June 16, 2014 Volume 33, Issue 11
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Congressional Activities & News
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FY 2015 Senate CJS Funding Bill Readied for Vote
On June 5, the Senate Appropriations Committee passed the fiscal year (FY) 2015 Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies (CJS) Appropriations bill (S. 2437). The bill provides funding for the National Science Foundation, National Institute of Justice, Census Bureau, and other agencies and programs important to the social and behavioral science community. COSSA's analysis of the bill, including how it compares to the House bill passed last month, can be found here.
The bill could see a vote by the full Senate as soon as this week, though the date has yet to be set. While the subcommittee and full committee markups were uneventful in terms of amendments attacking social science programs, the Senate floor debate could be a different story. You can follow COSSA's real-time coverage of the FY 2015 appropriations process by following us on Twitter @COSSADC and #Stand4Science.
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FY 2015 Senate Labor, HHS, Education Funding Bill Stalled
On June 10, the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education (Labor-HHS) approved via voice vote the fiscal year (FY) 2015 spending bill for the programs under its jurisdiction. However, it is unclear at this time when or if the measure will be considered by the full Appropriations Committee. Subcommittee Chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA) reportedly has indicated that there are no plans for a markup by the full Appropriations Committee despite the Committee's original plans for a markup on June 12. Bill text has not yet been released; however, a summary can be found on the Appropriations Committee website.
Read on for COSSA's preliminary analysis.
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Agriculture Spending Bills Pass through Appropriations Committees in Both Chambers; Floor Consideration Begins
The fiscal year (FY) 2015 Agriculture appropriations bills for both the House and Senate have passed through their respective committees. The Senate bill (S. 2389) was marked up by the Agriculture Subcommittee on May 20 and passed through the full Appropriations Committee on May 22. It is expected that the bill will be brought to the floor as part of a three-bill minibus, along with Commerce, Justice, Science (CJS) and Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (HUD), as early this week. The House version of the bill (H.R. 4800) passed through the Agriculture Subcommittee on May 20 and was voted through the full Appropriations Committee on May 29. Consideration of the bill on the House floor began on June 11. Although debate was originally expected to resume on June 17, it has now been put on hold, possibly due to the upheaval in the Republican leadership.
Click here for COSSA's full analysis of both bills.
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House Science Panel Looks at Reducing the Administrative Burden for Researchers
On June 12, the House Science, Space, and Technology Subcommittee on Oversight and Subcommittee on Research and Technology held a joint hearing focused on Reducing the Administrative Workload for Federally Funded Research. Testifying were Arthur Bienenstock, Chairman of the Task Force on Administrative Burden, National Science Board; Susan Wyatt Sedwick, Chair of the Federal Demonstration Partnership; Gina Lee-Glauser, Vice President for Research at Syracuse University; and Allison Lerner, Inspector General for the National Science Foundation Office of Inspector General. Read on for more details on the hearing.
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Eric Cantor, Social Science Critic, Defeated
In a stunning political upset that surprised all of Washington, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA) was defeated by Tea Party opponent David Brat in the Virginia Republican primary on June 10. A largely unknown candidate, Brat is a professor in economics at Randolph-Macon College in Ashland, VA. Cantor has been an outspoken critic of federal funding for social science and has been a central figure in rallying his caucus and other supporters in favor of the FIRST Act. Cantor announced this week that he will step down as majority leader, the number two majority position in the House, at the end of July. The state of the Republican House leadership will remain unsettled for the immediate near future.
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FEderal Agency & Administration Activities & News
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Office of Justice Programs Requests Nominations for Advisory Board
The Office of Justice Programs, which oversees the National Institute of Justice and the Bureau of Justice Statistics, has issued a notice soliciting nominations for its Science Advisory Board. The Board was established by the Attorney General in 2010 and is tasked with providing advice "in the areas of science and statistics and for the purpose of enhancing the overall impact and performance of its programs and activities." The Board currently operates in six subcommittees: National Institute of Justice (NIJ); Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS); Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP); Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA); Quality and Protection of Science; and Evidence Translation/Integration. Nominations will be accepted through August 29, 2014. Please contact Phelan Wyrick at [email protected] for more information or to make a nomination.
