Volume 36 (2017)
OBSSR Director Comments on 2017-2021 Strategic Plan
National Institutes of Health (NIH) Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research Director William (Bill) Riley recently released commentaries on the office’s 2017-2021 Strategic Plan three scientific priorities. Priority One: Improve the synergy of basic and applied behavioral and social sciences research Priority Two: Enhance and promote the research infrastructure, methods, and measures needed to support a more cumulative and integrated approach to behavioral and social sciences research Priority Three: Facilitate the adoption of behavioral and social sciences research findings in health research and in practice. Back to this issue’s table of contents.
National Medal of Science, National Medal of Technology and Innovation Nominations Open
Nominations are being accepted for potential recipients of the National Medal of Science and the National Medal of Technology and Innovation. The National Medal of Science recognizes individuals who have made outstanding contributions to knowledge in the physical, biological, mathematical, engineering, or behavioral or social sciences. The National Medal of Technology and Innovation is awarded to individuals, teams, companies, or divisions of companies for contributions to America’s economic, environmental, and social well-being. Nominations for both Medals are due by April 7, 2017. Medal of Science nominations may be submitted here. Medal of Technology and Innovation nominations may be submitted here. Back to this issue’s…
Ad Hoc Group Issues Statement Responding to the President’s FY 2018 Budget for NIH
COSSA, as a member of the steering committee of the Ad Hoc Group for Medical Research, joined a statement responding to the President’s FY 2018 budget request proposing a 18 percent cut to the NIH’s budget (see related article). The statement calls on “Congress to reject the inexplicable and impractical proposed cuts to NIH and to continue its tradition of investment in medical science.” The Group also stated that it looks “forward to working with lawmakers to finalize an FY 2017 spending package with $34.1 billion for NIH – as approved nearly unanimously by the Senate Appropriations Committee in June…
IES Coalition Sends Letter to Appropriations Subcommittee Leadership in Support of Agency
On March 10, COSSA joined the Friends of the Institute of Education Sciences (IES), a coalition of organizations committed to supporting the essential role of IES, on a letter to the Labor, Health, and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee (Labor-HHS) in support of IES. The letter urges the Subcommittee to provide $670 million in funding for IES in fiscal year (FY) 2018. The letter also states that the request, consistent with other scientific coalitions, “builds on the FY 2016 final appropriations, accounting for inflation over the past two years as well as four-percent growth.” Back to this…
Friends of NIH Behavioral and Social Sciences Research Submit Statement in Support of OBSSR
On March 9, COSSA, as co-chair of the Friends of NIH Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (Friends of NIH BSSR) with the American Psychological Association (a COSSA founding member), submitted a statement for the record in support of the National Institutes of Health and its Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR). The statement emphasizes that the behavioral and social sciences are integral to the NIH mission and highlights the fact NIH supports behavioral and social science research throughout its 27 institutes and centers. The Friends of NIH BSSR is a coalition of professional organizations, scientific societies, and research…
COSSA Members Join March for Science
Several COSSA member organizations, including the American Anthropological Association, American Association of Geographers, American Educational Research Association, American Psychological Association, American Sociological Association, Linguistic Society of America, Society for Social Work and Research, and the Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues have partnered with the March for Science. COSSA had previously announced its partnership with the March in February (a complete list of partner organizations is available here). The March will take place on April 22 in Washington, DC and at more than 300 satellite locations around the world. Like science more generally, the March for Science is nonpartisan. It…
House Science Committee Begins Conversation on NSF’s Future
On March 9, the Research and Technology Subcommittee of the House Science, Space and Technology Committee held an oversight hearing to discuss the National Science Foundation (NSF). Witnesses included NSF Director France Córdova and Allison Lerner, NSF’s Inspector General. Subcommittee Chair Barbara Comstock (R-VA) presided over the hearing, stating that its purpose is to hear an overview of NSF’s activities and priorities in light of the American Innovation and Competitiveness Act (P.L. 114-329), which was signed into law earlier this year and reauthorized a number of NSF functions, including STEM education programs (additional background on the AICA is available by…
Senate Committee Holds Hearing: “Saving Lives Through Medical Research”
While Congress has not yet completed its work on fiscal year (FY) 2017 appropriations, Congressional committees have begun holding hearing on agencies’ FY 2018 budgets. On March 8, the Senate Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies (Labor-HHS) held a hearing, “Saving Lives Through Medical Research,” to discuss the budget of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Hearing witnesses included Thomas J. Grabowski, Jr., University of Washington School of Medicine; Timothy J. Eberlein, Washington University, St. Louis; Jennifer M. Sasser, University of Mississippi Medical Center; and Stacey Schultz-Cherry, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
House Labor-HHS Appropriations Subcommittee Holds Hearing on Lawmakers’ Priorities
Reviving the Appropriations Committee’s tradition of holding hearings to allow members of Congress to testify on their priorities within a subcommittee’s jurisdiction, on March 1, the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies (Labor-HHS) heard testimony from Members of Congress on their priorities for fiscal year (FY) 2018. Throughout the course of the hearing, Subcommittee Chairman Tom Cole (R-OK) and Ranking Member Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) continually urged members to “continue to advocate for their priorities.” Otherwise, Cole cautioned, the Subcommittee would have to “live within the allocation” it is given by the budget committee….
