The Resident Instruction Grants for Institutions of Higher Education in Insular Areas Agriculture and Food Science Facilities and Equipment Program for Insular Areas (Assistance Listing 10.308) promotes and strengthens the ability of eligible institutions in the Insular Areas to carry out education and research within the food and agricultural sciences. Administered by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), this funding opportunity supports two complementary programs: the Resident Instruction Grants for Institutions of Higher Education in Insular Areas (RIIA) and the Agriculture and Food Science Facilities and Equipment Program for Insular Areas (AGFEI). The RIIA program focuses on teaching and Extension/outreach, while the AGFEI program supports research at eligible institutions.

Overview

The RIIA and AGFEI programs are designed to build institutional capacity in the food and agricultural sciences across the eight Insular Areas. Eligible institutions may apply for grants to support facilities, equipment, instruction, research, and related activities. The funding instrument type is a grant, and there is no cost-sharing or matching requirement. This opportunity is discretionary and falls under the category of Agriculture.

Eligibility

Eligible applicants include certain institutions of higher education located in an insular area.

• For the RIIA program, an eligible institution is an institution of higher education as defined in section 101(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1995, located in an insular area, and with a demonstrable capacity to carry out teaching and Extension/outreach programs in the food and agricultural sciences. All public or nonprofit 2-year and 4-year accredited institutions of higher education that offer certificate or degree programs in the food and agricultural sciences are eligible.
• For the AGFEI program, only individual Land-grant Colleges and Universities and other institutions that have secured Land-grant status through Federal legislation and are located in insular areas are eligible as individual applicants.

The eight insular areas are:

• American Samoa
• The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands
• The Commonwealth of Puerto Rico
• The Federated States of Micronesia
• Guam
• The Republic of the Marshall Islands
• The Republic of Palau
• The United States Virgin Islands

Additional eligibility information: Branch institutions of a territory university system that are separately accredited as degree-granting institutions are treated as separate, individual institutions, provided they otherwise satisfy the definition of eligible institution. Independent branch campuses of individual institutions may also apply for and receive grant awards, provided they satisfy the definition of eligible institution.

Funding and Benefits

• Program Funding: $2,800,000
• Expected Awards: 6
• Award Minimum: $10,000
• Award Maximum: $500,000
• Cost Sharing or Matching: Not required

Application Process and Deadline

Applications must be submitted through Grants.gov. Applicants may track their application status and subscribe to updates on that platform. For questions about preparing application content, contact the NIFA Support team via email.

Deadline: June 15, 2026

Funding opportunity number: USDA-NIFA-RIGP-011736

Additional program details and application materials are available in the full Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) posted on Grants.gov and at the NIFA funding opportunity page: Resident Instruction Grants Program for Institutions of Higher Education in Insular Areas and Agriculture and Food Sciences Facilities and Equipment.

Contact Information

For questions regarding application content, contact:

• Email: grantapplicationquestions@usda.gov
• Business Hours: Monday through Friday, 7:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. ET, excluding federal holidays