Volume 37 (2018)
OBSSR Soliciting Papers for 11th Annual Matilda White Riley Honors
The Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) is seeking paper submissions for its Early Stage Investigator Paper Competition as part of the 11th Annual Matilda White Riley Behavioral and Social Science Honors. Early stage investigators are encouraged to submit one published article from 2017 that reflects social and behavioral science advancements helping to enhance life, lengthen life, reduce illness, and reduce disability. Honorees will present their findings on May 31, 2018 in a public event on the NIH campus. Submissions are due by February 18 and more information can be found…
National Science Board Releases Policy Statement on U.S. STEM-Capable Workforce
On February 1, the National Science Board (NSB), the governing body of the National Science Foundation (NSF), released a companion policy statement to the 2018 Science and Engineering Indicators entitled “Our Nation’s Future Competitiveness Relies on Building a STEM-Capable U.S. Workforce.” The statement highlights the Board’s view that growing the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) workforce is critical to our economy and global competitiveness. The NSB also emphasized in its statement that STEM is not just for researchers with advanced degrees, but for all Americans and all segments of our population. More details can be found on the NSB…
ASA Launches New “Count on Stats” Initiative
The American Statistical Association (ASA), a COSSA governing member, has launched a new initiative called Count on Stats to “enhance awareness about the importance, reliability, and trustworthiness of government data” and defend the federal statistical system against political attacks. ASA’s partners in the initiative include COSSA governing members the American Association for Public Opinion Research, the American Educational Research Association, and the American Sociological Association. More information about the program is available on ASA’s website. Back to this issue’s table of contents.
After Three-Day Shutdown, Congress Passes Funding through February 8
Congressional leaders came to an agreement on January 22 to reopen the government after a three-day shutdown by passing another stopgap spending bill, this time to keep the government open and flat-funded until February 8. Fiscal year (FY) 2018 started October 1, 2017 and Congress has yet to pass any appropriation bills for the year. Congress came to the funding impasse on January 19 after the Senate failed to reach an agreement on immigration policy, which will now likely occupy much of Congress’ energy until the continuing resolution expires on February 8, at which point the federal government could be…
Reduced-Price Registration Available to Students Attending COSSA Conference
COSSA is offering deeply discounted registration rates to students attending the 2018 Science Policy Conference and Social Science Advocacy Day on April 30 and May 1. Undergraduate and graduate students can register for only $50, a savings 75% off the base price for early bird registration. Interested students should send an email to jmilton@cossa.org with their program, university, and anticipated year of graduate to receive the discount. Remember: All participants affiliated with COSSA member organizations and universities are eligible for a discount on Conference registration. Check your inbox for a previous email from COSSA with the discount code or email…
Common Rule Implementation Delayed Six Months; Further Delays Likely
The 16 U.S. federal agencies subject to the Common Rule, the set of regulations governing research involving human subjects, announced a six-month delay on the implementation of revisions originally announced in January 2017 (see COSSA’s analysis of the changes). The delay was announced as an Interim Final Rule in a Federal Register notice published on January 17, 2018, two days before the changes were scheduled to go into effect. According to the notice, federal agencies subject to the Common Rule are “in the process of developing a proposed rule to further delay implementation of the 2018 requirements,” and the six-month…
Chief Statistician Seeks Information on Combining Data
The Chief Statistician of the United States has issued a Request for Information on how best to integrate data from multiple sources to inform the development of standards for using combined data for federal purposes. Specifically, the request is seeking information on: “(1) Current and emerging techniques for linking and analyzing combined data; (2) on-going research on methods to describe the quality of statistical products that result from these techniques; (3) computational frameworks and systems for conducting such work; (4) privacy or confidentiality issues that may arise from combining such data; and (5) suggestions for additional research in those or…
NSF Releases 2018 Science & Engineering Indicators
The National Science Board (NSB), the Presidentially-appointed advisory body to the National Science Foundation (NSF), has released the 2018 edition of its Science and Engineering Indicators, a congressionally-mandated compendium of data “relevant to the scope, quality, and vitality of the science and engineering (S&E) enterprise.” Published every two years, the indicators compile data on science and engineering education and the STEM workforce, international comparisons, and public attitudes toward science and engineering. Back to this issue’s table of contents.
