BU Urges Support for Students, Research
BU IN DC
Douglas Densmore of the College of Engineering was a featured speaker in the National Science Foundation’s Bioeconomy Distinguished Lecture Series on March 18th.
Timothy Longman and Eric Schmidt of the African Studies Center met with Massachusetts Congressional offices to discuss the importance of international education programs funded by the U.S. Department of Education on March 18th.
David Jones of the School of Public Health spoke at a National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine workshop on U.S. health care expenditures and population health on March 16th.
BU URGES SUPPORT FOR STUDENTS, RESEARCH
In a memorandum sent to each Massachusetts Congressional office this week, Boston University, Harvard University, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology jointly asked Congress to increase federal investments in student aid and research. The universities requested support for doubling the maximum Pell Grant award for low-income students, robust funding for research agencies such as the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation, and investing in cultural agencies such as the National Endowment for the Humanities. The memorandum, which the universities send annually, comes as Congress begins consideration of the fiscal year 2022 spending bills that determine federal agency budgets.
BUZZ BITS…
- During a debate on the renewal of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) on Wednesday, the U.S. House of Representatives voted to authorize the U.S. Department of Education to create a mandatory campus climate survey on sexual misconduct that universities would need to administer every two years. While there is no companion legislation in the U.S. Senate, President Joseph Biden has urged legislators to quickly send him a VAWA bill.
- The National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced yesterday that Dr. Christopher Austin would be stepping down as the founding director of the NIH National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS) on April 15th. Dr. Austin will become CEO of Flagship Pioneering, a Massachusetts life sciences company. NCATS Deputy Director Joni Rutter will serve as acting NCATS director while a national search for a replacement is underway.
- On Thursday, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the American Dream and Promise Act (H.R. 6), a bill which would provide a path to citizenship for undocumented individuals who were brought into the country as children. Every House Democrat and nine Republicans voted for the bill, but it is unclear whether the closely-divided U.S. Senate could pass the measure.
EVENTS NEWS YOU CAN USE
The BU Office of Research is hosting Dr. Matthew Fenton of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) to provide an update on the Institute’s current and future research priorities in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. The virtual seminar on Wednesday, March 31st at 3:30 p.m. will cover topics such as the current budget for the National Institutes of Health, COVID-related grant policies and flexibilities, the NIAID response to COVID (including Operation Warp Speed and the COVID-19 vaccine trials), and future COVID initiatives. Dr. Ron Corley of the BU National Emerging Infectious Diseases Laboratories will lead a discussion with Dr. Fenton following his presentation.