NSF
Senators, Science Leaders Discuss NSF Cuts
Senators Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) hosted a press event on May 20 to discuss the impacts Trump Administration actions are having on the U.S. scientific enterprise and, in particular, the National Science Foundation (NSF). Sen. Cantwell serves as Ranking Member of the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, which has oversight over the NSF. In her opening remarks, Cantwell noted that at the time of the event, the Administration has terminated 1,530 research grants totaling more than $1 billion. In addition, the President is seeking a 55 percent cut to NSF in the fiscal year (FY) 2026 budget….
Latest from the White House (May 27)
COSSA continues to follow the flurry of executive actions taken by the Trump Administration and the impact those actions are having on the social and behavioral science community. Below are some of the latest developments coming out of the White House. Past updates are available here. DOD Announces 15% Indirect Cost Cap Earlier this month, the Department of Defense (DOD) announced that it will immediately begin imposing a flat 15 percent indirect cost rate on research sponsored by the department. According to the memo, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth noted that the cap will not be limited to new grants, but that existing awards…
National Science Board Statement on âNext Generation NSFâ
On May 16, marking the 75th anniversary of the creation of the National Science Foundation (NSF), the National Science Board (NSB) issued a statement, âWinning the Race for the Future with the National Science Foundation.â The statement acknowledges the risks facing the U.S. in ceding its scientific leadership to other countries. However, it remains silent on recent actions taken by the Trump Administration such as terminating research grants and the Presidentâs proposal to cut agency funding by more than half. Instead, citing the changing science and engineering landscape and increasing administrative burden on researchers, the Board calls for reforms to create…
NSF Releases List of Terminated Grants
The National Science Foundation (NSF) has publicly posted a list of grants that have been terminated as of May 21, 2025 in response to Trump Administration directives. The spreadsheet can be accessed on the NSF âUpdates on Prioritiesâ FAQ website; a direct link to the spreadsheet can be accessed here. The database shows a total of 1,752 grants having been terminated, totaling $1.4 billion. As has been reported, the data show the largest hit taken by the STEM Education Directorate (EDU), which to date has had 839 grants terminated totaling $888 million. The EDU cuts represent 48 percent of the total…
Latest from the White House (May 13)
COSSA continues to follow the flurry of executive actions taken by the Trump Administration and the impact those actions are having on the social and behavioral science community. Below are some of the latest developments coming out of the White House. Past updates are available here. The Dismantling of NSF Continues As previously reported, the Presidentâs so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) arrived at the National Science Foundation (NSF) in April, leading to the termination of more funded projects, elimination of directorate advisory committees, and the resignation of the NSF Director. Last week, as reported by Science, the agency was further upended with the…
Trump Administration Releases Preliminary Details on FY 2026 Budget
On May 3, the Trump Administration released preliminary, high-level details of its fiscal year (FY) 2026 budget request, referred to as a âskinny budget,â and accompanying fact sheets. In the preliminary request, the Trump Administration reiterates its commitment to âreducing wasteâ and âimproving efficiencyâ through targeting programs that support diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, climate change, green energy, and other topics that have been deemed âwokeâ by the Administration. Full budget details are expected in the upcoming weeks. As reported in the leaked Health and Human Services (HHS) passback, the budget proposes $27 billion for the National Institutes of Health (NIH), a…
NSF Director Dr. Sethuraman Panchanathan Tenders Resignation
On April 24, Dr. Sethuraman Panchanathan tendered his resignation as Director of the National Science Foundation (NSF). Earlier this month, NSF announced the termination of 400 grants, targeting diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, research on misinformation and disinformation, as well as other areas that did not align with the agencyâs new priorities (see related article). His resignation also comes after reports that the White House directed NSF to slash its budget by 55 percent. During his term at NSF, Dr. Panchanathan, who was nominated to lead the agency by President Trump in 2020, led the agency through many advancements, including the bipartisan Congressional reauthorization of…
Latest from the White House (April 29)
COSSA continues to follow the flurry of executive actions taken by the Trump Administration and the impact those actions are having on the social and behavioral science community. Below are some of the latest developments coming out of the White House. Past updates are available here. DOGE Arrives at NSF Earlier this month, the Presidentâs so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), the group led by Elon Musk, arrived at the National Science Foundation (NSF). A chain of serious events followed their visit, underscoring the power bestowed on DOGE to upend existing agency operations. The team of DOGE officials arrived at NSF on April…
NSB Requests Nominations to Fill Upcoming Vacancies
The National Science Board (NSB) is seeking nominations to fill eight upcoming vacancies for the 2026-2032 term. NSB is the policy-making body of the National Science Foundation (NSF) that also serves as an independent advisor to the President and Congress on federal science policy. The board consists of 24 members who serve staggered six-year terms, with the NSF director serving as a 25th ex officio member. External nominations are considered by the NSB, which will then make recommendations to the White House. New members are appointed by the President of the United States. More information can be found in NSBâs Dear Colleague Letter. Nominations can…
NSF Releases NAIRR Dear Colleague Letter for AI Research and Education
On November 15, the National Science Foundationâs (NSF) National Artificial Intelligence Research Resource (NAIRR) Pilot released a Dear Colleague letter seeking datasets to âenable a broader set of researchers and educationsâ in artificial intelligence (AI) and foster the development of AI skills in educational environments (see previous COSSA coverage here). The deadline to submit datasets is February 7 and can be submitted here. Full details about the submission criteria and evaluation can be found here.
