A staple since COSSAâs earliest days, the biweekly COSSA Washington Update newsletter provides members and the public with comprehensive coverage of policy developments impacting social and behavioral science research.Â
Complete Archive of COSSA Washington Update Now Available
COSSA is pleased to announce that the first 25 volumes of the COSSA Washington Update are now available on the COSSA website, completing the online archive of the newsletter. The archive offers a unique window into nearly 35 years of social and behavioral science policy. Back to this issueâs table of contents.
Senate Appropriations Committee Approves FY 2017 Agriculture Bill
The Senate Appropriations Committee approved its fiscal year (FY) 2017 spending bill for the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies (S. 2956) on May 19 (the bill had marked up in the Subcommittee earlier in the week). The House passed its version of the legislation (H.R. 5054) in April. So far, neither chamber has scheduled the Agriculture appropriations bill for floor consideration, although given that they are relatively uncontroversial, it would not be surprising to see votes on the floor before the summer recess. The Senate bill would provide the Economic Research Service (ERS) with $86.8…
OBSSR 2016-2020 Strategic Plan Discussed at NIH Council of Councils
On May 20, National Institutes of Health (NIH) Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR) Director William Riley updated and received feedback from the NIH Council of Councils regarding the progress of the OBSSR 2016-2020 Strategic Plan. The Council consists of approximately 30 members, selected from the various NIH Institute and Center (IC) Advisory Councils, representatives nominated by the Office of the Director program offices, and broad lay representation. It also advises the NIH Director on matters related to the policies and activities of the Division of Program Coordination, Planning, and Strategic Initiatives (DPCPSI), where OBSSR is housed.
White House Releases First-Ever Working Group Report on Language and Communication
The White House Office of Science and Technology Policyâs (OSTP) National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) Subcommittee on Social, Behavioral, and Economic Sciences recently released the first ever, Report from the Interagency Working Group on Language and Communication, âan inventory of current programmatic activities across Federal agencies and departments that relate to the scientific and technological aspects of language and communication.â The report explains why the government and the American people benefit from its investments in R&D activities relating to language and communication. A key feature of the report is the Language and Communication R&D Taxonomy providing a âcommon framework…
John Haaga Named Director of NIAâs Division of Behavioral and Social Research
On March 24, National Institute on Aging (NIA) Director Richard Hodes announced the appointment of John Haaga as director of NIAâs Division of Behavioral and Social Research (BSR). Haaga has served as the Divisionâs acting director where he has served as deputy director for the past 11 years. Prior to joining NIA, Haaga held leadership positions at the Population Reference Bureau, the National Research Council of the National Academy of Sciences, the Population Council, and the RAND Corporation. Back to this issueâs table of contents.
Maureen Goodenow Appointed NIH Associate Director for AIDS Research
On May 18, National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director Francis Collins announced the selection of Maureen M. Goodenow as NIH Associate Director for AIDS Research and Director of the NIH Office of AIDS Research (OAR). Goodenow, currently at the University of Florida, Gainesville, is a professor of pathology, immunology, and laboratory medicine, and the Director of the Florida Center for AIDS Research. She is expected to join the agency in July. Back to this issueâs table of contents.
NSF Accepting Applications for Behavioral and Cognitive Sciences Position
The National Science Foundation (NSF) is accepting applications for the position of Deputy Division Director in the Division of Behavioral and Cognitive Sciences (BCS) within the Directorate for Social, Behavioral, and Economic Sciences (SBE). The Deputy Division Director will serve as a member of the BCS leadership team and as the âprincipal spokesperson in the area of behavioral, cognitive, anthropological and geographic sciences.â More information can be found at USAJOBS. The deadline for applications is June 3, 2016, though applications may be accepted afterwards to ensure a pool of qualified applicants is identified. Back to this issueâs table of contents.
NIMH Seeks Perspectives on the State of Mental Illness Research
The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) is inviting âperspectives on the state of mental illness researchâ and the instituteâs role in development of the research. The institute is seeking the input of the extramural community to âdevelop briefing materials that represent the full diversity of perspectives on mental illness research in preparation for the next NIMH director.â Comments are solicited on such topics as: basic neuroscience, translational, intervention, clinical, and services research; Research Domain criteria initiative (RDoc), global mental health, diversity and training of the workforce; advocacy and outreach efforts; and translational…
NIGMS Solicits Input on Approaches for Supporting Team Science
The National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) is seeking input âon team-based scientific research and the manner in which this activity could be supported by the Institute.â Accordingly, NIGMS has issued a request for information (RFI), Approaches for Supporting Team Science in the Biomedical Research Community (NOT-GM-16-107), to assist it in âconsidering needs and opportunities in team science at the multi-investigator, institutional, regional, and national level.â The Institute plans to examine the âbenefits and challenges of team science and is considering how to best support this mode of scientific research.â The RFI…
IES to Hold Webinars on FY 2017 Funding Opportunities
The Department of Educationâs Institute of Education Sciences (IES) has scheduled a series of webinars for individuals interested in fiscal year (FY) 2017 funding opportunities. IESâ National Center for Special Education Research (NCSER) and the National Center for Education Research (NCER) are hosting the free webinars, which will cover a variety of topics, including teachers and instructional personnel, basic overview of research grants, researcher-practitioner partnerships in education, funding opportunities for minority serving institutions, special education research training for early career development and mentoring, the IES application process, research networks focused on critical problems of policy and practice, and grant writing,…
NIA Webinar to Provide Overview of Grants Process
The National Institute of Aging (NIA) recently announced that the institute will host an âNIH 101â webinar explaining the NIHâs grants process to interested researchers. Chyren Hunter, deputy director of NIAâs Division of Extramural Activities and NIA training officer will present the June 14 webinar. Hunter is expected to explain each step of the application and review process. The webinar is part of a series sponsored by the NIAâs Office of Special Populations. The registration form is available here. Back to this issueâs table of contents.