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2014 DOD Minerva Awards Announced
The Department of Defense (DOD) has announced the 2014 Minerva Research Awards, including awards to several COSSA member institutions. Twelve projects will be funded in 2014-2017 for a total of $17 million over three years. The awards were chosen competitively from among 261 white papers and 63 full submitted proposals.
The Minerva Initiative is a DOD-sponsored program launched in 2008 that awards grants to university-based social science researchers and teams. The goal of the initiative is to "improve DOD's basic understanding of the social, cultural, behavioral, and political forces that shape regions of the world of strategic importance to the U.S."
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President's Bioethics Commission Meets on Ethical Implications of Neuroscience Advances
The Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues held a meeting on June 9 and 10 that focused on the ethical and moral implications of advances in neuroscience research. President Obama charged the Commission with considering these topics in light of the Administration's Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies (BRAIN) Initiative. The Commission is chaired by Amy Gutmann, President of the University of Pennsylvania. Click here to read COSSA's full report on the meeting.
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HIV/AIDS Research Portfolio Review Working Groups Submits Science Priorities Report to NIH Director
On May 28, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) HIV/AIDS Research Portfolio Review Working Group forwarded its final report, Optimizing NIH HIV/AIDS Research in a Time of Budget Constraints, to NIH director Francis Collins. They presented the report at the two-day Advisory Committee to the Director (ACD) meeting on June 5 - 6. The report outlines key science priorities for NIH HIV/AIDS research for the next three to five years and responds to Collins' charge to the Working Group to identify the highest priority areas of HIV/AIDS research at the November 2013 Office of AIDS Research Advisory Committee (OARAC) meeting.
Office of AIDS Research (OAR) director Jack Whitescarver noted that his presentation to the ACD not only fell on the anniversary of the D-Day invasion but that June 6 was also the "D-Day" for the recognition of the AIDS pandemic, exactly 33 years ago, when the first cases of what is now known as AIDS were reported in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. Rochelle Walensky, Harvard, presented the working group's priorities and recommendations to the ACD. She began by acknowledging the remarkable progress made over the last 33 years but also noted the "formidable challenge ahead." Read on for more details.
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Strategies for Scientific Workforce Diversity
Newly appointed National Institutes of Health (NIH) Chief Officer for Scientific Workforce Diversity Hannah A. Valantine has begun to present her vision for scientific workforce diversity to the various advisory council meetings across the NIH, most recently the May meeting of the National Advisory General Medical Council (NAGMSC) and the June meeting of the Advisory Committee to the Director of the NIH. Valantine, who has been in her position for nearly nine weeks, discussed the imperative for diversity; the problem, including underrepresentation and attrition; faculty recruitment and retention; interventions targeting culture, including unconscious bias, stereotype threat, and work/life balance; and NIH transformative programs. Read on for more details.
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NIGMS Council Meets; Discusses Rebalancing the Institute's Portfolio and Database Support and Management
The May 2014 meeting of the National Advisory General Medical Sciences Council (NAGMSC) included an update from the Institute's director John Lorsch, a presentation from the newly appointed National Institutes of Health (NIH) Chief Officer for Scientific Workforce Diversity Hannah A. Valantine (see related story), and a discussion of a concept clearance on data reproducibility training models. In his director's report Lorsch emphasized the need for a recalibration of the system to rebalance the Institute's research portfolio. Lorsch also reported on NIGMS' current collaboration with the National Human Genome Research Institute director Eric Green on several issues, including database support and management. Read on for more on the meeting.
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NOtable PUblications & Community events
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Board on Science Education Celebrates 10th Anniversary
On June 9, the Board on Science Education (BOSE) celebrated its 10th anniversary by hosting a variety of panels on the history of the board and the current state of science education. These panels covered topics including the core mission of BOSE, how to handle government requests for research, the state of K-12 science education, the next generation of science standards, and challenges facing STEM education.
