Volume 34 (2015)
Funding Opportunity Announcements
NIA: Claude D. Pepper Older Americans Independence Centers (P30) (RFA-AG-16-011) NIA: Aging Research to Address Health Disparities (Administrative Supplement) (PA-15-293) NIA: Networks to Develop Priority Areas of Behavioral and Social Research (R24) (RFA-AG-16-008) NIAAA: Screening and Brief Alcohol Interventions in Underage and Young Adult Populations (R21, R01, R03) (PA-15-294), (PA-15-295), (PA-15-296) FIC: International Research Scientist Development Award (IRSDA) (K01) (PAR-15-291) FIC, NHGRI, NIEHS, NIMH: Emerging Global Leader Award (K43)(PAR-15-292) AHRQ: AHRQ Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Clinical Decision Support Learning Network (U18) (RFA-HS-15-003) NICHD: Neurodevelopmental Assessment of Infants and Children in Resource-Limited Settings (R43/R44, R41/R42) (RFA-HD-16-024), (RFA-HD-16-025) NICHD: HIV-infected Adolescents: Transitioning from…
AERA Holds Congressional Briefing on LGBTQ Issues in Education, Shares Research Agenda
On July 9, four distinguished scholars shared the results of an initiative and subsequent publication, LGBTQ [Lesbian, Gay Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer] Issues in Education: Advancing a Research Agenda, by the American Educational Research Association (AERA), a COSSA Governing Member. The report “exemplifies one of the most important objectives of AERA as a scientific and scholarly association: to bring rigorous and relevant knowledge to bear on salient issues in education and to help chart future directions of inquiry,” states Felice Levine, AERA executive director, in the preface of the recently released report and moderator of the congressional briefing held on…
Events Calendar
Live Long and Prosper: the Impact of Education on Mortality, Washington, DC, July 27, 2015 Toxic Stress: How Economic Inequality Hurts Early Childhood Development, Washington, DC, July 30, 2015 American Psychological Association Annual Convention, Toronto, Canada, August 6-9, 2015 Rural Sociological Society Annual Meeting, Madison, WI, August 6-9, 2015 American Statistical Association Joint Statistical Meetings, Seattle, WA, August 8-13, 2015 American Sociological Association Annual Meeting, Chicago, IL, August 22-25, 2015 National Conference on Health Statistics, Bethesda, MD, August 24-26, 2015 American Political Science Association Annual Meeting & Exhibition, San Francisco, CA, September 3-5, 2015 Economic History Association Annual Meeting, Nashville,…
COSSA Washington Update, Volume 34 Issue 12
Featured News House and Senate Appropriations Committees Approve FY 2016 Labor-HHS Bills COSSA in Action COSSA Endorses Innovation Imperative Congressional News House Agriculture Appropriations Bill Would Cut USDA Research and Statistics Federal Agency & Administration News OBSSR Marks 20th Anniversary at NIH, on Capitol Hill ACS Launches New Website Events Calendar
House and Senate Appropriations Committees Approve FY 2016 Labor-HHS Bills
The Appropriations Committees in the House and Senate advanced their respective fiscal year (FY) 2016 bills for Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies (Labor-HHS). The House passed its version on June 24 (see COSSA’s preliminary analysis of the bill), and the Senate on June 25. Both bills would provide sizable increases for the National Institutes of Health (NIH), with a larger increase coming from the Senate’s bill. The House bill proposes to completely eliminate the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) but maintains strong funding for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), while the…
House Agriculture Appropriations Bill Would Cut USDA Research and Statistics
The House Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee advanced its draft bill to the full committee on June 18. A full committee markup originally scheduled for June 25 was postponed. Among the agencies funded in the bill are the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) research and statistical agencies, the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), the Economic Research Service (ERS), and the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS). The Committee Report is available here. COSSA has joined the Friends of Agricultural Statistics and Analysis (FASA), a new coalition of stakeholders who care about timely,…
COSSA Endorses Innovation Imperative
COSSA has joined more than 250 industry, science, and higher education organizations on “Innovation: An American Imperative,” which is a call to action urging Congress to double down on its investments in the U.S. innovation enterprise. According to the statement, “Our leadership is now at risk because of years of under-prioritizing federal scientific research investments and policies that promote innovation.” In response to these concerns, the statement calls for Congress to take a number of steps, including ending cuts to discretionary spending, providing increases of at least four percent to basic research agencies, improving student achievement in STEM disciplines, and…
OBSSR Marks 20th Anniversary at NIH, on Capitol Hill
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR) marked its 20th anniversary with a three-day celebration on June 23-25 on the NIH Bethesda campus and Capitol Hill. The celebration began with the 8th Matilda White Riley Award and Lecture in Behavioral and Social Sciences on June 23. The award is given in recognition of an outstanding behavioral or social scientist whose research has contributed to both the deepening of knowledge and its application in a manner that furthers NIH’s mission of improving health. This year the award went to Kevin Volpp and Jeanne Brooks-Gunn.
