Courtesy of National Institute of Health
Like many federal agencies, the NIH and NSF have been targeted by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) as part of its initiative to cut federal spending. On Feb. 7, the NIH released a notice of its intentions to cap funding for “indirect costs,” the administrative costs of research, at 15%. On Feb. 10, a judge issued a temporary block against the funding cuts. Echoing DOGE’s mandate instructing agencies to cut 25-50% of staff to meet budget targets, on Feb. 18 the NSF laid off 168 of roughly 1,700 employees. Similarly, the NIH has purged 1,200 employees out of an estimated 20,500.
Julia Unangst, vice president of Sponsored Research Projects and Compliance (SPARC) at Lewis & Clark, provided an email statement to The Mossy Log on Feb 26. Her office handles the college’s research grants.
According to Unangst, a significant amount of research funding at LC comes from federal grants. Over the last five years, the College (CAS, GSEC and Law) has been awarded over $5.5 million in federal grants to support research and special projects. The proportion of funding LC receives from different federal sources depends on what active grants researchers have. Over the last five years, $2.5 million of that funding came from the NSF. Currently, LC has two active NIH grants, both within the Biology department. One is for Professor Tamily Weissman’s research, and the other for Professor Greg Hermann’s. Each grant is for a little more than $400,000.
According to Unangst, DOGE orders to lay off staff has led to visible changes in SPARC’s work.
“The executive orders, along with the staffing changes occurring across federal agencies, have impacted our work. We know that NSF laid off 10% of their workforce. This means fewer program officers to implement research programs that award grants. While the funding freeze was paused by a federal judge and the memo rescinded, we continue to see program solicitations terminated and webinars and meetings canceled across federal agencies,” Unangst wrote.
The current turmoil among federal agencies could influence research opportunities at LC, as well as across the United States.
“It appears that the federal government’s ability to award grants and loans is still being hampered by the changes in Washington, D.C. Should federal funding for research discontinue or become drastically cut, there could be real impacts to the research being done at L&C, research that provides hands-on experiences for undergraduate students, employs researchers on campus, contributes to the Oregon economy and leads to scientific advancements in the most pressing issues facing humanity. Colleges and universities across the nation are all grappling with these kinds of impacts,” Unangst wrote.
Unangst also clarified how the proposed 15% cap on indirect costs could potentially impact the college’s budget.
“If the NIH cap is implemented, L&C could lose hundreds of thousands of dollars. Indirect costs, also referred to as facilities and administration reimbursements, are vital to sustaining research on campus. Those funds support laboratory space, research equipment, regulatory compliance and the administrative staff needed for grant management and reporting. These are real costs to maintaining a research infrastructure that the College would otherwise have to absorb, possibly diverting resources from other institutional priorities,” Unangst wrote.
Funding and staff cuts are not the only areas of concern. In response to the two executive orders targeting DEI programs, multiple federal agencies have changed their policies, including the NIH and NSF. Before the action was blocked by a federal judge, the NIH and NSFbegan reviewing research grants for DEI initiatives. The NSF has reportedly used a list of key words to flag research which includes words such as “woman,” “historically” and “bias.” Though the NSF may no longer freeze grants while reviewing them — an action that was also blocked by a federal judge — reported instances of DEI in research continue to be targeted politically. Senator Ted Cruzhas released a list of over 3,4000 NSF grants which he believes push a “far-left ideology.”
Unangst addressed how research could hypothetically be impacted at LC if the NSF cuts funding to any research deemed as involving DEI. According to Unangst, there would be little impact on current grants.
“Right now, the College does not have any grants from the National Science Foundation that are specifically focused on Diversity and Equity programming. However, many NSF programs require applicants to address how a project will diversify STEM education or engage underrepresented minorities in science disciplines, and our faculty have complied with those requirements. We have yet to receive information from the NSF about whether or not those portions of their applications will be removed in light of the recent Executive Orders,” the statement read.
Unangst also addressed the “Dear Colleague” letter and its current impact on SPARC. While no changes have been made yet, the department has been monitoring the situation closely and will continue to address changes as they develop.
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