National Science Board Elects New Leadership
On May 24, the National Science Board (NSB) announced that Maria Zuber and Diane Souvaine will serve as the Boardâs new Chair and Vice Chair, respectively. Zuber has been a member of the NSB, the governing body for the National Science Foundation (NSF), for four years and is the vice president for research at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Zuberâs research includes planetary geophysics and space-based laser and radio systems. Souvaine has been a member of the NSB for two years, is the vice provost for research at Tufts University, and conducts research in computational geometry. Zuber and Souvaine will…
COSSA Welcomes North Carolina State University
COSSA is pleased to welcome North Carolina State University as its newest university member. NC State is a former COSSA affiliate member dating back to the early 1990s. The university receives roughly $6 million annually in federal social science funding. Welcome back NC State! COSSAâs full membership list can be viewed here. Information on how to join can be found on the COSSA website. Back to this issueâs table of contents.
Funding Opportunity Announcements
AHRQ: Developing New Clinical Decision Support to Disseminate and Implement Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Findings (R18) (PA-16-282) AHRQ: Scaling Established Clinical Decision Support to Facilitate the Dissemination and Implementation of Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Findings (R18) (PA-16-283)
Events Calendar
Law and Society Association Annual Meeting, New Orleans, LA, June 2-5, 2016 9th Matilda White Riley Behavioral and Social Sciences Day: Real Life, Labs, Research, Washington, DC, June 20, 2016 Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues Annual Meeting, Minneapolis, MN, June 24-26, 2016 Joint Statistical Meetings, Chicago, IL, July 30-August 4, 2016 American Psychological Association Annual Convention, Denver, CO, August 4-7, 2016 Rural Sociological Society Annual Meeting, Toronto, Canada, August 16-19, 2016 American Sociological Association Annual Meeting, Seattle, WA, August 20-23, 2016 A list of COSSA membersâ annual meetings and other events can be found on the COSSAÂ website….
COSSA Washington Update, Volume 35 Issue 10
Featured News Senate Committee Discusses U.S. Science Investments; COMPETES Bill Expected Soon Federal Agency & Administration News NIH Appoints Director of National Library of Medicine NIJ Seeking Chief Research Advisor Office of AIDS Research Issues RFI on Trans-NIH Plan for HIV-Related Research NIMHD Accepting Applications for Health Disparities Research Institute Publications & Community Events Mary Waters Delivers 2016 David Lecture Funding Opportunity Announcements COSSA Member Spotlight SSRC Seeks Nominations for Hirschman Prize Events Calendar
NIH Appoints Director of National Library of Medicine
On May 11, National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director Francis Collins announced the appointment of Patricia Flatly Brennan as the new director of the National Library of Medicine (NLM). The Lillian L. Moehlman Bascom Professor at the School of Nursing and College of Engineering, Brennan comes to the NIH from the University of Wisconsin-Madison where she leads the Living Environments Laboratory at the Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery. A pioneer in the development of information systems for patients, she developed ComputerLink, âan electronic network designed to reduce isolation and improve self-care among home care patients.â Brennan is expected to join the…
NIJ Seeking Chief Research Advisor
The National Institute of Justice (NIJ) is looking to hire a Chief Research Advisor tasked with leading the development and implementation of a new initiative that will âbuild in-house research capacity in law enforcement agencies.â According to the listing, âNIJ is looking for a social science researcher with a commitment to partnering with law enforcement to produce applicable, impactful research and analysis that addresses the fieldâs highest priority needs and advances policy and practice. The selected applicant will manage NIJâs newest effort to partner with interested law enforcement agencies to identify their in-house capacity for research and analysis, review data…
Office of AIDS Research Issues RFI on Trans-NIH Plan for HIV-Related Research
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) Office of AIDS Research (OAR) in the Division of Program Coordination, Planning and Strategic Initiatives (DPCPSI) recently issued a request-for-information (RFI) (NOT-OD-16-089) seeking input on the fiscal year (FY) 2018 Trans-NIH Plan for HIV-Related Research. The 2018 Plan is âdesigned to identify and articulate possible future directions to maximize benefits of investments in HIV/AIDS research.â In August 2015, NIH issued ânew overarching prioritiesâ for the next three to five years for HIV/AIDS research in a Notice, NIH HIV/AIDS Research Priorities and Guidelines for Determining AIDS Funding (NOT-OD-15-137). The Notice also outlined guidelines the agency…
NIMHD Accepting Applications for Health Disparities Research Institute
The National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) is seeking applicants to its Summer Institute on Health Disparities Science. The Institute which will be held on the NIH campus from August 15-19, 2016, is designed to âsupport the development of individual research projects by promising scientists early in their careers and ⊠stimulate research in the disciplines supported by science on minority health and health disparities.â The course includes lectures, seminars, and small group discussions on research relevant to minority health and health disparities along with sessions by NIH scientific staff…