Experts from government agencies, universities, research organizations, and interested stakeholders spoke on a handful of topics, but a few themes prevailed throughout the day. For instance, most agreed that the wide and growing body of research on effective STEM education is neither being adequately spread nor used by practitioners. It is vitally important that researchers create bilateral or multilateral dialogues between themselves and teachers, school board members, and administrators to ensure their research reaches the right audiences. Finally, it is important that researchers recognize that they do not have all the answers and further research will always be necessary.
To conclude the session, retiring Congressman Rush Holt (D-NJ) participated in a panel on the challenges and future of STEM education. Holt, a physicist, emphasized the importance that all Americans have the ability to "think like scientists." Discussing the importance of the social sciences, Holt said that we "badly need" people on Capitol Hill to recognize sciences like economics can also be an empirical science.
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Congressional Briefing on the Health Effects, Changing Patterns of Use and Societal Impact of Marijuana - June 19
On June 19, the Friends of the National Institute on Drug Abuse is sponsoring a Congressional briefing, Marijuana: Health Effects, Changing Patterns of Use and Societal Impact. Marijuana abuse can impact both physical and mental health, and can have a variety of additional societal impacts. The briefing will address the fact that after a period of decline, since 2007, marijuana use has been increasing among young people. This decline corresponds to a diminishing perception of the risks associated with marijuana's use. Briefing speakers will include Wilson Compton, Deputy Director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, who will provide an overview of the Institute's portfolio on marijuana research; Robert Booth, University of Colorado School of Medicine; and Patrick J. Kennedy, co-founder of Project SAM (Smart Approaches to Marijuana). COSSA is a co-sponsor of the briefing.
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National Academy of Sciences Holds Discussion on Integrated STEM Education
On June 12, the National Academy of Sciences hosted a discussion on the "Integration in K-12 STEM Education in the United States." The discussion included a combination of researchers and practitioners and centered on outcomes, implementation, and research as they related to integrated STEM education. The National Academies also used this event to launch a new report and public relations campaign. The report, STEM Integration in K-12 Education, is available here. The accompanying animated YouTube video, which the National Academies hopes will be shown in schools to demonstrate to teachers and students the importance of STEM, is available here.
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Yvonne Maddox Recognized for Contributions to NICHD; Shares Vision for NIMHD with Advisory Council
On June 9, the Friends of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute for Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) sponsored a Congressional briefing, "Celebrating the Career of Dr. Yvonne Maddox: Spotlight on Disparities Research," to recognize Yvonne Maddox, who recently retired after serving nearly 19 years as the deputy director for the Institute. COSSA is a member of the FNICHD's executive committee and was a sponsor of the briefing, which highlighted NICHD's efforts and support for health disparities research, one of Maddox's greatest interests and passions during her tenure at NICHD. The following day, Maddox presided over her first meeting with the National Advisory Council for Minority Health and Health Disparities (NACMHD) since being appointed. Maddox informed the Council that she had initiated a portfolio review for the Institute, and during her tenure the Institute intends to focus on what she calls the "science of health disparities research." To that end, Maddox reported that the Institute has created an Office of Community Based Participatory Research and Collaboration. Read on for more details.
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Department of Education Announces Two Applications for New Awards
The Department of Education released a call for applications for new awards in the Language Resource Centers (LRCs) Program. The LRC program provides grants to institutions of higher education for "establishing, strengthening, and operating centers that serve as resources for improving the Nation's capacity for teaching and learning foreign languages." This call for applications includes priority preferences for a variety of languages (the full list is available through the announcement here), and a preference for "significant and sustained collaborative activities with one or more Minority-Serving Institution or with one or more community college." The deadline for applications is July 9, 2014, and applications are available at grants.gov.
The second call is for applications in the Undergraduate International Studies and Foreign Language Program. This program provides grants for "planning, developing and carrying out programs to strengthen and improve undergraduate instruction in international studies and foreign languages in the United States." This call for applications includes the same priority preferences as the previous soliciation. More information is available here, and the deadline is July 28, 2014 with applications available at grants.gov.