Deadline Extended: NSF Seeking Input on Research Ethics
In September, the National Science Foundation (NSF) issued a Dear Colleague Letter requesting public input into the agencyâs efforts to improve its merit review process to mitigate the potential harms of emerging technologies as required by the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022. The deadline for the Request for Information (RFI) has been extended to December 13 in response to feedback requesting more time. The RFI contains several guiding questions to assist with public response, such as: âDescribe ethical, social, safety, and/or security risks from current or emerging research activities that you believe might be of concern to the community, profession, or organization…
Social Scientists, STEM Education Experts to Join National Science Board
On October 15, President Biden announced his intent to appoint the newest class of National Science Board members, which includes sociologist and former White House official Alondra Nelson. The National Science Board (NSB) is the policy-making body of the National Science Foundation (NSF) that also serves as an independent advisor to the President and Congress on federal science policy. The board consists of 24 members who serve staggered six-year terms and new members are appointed by the President. Alondra Nelson is a sociologist who served as the first Deputy Director for Science and Society at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP)…
NSF Researchers Awarded Physics Nobel Prize
John Hopfield at Princeton University and Geoffrey Hinton at the University of Toronto, Canada were awarded the physics Nobel Prize for their research on artificial neural networks. The Nobel laureates received several funding grants from the National Science Foundation (NSF), including Hintonâs award for the Search Methods for Massively Parallel Networks from the Artificial Intelligence and Cognitive Science (AICS) program, to support this work. Following the announcement, NSF Director Sethuraman Panchanathan praised, “The laureates brought their understanding of the fundamental physical workings of nature into a new realm and created an entirely new foundation that has led to what we…
NSF Launches New Directorate Profiles Resource
The National Science Foundation (NSF) launched a new resource within the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics (NCSES). This new resource provides profiles on the seven NSF directorates including the Directorate for Social, Behavioral, and Economic Sciences (SBE) and includes visualizations on research doctorate recipients from US academic institutions for fields of science and engineering. With data sourced from the Survey of Earned Doctorates (SED) and the Survey of Doctorate Recipients (SDR), this tool was designed to present data on the directorates in a more accessible and visually appealing way. A link to the full resource can be found here….
NSB 2025 Honorary Awards Nominations are Open
The National Science Board (NSB) is now welcoming nominations for its 2025 Honorary Awards. There are two awards for which nominations can be submitted: Deadline for nominations is October 9. Details on the two awards can be found on the NSB website.
Request for Input: NSF Seeking Input on Research Ethics
Earlier this month, the National Science Foundation (NSF) issued a Dear Colleague Letter requesting public input into the agencyâs efforts to âincorporate ethical, social, safety, and security considerations into the merit review processâ as required by the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022. Section 10343 of the CHIPS Act states, âa number of emerging areas of research have potential ethical, social, safety, and security implications that might be apparent as early as the basic research stageâŠ[T]he incorporation of ethical, social, safety, and security considerations into the research design and review process for Federal awards may help mitigate potential harms before they happen.â The…
DBASSE Hosts Second Webinar in 2024 Spring Hauser Webinar Series
On July 25, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicineâs Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education (DBASSE) hosted the second webinar in their Hauser 2024 Spring Webinar Series titled, The Hauser Policy Impact Fund Webinar Series: Navigating the Era of Artificial Intelligence Part 2: The Role of Social Sciences. This webinar hosted a diverse panel of researchers on the importance of social science research while developing artificial intelligence (AI) and the role of policymakers in understanding AIâs potential benefits and harms. The panelists focused on AI as a tool to enhance human capabilities, the context in which AI…
NSF, NSB Want to Hear Your Thoughts on Merit Review Process
In recent weeks, the National Science Board (NSB), the governing and oversight body of the National Science Foundation (NSF), has issued a Dear Colleague letter requesting public input into the Boardâs ongoing review of NSFâs merit review criteria and process. As previously reported, the NSB-NSF Commission on Merit Review (MRX) was formed following passage of the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022, which required NSF to commission a review of how âbroader impactsâ criterion are being applied in the merit review process across the agency. The NSB chose to broaden the review to the entire merit review process, which has not had a holistic look…
NSF Establishes Research Security Center
Last month, the National Science Foundation (NSF) announced the establishment of the Safeguarding the Entire Community of the U.S. Research Ecosystem (SECURE) center. According to an NSF press release, the new entity, led by the University of Washington in collaboration with several institutions, âwill serve as a clearinghouse for information to empower the research community to identify and mitigate foreign interference that poses risks to the U.S. research enterprise. The SECURE Center will share information and reports on research security risks, provide training on research security to the science and engineering community and serve as a bridge between the research community and…
OSTP Provides Update on Estimated Open Access Publishing Costs
In June, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) released an update to a November 2023 Report to Congress on Financing Mechanisms for Open Access Publishing of Federally Funded Research (see previous COSSA coverage). The report responds to a directive included in the final fiscal year (FY) 2024 appropriations bill requiring OSTP to provide additional information with respect to financing mechanisms for open access publishing of federally funded research, as well as potential impacts of federal public access policies on peer review and research integrity. OSTP provided initial cost estimates to Congress in 2022 and late 2023. This latest report provides: additional information on…