NSF, IES, NEH, and Students to Receive COVID Relief
BU IN DC
Daniel Remick of the School of Medicine spoke with staff in Massachusetts Congressional offices as part of the virtual Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology Capitol Hill day on March 9th.
Tamzen Flanders of the Center for the Humanities met with Massachusetts Congressional staff as part of the National Humanities Alliance virtual advocacy day on March 10th.
NSF, IES, NEH, AND STUDENTS TO RECEIVE COVID RELIEF
President Joseph Biden signed the American Rescue Plan Act (H.R. 1319), a $1.9 trillion COVID-19 stimulus package, into law yesterday. Among other provisions, the package includes funds for the restoration of paused research and emergency financial aid for students. Specifically, the law provides:
- $40 billion in emergency aid for colleges, with instructions that schools use half the funds for direct financial assistance to students;
- $600 million for the National Science Foundation for research grants;
- $100 million for the Institute of Education Sciences at the U.S. Department of Education for research on student learning loss during the pandemic;
- $135 million each for the National Endowments for the Arts and the Humanities to support cultural organizations and programming; and
- $150 million for the National Institute of Standards and Technology for manufacturing institutes.
BUZZ BITS…
- On Tuesday, President Biden signed an executive order instructing the U.S. Departments of Education and Justice to review the Title IX regulations issued by by the Trump Administration and determine if it conflicts with “an educational environment free from discrimination on the basis of sex.” The Order may be a precursor to the Biden Administration changing how college campuses adjudicate sexual misconduct. The President also announced the creation of a White House Gender Policy Council, which will coordinate federal gender equity activities.
- The House Science, Space, and Technology Committee approved the Supporting Early-Career Researchers Act (H.R. 144) on Tuesday, sending it to the full U.S. House of Representatives for consideration. The bill would create a $250 million postdoctoral fellowship program at the National Science Foundation for junior researchers whose careers have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. A similar bill has been introduced in the U.S. Senate.
- Michael Regan was confirmed to lead the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency by the U.S. Senate on Wednesday with a bipartisan 66 to 34 vote. He has pledged to focus on climate change and environmental justice.
EVENTS NEWS YOU CAN USE
The Military Health System Research Symposium (MHSRS) released its call for abstracts, including a separate competition for young investigators, and will accept submissions through March 31st. The Department of Defense (DOD) hosts MHSRS annually to discuss “military-unique research and development,” focusing on military medicine. This year, MHSRS will feature breakout sessions on infectious disease including COVID-19, biotechnology, psychological health and resilience, blast-related injuries, traumatic brain injury, human performance optimization, and many others. The Symposium offers an opportunity for academia to engage with program managers and DOD officials, who are often hard to reach, on military biomedical and health-related research topics.