Funding Opportunity Announcements
FDA: Advancing Conformance with the Voluntary National Retail Food Regulatory Program Standards (VNRFRPS) (U18) (RFA-FD-17-007) NIH opportunities: NCI: Revision Applications to NCI-supported R01 Awards to Include Research on the NCI’s Provocative Questions (R01) (RFA-CA-17-019), (U01) (RFA-CA-17-020), (P01) (RFA-CA-17-021), (P50) (RFA-CA-17-022) NHLBI: Sleep Health and Circadian Biology in HIV-Related Comorbidities (R01) (RFA-HL-18-005) NIBIB: Enhancing Science, Technology, EnginEering, and Math Educational Diversity (ESTEEMED) Research Education Experiences (R25) (PAR-17-221) NIH/FDA: Center for Coordination of Analytics, Science, Enhancement , and Logistics (CASEL) in Tobacco Regulatory Science (U54) (RFA-OD-17-002) [FDA Center for Tobacco Products, NIH: National Institute on Drug Abuse and Office of Disease Prevention] NIH/FDA:…
Events Calendar
Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences Annual Meeting, March 21-25, 2017, Kansas City, MO AERA Centennial Lecture: Charles Payne – The Limits of Schooling, the Power of Poverty, March 23, 2017, Detroit, MI COSSA 2017 Science Policy Conference & Social Science Advocacy Day, March 29-30, 2017, Washington, DC Society of Behavioral Medicine Annual Meeting, March 29-April 1, 2017, San Diego, CA Southern Sociological Society Annual Meeting, March 29-April 1, 2017, Greenville, SC Midwest Sociological Society Annual Meeting, March 30-April 2, 2017, Milwaukee, WI American Association of Geographers Annual Meeting, April 5-9, 2017, Boston, MA Midwest Political Science Association Annual Conference, April 6-9,…
COSSA Washington Update, Volume 36 Issue 5
Featured News COSSA Endorses March for Science COSSA in Action The Society for Personality and Social Psychology Answers “Why Social Science?” RSVP for COSSA’s Celebration of Social Science Congressional Reception: March 29 COSSA Calls for Congress to Complete FY 2017 Appropriations Process Archived Webinar Now Available: “Social Science in the Age of Trump: What We’d Like to See” Congressional News Bracing for a Tough Budget Cycle Federal Agency & Administration News NIA Issues RFIs for Alzheimer’s Disease Bypass Budget and on Enhancing Timely Sharing of Data NIFA Introduces New Behavioral Science Grants Program NIA Seeks Applicants for its 2017 Butler-Williams…
COSSA Endorses March for Science
COSSA has announced that it that it will be partnering with the March for Science, joining more than 25 scientific societies and professional associations who have officially endorsed the March. We are excited to participate in the event in solidarity with other scientists and science enthusiasts as we showcase the important contributions that science, especially the social and behavioral sciences, make to our country and global community. The Washington, DC March is scheduled for April 22 and more than 300 satellite marches are planned in cities around the world. Like science more generally, the March for Science is nonpartisan. It…
RSVP for COSSA’s Celebration of Social Science Congressional Reception: March 29
COSSA will be hosting a Celebration of Social Science reception on March 29 in conjunction with its 2017 Science Policy Conference. The reception will feature the presentation of the 2017 COSSA Distinguished Service Award to Senators Cory Gardner (R-CO) and Gary Peters (D-MI). The event will take place in the Room 485 of the Russell Senate Office Building, from 6:00-8:00 pm. Please RSVP by March 23. Back to this issue’s table of contents.
COSSA Calls for Congress to Complete FY 2017 Appropriations Process
In a letter to House and Senate appropriators on the Commerce, Justice, Science (CJS) Subcommittees, COSSA called for speedy completion of the FY 2017 appropriations process. The letter also urges strong appropriations for the National Science Foundation, National Institute of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics, and Census Bureau. The letter is available on the COSSA website. Back to this issue’s table of contents.
Archived Webinar Now Available: “Social Science in the Age of Trump: What We’d Like to See”
The archived video of a February 9 webinar, “Social Science in the Age of Trump: What We’d Like to See,” hosted by SAGE Publishing is now available. The webinar featured COSSA Executive Director Wendy Naus in a conversation with Michael Todd, editor of Social Science Space, and touched on the current state of affairs related to the social and behavioral sciences, areas of concern under the Trump Administration, and how researchers and academics can get involved in advocating on behalf of the social sciences. The complete webinar is available to watch here. Back to this issue’s table of contents.
NIA Issues RFIs for Alzheimer’s Disease Bypass Budget and on Enhancing Timely Sharing of Data
The National Institute on Aging (NIA) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has issued two requests for information (RFI). The first is a time-sensitive RFI, Planning for NIA’s FY 2019 Alzheimer’s Disease Bypass Budget (NOT-AG-17-005). The Institute is seeking comments and input for the Institute’s use in the Fiscal Year (FY) 2019 NIH Alzheimer’s Disease Bypass Budget (ADBB), particularly in identifying and establishing research priorities for the FY 2019 ADBB. The ADBB is congressionally mandated via the FY 2015 Consolidated and Furthering Continuing Appropriations Act. NIH is further mandated to update the ADBB annually through FY 2025. In addition…
NIFA Introduces New Behavioral Science Grants Program
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) announced a new grant program, Behavioral and Experimental Economic Applications for Agri-Environmental Policy Design, within the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) Foundational Agriculture Economics and Rural Communities program. The new program is jointly funded with the USDA’s Economic Research Service. For its first round, the new program plans to offer two grants, totaling $500,000 to help “pinpoint motivators that drive farmers to adopt conservation practices and identify the roadblocks that may get in the way.” Back to this issue’s table of contents.
NIA Seeks Applicants for its 2017 Butler-Williams Scholars Program
The National Institute on Aging (NIA) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) is accepting applications for its 2017 Butler-Williams Scholars Program. The Institute is particularly interested in receiving applications from emerging researchers, “including those who may have had limited previous involvement in research on aging.” An activity within the NIA Office of Special Populations, the program emphasizes its interest in researchers involved and/or interested in health disparities research related to aging. Applications are due by March 24th, 2017. Back to this issue’s table of contents.