State of the Union: Research and Education
BU IN DC
Associate Vice President for Enrollment and Student Affairs Christine McGuire participated in the U.S. Department of Education’s Borrower Defense Negotiated Rulemaking Committee, of which she is a member, between January 12 and 14.
STATE OF THE UNION: RESEARCH AND EDUCATION
President Barack Obama delivered his final State of the Union address on Tuesday, touting America’s scientific leadership and pledging to reduce the cost of college. Obama’s research and education proposals included:
- A Moonshot to Cure Cancer: a national investment in research to cure cancer, with Vice President Joe Biden bringing scientists together
- Reducing the Cost of College: a call to make two years of community college free for all students
- Promoting Computer Science Education: a goal of giving all elementary school students experience with computer science
- Investing in Clean Energy: an appeal to combat climate change through innovative technologies
While the Republican Congress has previously rejected Obama’s call for free community college and greater investment in climate science, his cancer research and computer science education proposals are more likely to garner bipartisan support.
Read the speech
SENATE CONFIRMS DOD, DOE SCIENCE LEADERS
Before the holiday recess, the U.S. Senate confirmed Stephen Welby as the Assistant Secretary for Research and Engineering at the Department of Defense (DOD) on December 14 and Dr. Cherry Murray as Director of the Office of Science at the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) on December 10. Welby now serves as DOD’s principal adviser for all research and engineering activities, with both DARPA and DOD’s Science & Technology enterprise reporting to him. Murray, a former dean at Harvard University’s School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, was nominated in August to lead DOE’s basic research efforts.
GRANT NEWS YOU CAN USE
The National Science Foundation (NSF) is partnering with the Semiconductor Research Corporation to support research proposals to enhance the energy efficiency of data-intensive computing systems. The program anticipates awarding between two and four large multidisciplinary projects and two and four individual projects for a total of $4 million over three years. Full proposals are due March 28.