Department of Education Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Direct to Phase II 2026: Pre-Solicitation
Overview
Buyer
Place of Performance
NAICS
PSC
Set Aside
Original Source
Timeline
Qualification Details
Fit reasons
- NAICS alignment with historical contract wins in similar service areas.
- Scope strongly matches core technical capabilities and delivery model.
Risks
- Past performance thresholds may require one additional teaming partner.
- Potential clarification needed on staffing minimums before bid/no-bid.
Next steps
Validate eligibility requirements, assign capture owner, and schedule partner outreach to confirm teaming strategy before submission planning.
Quick Summary
The U.S. Department of Education (ED), through its Institute of Education Sciences (IES), anticipates releasing a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Direct to Phase II solicitation (#91990026R0005) for 2026. This Total Small Business Set-Aside opportunity seeks proposals from eligible for-profit businesses to advance existing evidence-based education technology innovations for scaled use and commercialization. The solicitation is expected on or about April 30, 2026, with proposals due in late June 2026.
Scope of Work
This program provides awards for the research, development, and evaluation of new, commercially viable education technology products. The focus is on readying existing researcher-developed evidence-based innovations (products, interventions, practices) for use at scale and planning for commercialization. Projects must advance innovations that are already evidence-based.
Eligibility & Requirements
- Innovation Origin: The existing education innovation must have been originally created by researchers at universities or non-profit education research organizations.
- Ineligibility: Proposals to advance education technology projects originated by small businesses are not eligible for this Direct to Phase II program. Projects focusing on non-evidence-based innovations are also ineligible.
- Team Composition: One or more members of the original research team that created the innovation are required to be part of the SBIR project team.
- Award Process: Direct to Phase II projects are awarded without a prior Phase I award.
- Priority Area: Develop new education technology products to ready existing evidence-based innovations for use at scale in education settings, and to plan for commercialization.
Contract Details
- Award Value: $1,000,000
- Duration: 2 years
Submission & Timeline
- Solicitation Release (Anticipated): On or about April 30, 2026.
- Proposal Submission (Anticipated): Late June 2026 (approximately 60 days after release).
- Important Note: Offerors are not permitted to submit the same or similar proposals under the 2026 Phase IA, IB, Direct to Phase II, or Phase II solicitations. Duplicate or similar proposals will be rejected without review.
Related Solicitations
Three other 2026 ED/IES SBIR solicitations will be released concurrently:
- Phase IA (#91990026R0003): For novel education technology product prototypes.
- Phase IB (#91990026R0004): For developing new components for existing research-based prototypes/products.
- Phase II (#91990026R0006): For eligible small business firms who received a 2025 Phase IA or IB SBIR award from ED/IES.
Additional Notes
This notice is a pre-solicitation and not a request for proposals at this time. Interested parties should continue to monitor this posting for updates. For more information, refer to the official solicitations after release and visit the ED/IES SBIR FAQ page at: https://ies.ed.gov/small-business-innovation-research-sbir/edies-sbir-frequently-asked-questions.