# Centers of Excellence

**Agency:** Homeland Security  
**Account:** Research and Development  
**Source document:** Science and Technology Directorate · p. 4  
**Vintage:** President's Budget PB2027  
**Canonical URL:** https://hitchintel.com/budget/homeland-security/centers-of-excellence  

> **Trust:** parsed from the agency Congressional Justification. Approximate, **not summable**, verify at the cited page.

## Funding ($M)

| Fiscal year | Basis | Amount |
| --- | --- | --- |
| FY2025 | enacted | 9.4 |
| FY2026 | CR annualized | 9.4 |
| FY2027 | request | 7.0 |

The prior-year column is a CR annualized figure, not an enacted appropriation.


## Homeland Security discretionary budget authority (OMB PBDB — authoritative)

FY2027 $91.40B, FY2026 $88.60B. This is the agency total, not a sum of the parsed lines.


## What this funds

University Programs - PPA Centers of Excellence Arctic Domain Awareness Center: Addressing Rapid Changes through Technology, Innovation and Collaboration (ADAC-ARCTIC) Description: The FY 2027 President's Budget provides $3.5M for this project. The ADAC-ARCTIC Center of Excellence advances America's security and prosperity in the Arctic through research and development, training, and education to support DHS missions and operations. The Center addresses complex challenges such as maritime safety, infrastructure protection, and emergency response. The Center's research and education programs engage stakeholders across the HSE to address changes in the Arctic region due to increasing sea ice, coastal erosion, hazards, and other Justification: Funding will be used to conduct research and education to enable a secure and resilient Arctic region. This will include interdisciplinary basic and applied research, education, and technology transition across four related research and education themes: (1) Advance All- Domain Situational Awareness, (2) Improve Understanding of Risks and Potential Impacts, (3) Enable Adaptation for Resilience, and (4) Expand Collaboration and Cooperation across the HSE. Developed a strategic plan and milestones for the Center's research and education portfolio. FY 2024 Q4 FY 2025 N/A Recruited and train students through Arctic Summer Internship Program. FY 2025 Q1 FY 2025 Q4 Solicited proposals and implemented research activities focused on increasing resilience in the Arctic. FY 2026 Q1 FY 2026 Conduct land and satellite surveys at priority locations to fill a threat assessment gap in land subsidence data; FY 2026 Q1 FY 2026 Q3 share findings with Arctic operators from the U.S. Border Patrol, the U.S.CG, and the CISA to enable FY 2026 Q1 Develop an emergency operations playbook, focused on critical infrastructure in and around the Port of FY 2027 Q1 Alaska, to enable DHS operators and State and Local responders to conduct planning and emergency FY 2027 Q1 FY 2026 Q2 N/A Lead an Arctic exercise, in partnership with the U.S. Coast Guard, to inform Coast Guard's strategic FY 2027 priorities and planning for the Arctic region. Work with relevant DHS Components and DHS Operators in the Arctic to identify mission needs and research questions to inform the FY27 Request for Proposals. FY 2027 Q4 N/A Hold at least one tabletop exercise with DHS Components and State and Local stakeholders related to Conduct workforce development initiatives aimed at building a pipeline of skilled workers in the Homeland Security Enterprise with experience operating in remote and harsh regions of the Arctic. University Programs - PPA Centers of Excellence National Counterterrorism, Innovation, Technology and Education (NCITE) Description: The FY 2027 President's Budget provides $3.5M for this project. The NCITE Center of Excellence provides access to innovation, technology, and education for counterterrorism professionals in the Homeland Security Enterprise (HSE) and intelligence community. The center supports the HSE counterterrorism mission space with research and analysis dedicated to the study of novel and emerging terrorism threats, counterterrorism technology initiatives, and workforce development mission. Justification: Funding for NCITE will advance research and technical expertise that directly supports DHS's counterterrorism mission. The center will focus on identifying and analyzing persistent and emerging threat actors, understanding the misuse of technology for malicious purposes, and enhancing the protection of the homeland, borders, and critical infrastructure. By investing in these research priorities, DHS will gain deeper insights into evolving terrorist threats and the exploitation of new technologies, informing more effective strategies and solutions. NCITE will analyze the counterterrorism landscape in collaboration with DHS Components and operators to identify mission needs and research questions for future proposals, develop transition plans for new technologies to enhance operational capabilities, and facilitate stakeholder collaboration through the Law Enforcement Partnerships Program to ensure mission alignment and improve community safety nationwide. The result of this investment is essential for strengthening national security and safeguarding the public against evolving threats. Conducted market research and established transition plans for the technologies resulting from at least two FY 2025 Q1 FY 2025 N/A NCITE projects. S&T PMs will utilize these reports to help inform the research portfolio. FY 2025 Q1 FY 2025 Q4 N/A Exposed students to homeland security challenges by funding at least 20 students within research, education, FY 2025 Q1 FY 2025 Q3 Worked with relevant DHS Components to create homeland security challenge areas, draft and release FY 2026 N/A request for proposal for potential research projects. FY 2026 Q4 N/A Advance the operational capabilities of DHS personnel by developing transition plans for resulting FY 2026 Q1 FY 2026 Q4 N/A technologies, enabling operators to improve U.S. defense against novel and emerging threats. FY 2026 Q1 N/A Analyze the counterterrorism landscape and work with relevant DHS Components and DHS counterterrorism FY 2026 Q1


**Where it sits:** Civilian / Non-Defense › Homeland Security › Science and Technology Directorate › Research and Development › University Programs


*HitchAI is an independent intelligence service, not affiliated with the U.S. government. Civilian line dollars are parsed from agency Congressional Justifications and are approximate.*