapeake Bay Watershed Education and Training (B-WET) Program" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 11.457.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2015-11-25.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2016-02-04. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $150,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 7 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Others.

Apply for NOAA NMFS NCBO 2016 2004732

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