News
BU’s Initiative on Cities Builds a Tool for Fighting Displacement
Keeping people in their neighborhoods in Louisville, Ky., by assessing proposed developments.
F&A Costs Cap; McMahon; NSF Grants
BU IN DC
Mary Churchill of the Wheelock College of Education & Human Development attended the American Council on Education Women's Network Leadership Conference on February 13th and 14th.
COURT PAUSES PROPOSED NIH F&A CAP
On Monday evening, a judge temporarily blocked the Trump Administration's proposal to cap facilities and administrative (F&A) cost rates at 15% for new and continuing National Institutes of Health (NIH) awards. On February 21st, a district court will hear arguments in lawsuits filed by 22 state attorneys general, the Association of American Medical Colleges, and the Association of American Universities challenging the proposal. Members of Congress from both parties, including the Massachusetts Congressional delegation, voiced their strong opposition to the change. On Wednesday, Massachusetts Senators Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey urged the leaders of the NIH and the National Science Foundation to rescind the NIH funding cuts and any related freezes.
TRANSITION UPDATES: DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
On Thursday, the U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee held a confirmation hearing for Linda McMahon, President Donald J. Trump's nominee to lead the Department of Education. During the hearing, McMahon answered questions about dismantling the agency, vowed to protect Pell Grants, and asserted that colleges failing to address antisemitism would "face defunding." She also confirmed that only Congress can eliminate the Department. The Committee is expected to vote on her nomination next week.
On Tuesday, President Trump nominated Nicholas Kent as the Under Secretary of Education. If confirmed by the U.S. Senate, Kent will oversee the agency's higher education activities. He was previously the deputy secretary of education in Virginia and a leader in the trade association representing for-profit colleges.
BUZZ BITS...
- On Tuesday, Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) released a database of over 3,400 National Science Foundation (NSF) grants that the office identified as "woke DEI" grants. Cruz chairs the Senate Commerce, Science, and Technology Committee, which has jurisdiction over the NSF. The database was the basis for a report he issued in October 2024 criticizing the agency.
- The House Committee on Education and the Workforce approved the Defending Education Transparency and Ending Rogue Regimes Engaging in Nefarious Transactions (DETERRENT) Act on a party-line vote on Wednesday. The bill would limit research collaborations with China and other "countries of concern" and require research personnel to report foreign gifts. The U.S. House of Representatives passed a previous version of the DETERRENT Act in 2024, but the bill did not advance in the U.S. Senate.
- The Office of Research hosted a "Federal Outlook for Research Under the New Administration and Congress" webinar in collaboration with Federal Relations on Wednesday. The presentation slides provide insights into the new administration's research priorities and strategies to position your research in the new environment.
Boston University Hosts Panel on Antisemitism at the Howard Thurman Center
The latest offering in President Gilliam’s Living Our Values Project explores a subject that’s caused strife and debate on college campuses.
Spacecraft Carrying BU Telescope to the Moon Captures Breathtaking Images of Earth
NASA’s Blue Ghost mission has finished orbiting Earth and is on its way to the moon.
BU Leadership Strongly Opposes NIH Move to Cut Funding for “Research That Helps Improve Human Health and Save Lives”
In a related action, a federal judge issued a temporary restraining order barring the NIH from implementing its rate changes.
Dying Young, Star Scientists, Liberty Mutual’s Doug
RESEARCH HIGHLIGHT
More Americans Aged 25 to 44 Are Dying Younger. BU Research Helps Explain Why.
BU researcher Andrew Stokes co-leads a study supported by the National Institutes of Health that finds a sharp increase in excess deaths is largely due to drug overdoses, alcohol use, traffic accidents, and homicides.
ON THE CHARLES RIVER
Three BU Researchers Win National Honor for Early-Career Scientists and Engineers
Elizabeth Bettini, Michelle Sander, and Zeba Wunderlich were honored by former President Joe Biden for work spanning special education, lasers, and genes and DNA.
NOTABLE ALUMNI
A Commercial Star Is Born
As Liberty Mutual’s Doug, comedic actor David Hoffman (CFA '99) cuts up opposite an emu in a now-iconic ad campaign.
THOUGHT LEADERS
In Case You Missed It...
You're invited to BU in DC: An Evening with President Melissa Gilliam on Capitol Hill on February 26th... BU School of Public Health Professor David Jernigan discusses the need for warning labels on alcohol products to reflect cancer risks... BU Medicaid Policy Lab Co-Directors Megan Cole Brahim and Paul Shafer raise the alarm on Medicaid cuts... Director of the BU Communication Research Center Michelle Amazeen shares strategies for stopping misinformation in food marketing from going viral in The Wall Street Journal... A study from researchers at the BU Global Development Policy Center finds that gold reserves might help pay for climate disaster recovery.
Gender Equity; NOAA; Webinar
BU IN DC
College of Engineering Dean ad interim Elise Morgan attended the American Society of Engineering Education’s Public Policy Colloquium on February 3rd and 4th. She also discussed the College’s federally-funded research with Congressman Jake Auchincloss (D-MA) and the office of Representative Stephen Lynch (D-MA) on February 5th.
ADMINISTRATION ISSUES EXECUTIVE ORDER, GUIDANCE ON GENDER EQUITY
On Wednesday, President Donald J. Trump issued an executive order that directs federal agencies to consider rescinding federal grants to educational organizations that allow transgender women to participate in women's athletics. In response, the National Collegiate Athletic Association changed its policy to restrict participation in women’s athletics to students assigned female at birth. The order follows updated guidance from the Department of Education's Office of Civil Rights last week that clarifies the agency will enforce the 2020 version of the Title IX rule governing gender equity in educational settings. The 2020 rule had already been in place for many schools, including BU, due to lawsuits.
BUZZ BITS...
- President Donald J. Trump nominated Dr. Neil Jacobs to be the administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration(NOAA). Jacobs is an atmospheric scientist who served as acting NOAA Administrator during President Trump's first term. His nomination will need confirmation from the U.S. Senate.
- On Monday, the President nominated Conner Prochaska as director of the Advanced Research Projects Agency - Energy (ARPA-E). Prochaska served as chief commercialization officer for the Department of Energy during President Trump's first term.
- The House Committee on Education and the Workforce held a hearing on "The State of American Education" on Wednesday. Witnesses sharply criticized the cost of college and the federal loan programs, while Committee Democrats decried the President's plan to dismantle the Department of Education.
- On Wednesday, the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology held a hearing entitled "The State of U.S. Science and Technology: Ensuring U.S. Global Leadership." Participants discussed competition with China, approaches for diversifying the pool of American scientists, and the impact of recent executive orders on the scientific enterprise.
BU NEWS YOU CAN USE...
- The Office of Research is hosting a "Federal Outlook for Research Under the New Administration and Congress" webinar on Wednesday, February 12th at 9 a.m. Federal Relations and experts from Lewis-Burke Associates will discuss the new administration's research priorities and strategies for positioning your work in this new environment.
- The University has posted a set of Frequently Asked Questions to help the BU community understand federal immigration policies.
- The Office of Research is regularly updating its 2025 Administration Transition Information & Resources page which includes answers to your frequently asked questions, a summary of agency actions on executive orders, and more.