COSSA Washington Update, Volume 37 Issue 2
Featured News After Three-Day Shutdown, Congress Passes Funding through February 8 COSSA in Action Reduced-Price Registration Available to Students Attending COSSA Conference Federal Agency & Administration News Common Rule Implementation Delayed Six Months; Further Delays Likely Chief Statistician Seeks Information on Combining Data NSF Releases 2018 Science & Engineering Indicators Funding Opportunities Requests for Comment Recent Reports Fellowships & Professional Development Community News & Reports Nomination Opportunities Requests for Comment Recent Reports COSSA Member Spotlight Nomination Opportunities Fellowships & Professional Development Events Calendar
COSSA Washington Update, Volume 37 Issue 1
Featured News Early Bird Registration Open for 2018 COSSA Science Policy Conference COSSA in Action COSSA Releases 2018 Rankings of College and University Social Science Investment COSSA Board Chair Felice J. Levine Answers “Why Social Science?” Congressional News Congress Returns from Recess Focused on Funding Senators Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Reauthorize International Education Programs Federal Agency & Administration News Delay to Common Rule Implementation Likely NIH Continues to Tweak Policy for Investing in Young Researchers NIH “Clinical Trials” Definition Moving Forward: Researchers Take Notice Trump Appoints James Woodworth to as Commissioner of Education Statistics Recent Reports Open Positions Fellowships &…
Early Bird Registration Open for 2018 COSSA Science Policy Conference
Early bird registration is now open for COSSA’s 2018 Science Policy Conference & Social Science Advocacy Day, which will take place on April 30 – May 1 in Washington, DC. Registration rates will increase on January 16, so register now! Attendees affiliated with COSSA member organizations can receive an additional discount by using their exclusive member coupon code (email jmilton@cossa.org for details). In addition, students can register for a special price of $50. Interested students should email jmilton@cossa.org with your field of study, university, and anticipated year of graduation to receive the student discount code. More information about the conference,…
COSSA Releases 2018 Rankings of College and University Social Science Investment
Last week, COSSA released its 2018 College and University Rankings for Federal Social and Behavioral R&D, which highlight the top university recipients of federal research dollars in the social and behavioral sciences. This year’s rankings feature a new dashboard with an interactive map of recipients of social and behavioral science R&D funding, which allows you to see how your university stacks up against more than 400 U.S. institutions. Based on the most recent available federally collected data, the COSSA rankings use an inclusive selection of fields to calculate the total federal R&D funding received by universities in the social and…
Congress Returns from Recess Focused on Funding
Members of Congress returned from their holiday recess this week to a government funded under yet another stop-gap measure that is set to expire on January 19. Fiscal year (FY) 2018 started October 1 and Congress has yet to pass any appropriation bills for the year. Before any of the proposed legislation can be sent to the President’s desk, Congress must come to an agreement on the top-line spending levels allowed by law. These budget caps will decrease in FY 2018 under the Budget Control Act through sequestration, unless Congress passes a deal to increase the spending levels. The renewed…
Senators Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Reauthorize International Education Programs
Senators Todd Young (R-IN) and Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) introduced the Advancing International and Foreign Language Education Act (S. 2255) on December 20 to reauthorize the Title VI International Education programs at the Department of Education. The bill is similar to H.R. 4491, which was introduced in the House last fall. Both bills aim to support the existing international education programs at the Department. Both Senate sponsors are members of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions and may work to incorporate the proposals in the bill into the committee’s reauthorization of the Higher Education Act. More information can…
Delay to Common Rule Implementation Likely
On January 4, the Department of Health and Human Services submitted a final rule for approval by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA), which would indefinitely delay implementation of revisions to the Common Rule, the set of regulations governing research involving human participants (see COSSA’s analysis of the changes, which were announced in the final days of the Obama administration). This rule replaces an earlier proposal to delay implementation that was submitted in October but never approved by OIRA (see COSSA’s discussion), which would have allowed certain “burden-reducing” provisions of the Rule…
NIH Continues to Tweak Policy for Investing in Young Researchers
As previously reported, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced over the summer a new policy aimed at increasing the number of early career investigators competing successfully for NIH grants. The Next Generation Researchers Initiative (NGRI) included two new definitions of early career investigators: Early Stage Investigators (ESIs) would include researchers who completed their degrees within the last 10 years and have not yet received their first NIH grant; Early Established Investigators (EEIs) would have to be within 10 years of receiving their first independent R01-equivelent research award. In a presentation to the NIH Advisory Committee to the Director last…
NIH “Clinical Trials” Definition Moving Forward: Researchers Take Notice
As previously reported, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has been working for the last few years to enhance its stewardship of and increase transparency over the clinical trials it funds. In a recent blog post, Mike Lauer, Deputy Director for Extramural Research, explained that while no changes have been made to the definition of a clinical trial, which is the primary area of concern for the social science community, the case studies developed by NIH to help investigators determine whether their research would now fall under the new definition have been updated and clarified. COSSA described the planned changes…
Trump Appoints James Woodworth to serve as Commissioner of Education Statistics
James Woodworth of the Center for Research on Educational Outcomes at Stanford University’s Hoover Institute has been appointed to lead the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) at the U.S. Department of Education. Mr. Woodworth has also worked as Distinguished Doctoral Fellow at the Arkansas Department of Education Reform and as a public-school teacher. NCES is the principal statistical agency within the Departments’ research arm, the Institute of Education Sciences. Mr. Woodworth was appointed for the remainder of a six-year term expiring in 2021. Back to this issue’s table of contents.
National Academies Launches Reproducibility and Replicability Study
The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine held the first meeting of the study committee on Reproducibility and Replicability in Science on December 12 and 13. The study is sponsored by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and is statutorily required by a provision in the American Innovation and Competitiveness Act. The committee will work to identify factors that affect reproducibility and replication, highlight best practices, and ascertain the extent of issues affecting reproducibility and replication. More information about project can be found here. Back to this issue’s table of contents.