ACS Launches New Website
The American Community Survey (ACS) has a new website. The new site, according to the ACS office, “has a look and feel consistent with census.gov,” and should allow for easy user navigation. Back to this issue’s table of contents.
Events Calendar
American Psychological Association Annual Convention, Toronto, Canada, August 6-9, 2015 Rural Sociological Society Annual Meeting, Madison, WI, August 6-9, 2015 American Statistical Association Joint Statistical Meetings, Seattle, WA, August 8-13, 2015 American Sociological Association Annual Meeting, Chicago, IL, August 22-25, 2015 National Conference on Health Statistics, Bethesda, MD, August 24-26, 2015 American Political Science Association Annual Meeting & Exhibition, San Francisco, CA, September 3-5, 2015 Economic History Association Annual Meeting, Nashville, TN, September 11-13, 2015 A list of COSSA members’ annual meetings and other events can be found on the COSSA website. COSSA members who have an upcoming event they would like to…
COSSA Washington Update, Volume 34 Issue 11
Featured News HOT TOPIC: Scientific Organizations Reflect on Building “Trust in Science” Congressional News Senate Committee Advances NSF, Census, Justice Spending Bill House Passes FY16 NSF, Census, Justice Spending Bill Federal Agency & Administration News Share Your Basic Research Success Stories NIH Issues Notice on Enhancing Reproducibility Members of Congress Address NIH Precision Medicine Working Group Workshop on Digital Health Data and Research Cohort Design NIH Minority Health Institute Moves Ahead on Science Visioning of Health Disparities Publications & Community Events 2015 Marks the 20th Anniversary of the Establishment of OBSSR How People Learn II: The Science and Practice of…
HOT TOPIC: Scientific Organizations Reflect on Building “Trust in Science”
By Julia Milton, COSSA The scientific community has been grappling with topics related to science communication and public trust in science lately. This spring, several major scientific organizations met to focus on these issues. To name a few, the National Academy of Science’s 2015 Henry and Bryna David Lecture was held on “Communicating the Value and Values of Science;” the AAAS’ annual Forum on Science and Technology Policy held not one, but two break-out sessions on “Public Opinion and Policy Making,” as well as an evening plenary lecture entitled “Science to Action: Thoughts on Convincing a Skeptical Public;” and the Academies’…
Senate Committee Advances NSF, Census, Justice Spending Bill
On June 10, the Senate Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies (CJS) Appropriations Subcommittee marked up its version of the fiscal year (FY) 2016 CJS bill. The full Senate Appropriations Committee followed suit on June 11, advancing the bill to the Senate floor. The CJS bill provides annual funding to the National Science Foundation (NSF), the National Institute of Justice (NIJ), and the Census Bureau and other federal statistical agencies. Like the House bill passed on June 4, the Senate CJS bill keeps within discretionary spending caps, translating to very small (if any) increases for agencies and programs of interest…
NIH Issues Notice on Enhancing Reproducibility
On June 9, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Office of Extramural Research (OER) issued a Notice (NOT-OD-15-103) in an effort to clarify and revise application instructions and review criteria “to enhance reproducibility of research findings through increased scientific rigor and transparency.” The release of the Notice is to raise awareness and begin “culture shifts in the scientific community.” In a June 9 blog post, Sally Rockey, NIH Deputy Director for Extramural Research, and Larry Tabak, Principal Deputy Director of NIH, explained, “These changes will prompt applicants and reviewers to consider issues, which—if ignored—may impede the transparency needed to reproduce key…
Share Your Basic Research Success Stories
