As a reminder, from August 23-25, the Office of Research will host a series of FREE webinars with live feeds from the Grants Resource Center’s External Funding Conference in Washington, D.C. There will be several sessions each day, listed below. All sessions will be in the Office of Research Seminar Room, 530 French Hall.
Monday, August 23
9:15 – 10:15 Keynote I: Teacher Education Policy Overview
With the pending reauthorization of the Education and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), better known as No Child Left Behind, change is definitely coming in Washington. In this session, the speaker will give perspectives on how this upcoming policy change will affect teacher education programs over the next several years.
Presenter: Gary Huggins, Director of the Commission on No Child Left Behind, Aspen Institute (invited)
10:30 – 11:45 Keynote II: Science Policy and Funding
With the pending reauthorization of the America COMPETES Act comes debate on which agencies (the National Science Foundation, U.S. Department of Energy, and National Institutes of Standards and Technology) and topics (climate change, STEM education, national defense, healthcare, and innovation) will take greatest priority. This session will describe the expectations for discretionary science funding during the next two fiscal years, followed by agency and field perspectives on grants administration.
Presenters: David Blockstein, Senior Scientist, National Council for Science and the Environment
Kei Koizumi, Assistant Director for Federal Research and Development, White House Office of Science and Technology Policy
2:30 – 3:30 NSF Faculty Rotator Perspective
A faculty member from a GRC institution, who spent four years as a National Science Foundation rotator, will share the knowledge he gained from his NSF experience about writing excellent NSF proposals.
Presenter: Michael Briley, Professor of Physics and Astronomy, University of Wisconsin Oshkosh
3:45 – 4:45 NIH Peer Review and Application Changes
The National Institutes of Health has undergone monumental changes in its peer review system, as well as its application form. The speaker will address these changes in order to better prepare the audience to write competitive NIH proposals.
Presenter: Lynn Mertens King, Chief, Scientific Review Branch, National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research, National Institutes of Health
Tuesday, August 24
8:15 – 9:15 Support for Nursing Programs
This session will focus on support for schools of nursing and nursing faculty provided by the Health Resources and Services Administration, Division of Nursing.
Presenter: Aisha Mix, Lead Nurse Consultant, Nursing Workforce Diversity Program, Division of Nursing, Health Resources and Services Administration
9:30 – 10:30 Workforce Development Initiative
There is a pending memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the U.S. Departments of Education and Labor that could help shape workforce development. This session will discuss what role colleges and universities would have, any pending priorities, and possible funding opportunities should the MOU come to fruition.
Presenter: Glenn Cummings, Deputy Assistant Secretary, U.S. Department of Education
10:45 – 11:45 NIH and NSF Social and Behavioral Sciences Research
Because there is no U.S. Department of Behavioral and Social Sciences, finding support for projects in these areas is not often obvious. There are, however, divisions within the National Science Foundation and National Institutes of Health, that promote funding of basic behavioral and social sciences research.
Presenters: Ron Abeles, Office of the Director, Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research, National Institutes of Health; Fahmida Chowdhurry, Program Director, Directorate for Social, Behavioral, and Economic Sciences, National Science Foundation
1:30 – 2:30 DOE Office of Science: Past and Future
After years of flat budgets, and now more significant financial commitments to alternative energy by the current administration, the Department of Energy’s Office of Science looks to continue its commitment to basic research investment. The speaker will discuss biological and environmental research programs and scientific facilities for energy, climate, and the environment.
Presenter: Anna Palmisano, Associate Director of Science for Biological and Environmental Research, U.S. Department of Energy
2:45 – 3:45 NEA Grants and Goals
Discussion will be focused on arts funding opportunities and the NEA’s programs, which have enabled institutions to preserve cultural traditions, provide hands-on learning experiences, create and present new art in various mediums, and provide access to art in underserved communities.
Presenter: Jan Stunkard, Division Coordinator of the Performing Arts Division, National Endowment for the Arts
Wednesday, August 25
8:00 – 9:00 What’s New With TRIO: Member-Led Q&A
Application delays, new five-year cycle, Upward Bound evaluation debacle…TRIO has been entangled in more than its share of controversies over the last few years. But, TRIO is still the hallmark of the U.S. Department of Education. This general session will be an informal opportunity for participants to ask questions and generate discussion about upcoming TRIO program competitions and what to expect in the future with the reauthorization of the Higher Education Opportunity Act.
Presenters: Virginia Pinkney, Senior Education Program Specialist, U.S. Department of Education; Gaby Watts, Program Officer, U.S. Department of Education