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PAA Briefing: The War on Poverty - 50 Years Later and the Battle Continues
On June 9, the Population Association of America, a COSSA Governing Member, hosted a Congressional briefing, "The War on Poverty - 50 Years Later and the Battle Continues." COSSA co-sponsored the event. It featured presentations by federal officials and university researchers who discussed current poverty trends and ways in which poverty is measured. Linda Jacobsen, Population Reference Bureau and chair of PAA's Government and Public Affairs Committee, moderated the briefing, noting in her introductory remarks that 50 years after President Lyndon Johnson declared war on poverty, 47 million Americans still live in poverty.
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New COSSA Member: West Virginia University
We are pleased to welcome West Virginia University back to COSSA. WVU, located in Morgantown, WV, was last a COSSA member in 2008. We look forward to working with them and all of our members in the months and years ahead to promote social and behavioral science! COSSA's full membership list can be viewed online.
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Consortium of Social Science Associations
Members
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Governing Members
American Anthropological Association
American Association for Public Opinion Research
American Economic Association
American Educational Research Association
American Historical Association
American Political Science Association
American Psychological Association
American Society of Criminology
American Sociological Association
American Statistical Association
Association of American Geographers
Association of American Law Schools
Law and Society Association
Linguistic Society of America
Midwest Political Science Association
National Communication Association
Population Association of America
Society for Research in Child Development
Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences
American Evaluation Association
American Finance Association
American Psychosomatic Society
Association for Asian Studies Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management Association of Academic Survey Research Organizations Association of Research Libraries Council on Social Work Education
Economic History Association
History of Science Society Justice Research and Statistics Association Midwest Sociological Society National Association of Social Workers North American Regional Science Council North Central Sociological Association Rural Sociological Society
Social Science History Association
Society for Anthropological Sciences Society for Behavioral Medicine Society for Empirical Legal Studies
Society for Research on Adolescence Society for Social Work and Research Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues Southern Political Science Association Southern Sociological Society Southwestern Social Science Association
American Academy of Political and Social Sciences
American Council of Learned Societies
American Institutes for Research
Brookings Institution
Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences
Cornell Institute for Social and Economic Research
Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan
Institute for Social Science Research, University of Massachusetts
Institute for Women's Policy Research
NORC at the University of Chicago
Population Reference Bureau
RTI International
RWJF Center for Health Policy at the University of New Mexico Social Science Research Council
Vera Institute of Justice
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Colleges and Universities
Arizona State University
Boston University
Brown University University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Irvine University of California, Los Angeles University of California, San Diego University of California, Santa Barbara Carnegie-Mellon University
University of Chicago Clark University University of Colorado
Columbia University
University of Connecticut Cornell University
University of Delaware Duke University Georgetown University George Mason University George Washington University Harvard University Howard University University of Idaho
University of Illinois Indiana University
University of Iowa Johns Hopkins University John Jay College of Criminal Justice, CUNY University of Maryland Massachusetts Institute of Technology Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, Syracuse University of Michigan Michigan State University University of Missouri, St. Louis
University of Minnesota
University of Nebraska, Lincoln New York University
University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill North Dakota State University
Northwestern University Ohio State University University of Oklahoma University of Pennsylvania Pennsylvania State University Princeton University Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey University of South Carolina Stanford University State University of New York, Stony Brook University of Texas, Austin University of Texas, San Antonio Texas A & M University University of Virginia University of Washington Washington University in St. Louis
West Virginia University University of Wisconsin, Madison University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee Yale University
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COSSA
Executive Director: Wendy A. Naus Deputy Director: Angela L. Sharpe
Assistant Director for Public Affairs: Julia Milton
Assistant Director for Government Relations: Josh McCrain
President: James S. Jackson
Address all inquiries to COSSA at [email protected] Telephone: (202) 842-3525
The Consortium of Social Science Associations (COSSA) is an advocacy organization promoting attention to and federal support for the social and behavioral sciences.
UPDATE is published 22 times per year. ISSN 0749-4394.
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