In a June 2 blog post, Jo Handelsman, Associate Director for Science at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), urged the scientific community to share examples of basic research that has yielded unexpected, yet important insights. Handelsman states, “One of the hallmarks of science is that the path to knowledge is often indirect, and that in addition to rigorous investigation, discovery is often shaped by serendipity, human curiosity, and sometimes even heroism.” Unfortunately, basic science, especially in the area of social science, continues to be attacked by some who fail to see the valuable ties between…
Members of Congress Address NIH Precision Medicine Working Group Workshop on Digital Health Data and Research Cohort Design
Senator Lamar Alexander (R-TN) and Representative Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) addressed a special session of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Advisory Council to the Director (ACD) Precision Medicine Initiative Working Group at the Public Workshop, Digital Health Data and Research Cohort Design, on the campus of Vanderbilt University on May 28-29. The workshop is part of series by the ACD Working Group and builds on the April 28-29 workshop held on the NIH campus that focused on the development and implementation of a large national cohort, as well as identification of the unique scientific questions and opportunities of using such…
NIH Minority Health Institute Moves Ahead on Science Visioning of Health Disparities
At the June 9 meeting of National Advisory Council on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NACMHD), outgoing Acting Director Yvonne Maddox updated the Council on the Institute’s Science Visioning process for health disparities research. NIH Deputy Director Larry Tabak will serve as the Institute’s Acting Director until newly appointed director Eliseo Perez-Stable’s arrival in September. To initiate the process, the Institute released a request for information in April (see Update, May 4, 2015). Maddox reported that a trans-NIH Science Vision Advisory Group had been appointed and working groups are being established. The working groups will hold discussion forums around areas…
2015 Marks the 20th Anniversary of the Establishment of OBSSR
The past two decades have seen increasing recognition of the importance of behavioral and social factors in the prevention and treatment of disability and disease. OBSSR’s mission is to stimulate behavioral and social sciences research throughout NIH and to integrate these areas of research more fully into the NIH health research enterprise, thereby improving our understanding, treatment, and prevention of disease. Please join the Coalition for the Advancement of Health through Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (CAHT-BSSR) to celebrate the 20th Anniversary of the NIH Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research with a poster exhibition and reception featuring research…
How People Learn II: The Science and Practice of Learning
On June 10, the National Research Council (NRC) Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education (DBASSE) Board on Behavioral, Cognitive, and Sensory Sciences (BCSS) held its inaugural meeting to update and extend the 2000 NRC report, How People Learn. The ad hoc committee is chaired by Cora Marrett, former Deputy Director of the National Science Foundation. Marrett observed that many things have changed since the original report was released and acknowledged the “phenomenal group of volunteers” tasked with updating the report.
Events Calendar
Making Changes: Learning from Social Science Research to Drive Behavior Change, Washington, DC, June 18, 2015 OBSSR 20th Anniversary Celebration, Bethesda, MD, June 23-25, 2015 OBSSR Capitol Hill Exhibition & Reception, Washington, DC, June 24, 2015 American Psychological Association Annual Convention, Toronto, Canada, August 6-9, 2015 Rural Sociological Society Annual Meeting, Madison, WI, August 6-9, 2015 American Statistical Association Joint Statistical Meetings, Seattle, WA, August 8-13, 2015 American Sociological Association Annual Meeting, Chicago, IL, August 22-25, 2015 A list of COSSA members’ annual meetings and other events can be found on the COSSA website. COSSA members who have an upcoming event they would like…