On December 6, 2022, April Brown, professor of electrical and computer engineering at Duke University, participated in a congressional briefing hosted by the National Science Foundation (NSF), “Accelerating Advancements in Manufacturing: How NSF Supports Research and Education to Transform Manufacturing Capabilities.” This was NSF’s first in-person Capitol Hill briefing since 2020.
April Brown speaking to the audience
The event included opening remarks from Rep. Haley Stevens (D-MI), then chair of the House Science, Space and Technology Subcommittee on Research and Technology, and Dr. Susan Margulies, the NSF Assistant Director for Engineering. Following the introduction, four NSF-funded researchers specializing in innovative manufacturing capabilities, including Brown, provided the audience with a brief account of their research and how their federal support has played an instrumental role in that work.
April Brown demonstrating her research with audience members
Following the panel, the audience was encouraged to participate in interactive demonstrations with each NSF-funded researcher, where they could ask questions and even try on industrial exoskeletons. Professor Brown showcased her work investigating how quantum information devices could transform semiconductor manufacturing beyond the traditional silicon-based devices.
The NSF-funded researchers with Dr. Susan Marguiles (center)
NSF plays a critical role in not only supporting fundamental research but also translating that research into real-life capabilities that transform the potential of 3D printing, computer design, the aerospace industry, and much more to solve a wide range of societal problems.
The Final Months of 2022 in the Nation’s Capital in Review
Uncertainty and delay are on full display as the 118th Congress begins its work this month. As congressional leadership and priorities are still taking shape, we look back at what did happen to wrap up 2022. Over the fall semester months, states tallied up November’s midterm election results and Congress finished the year in dramatic fashion, narrowly passing its FY23 omnibus spending package just in time to avoid a government shutdown over the Christmas holiday. We recap all that and more, plus what we can expect for Duke’s federal priorities heading into the new year.
Midterm Elections Recap
The 2022 midterm elections wielded a strong influence on this fall’s overall activity and priorities in Washington, DC. There were several key races in North Carolina as Congressman David Price (D-NC), who represents Duke University and Durham, and longtime Senator Richard Burr (R-NC) both retired at the end of the 117th Congress. State Senator Valerie Foushee (D-NC) won her election to replace Mr. Price and will represent the 4th Congressional District and Duke University in the 118th Congress. Meanwhile, former Congressman Ted Budd (R-NC) defeated Cheri Beasley and will join Senator Thom Tillis (R-NC) in the Senate. Our DC Digest includes additional information regarding the new North Carolina delegation makeup.
For a complete list of the North Carolina delegation and other congressional news relevant to Duke, you can access the 118th Congress tab on the Duke Government Relations website.
Budget & Appropriations
After passing three temporary stopgaps and only a few hours before a government shutdown, Congress successfully passed the $1.7 trillion FY23 omnibus spending package on December 23rd. The year-end legislation included approximately $800 billion for non-defense spending, an increase of $68 billion over FY22, and $858 billion for defense spending, an increase of $76 billion over FY22. The massive bill holds significant implications for the higher education community, many of which are outlined in this DC Digest.
Below is a table representing Duke University’s funding priorities for the current fiscal year.
Status of Duke University’s Funding Priorities in the Federal Budget Process
ARPA-H
In addition to $1.5 billion in funding provided for the Advanced Research Projects Agency – Health (ARPA-H), the final FY 23 omnibus contains statutory language authorizing the agency and its structure. The agreement places ARPA-H under the National Institutes of Health, but the director reports to the Secretary of Health and Human Services. The language also sets forth some parameters for the agency’s location, noting that it cannot be co-located with an existing NIH campus and should have a presence in no less than three locations.
Research, Innovation & Competition
The implementation of the bipartisan CHIPS and Science Act began in earnest after it was signed into law in August. In September, the White House announced its implementation leadership team, which is led by Duke Fuqua Professor Aaron “Ronnie” Chatterji. The CHIPS Research and Development Office released an update on the National Semiconductor Technology Center in November, which provided an overview of its process for defining the NSTC and previewed a white paper expected in 2023 that will also include guidance on when a request for proposal can be expected.
Rounding out the year, Congress also successfully passed the FY23 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which was signed into law by President Joe Biden on December 23rd. The annual legislation authorizes $138.9 billion in research and development investments across the national security enterprise, including a 22.8% increase in basic research and historic funding for research activities at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). Among other provisions, the policy bill also requires DOD to develop a strategy and implementation plan for strengthening defense innovation ecosystems, establishes an industry, academia and government working group on microelectronics and requests the establishment of a new innovation fellowship under the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA).
Foreign Influence and Research Security
Following the midterm elections, newly elected Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) announced plans to launch a Select Committee on China in the 118th Congress, tapping Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-WI) to chair the panel. In the waning days of 2022, Majority Leader-elect Steve Scalise (R-LA) sent a letter to the Republican caucus outlining a list of legislative priorities in the first two weeks of the new Congress, including a draft resolution to create the new committee focused on China.
Over the last several months progress has been made on the Biden administration’s national security strategy. In October, the White House released its long-awaited National Security Strategy, which encapsulates the administration’s thinking on the state of the world and how it will navigate challenges to the homeland and global order. The report aims to maintain the U.S.’s strategic advantage to attract and retain the world’s best talent.
In late November, Department of Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo delivered an extensive speech on US competition with China and outlined the administration’s efforts to invest in domestic R&D and manufacturing and protect our technological advantage from foreign influence.
Immigration
In the FY23 year-end funding bill, Senator Tillis attempted to include a bipartisan compromise for Dreamers, which ultimately failed and does not appear to be a realistic prospect for the 118th Congress. Accordingly, legal challenges and regulatory activity involving the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Act (DACA) will continue to be the focus of Duke’s federal immigration advocacy.
In September, the Department of Homeland Security removed regulatory hurdles for anyone deemed “likely” to become dependent on public benefits while obtaining a visa or becoming a permanent U.S. resident, which had been established by the Trump administration. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia also upheld the federal government’s legal authority to allow F-1 international students to work in the U.S. after graduation under the Optional Practical Training (OPT) program, including the STEM OPT extension.
This academic year, the broader higher education community also saw a rebound in international student enrollment after several years of pandemic-related decline. Overall international student and graduate enrollment at U.S. institutions saw a 4% and 17% increase, respectively, during the 2021-2022 school year. Despite these trends, 45% fewer students from China were issued visas from May-August 2022 compared to the same months in 2021, and overall international enrollment is still below pre-pandemic levels.
Student Aid & Other Issues Related to Higher Education
The Supreme Court has two issues on its current agenda involving higher education. In February, the high court will hear arguments about the legality of President Joe Biden’s student debt relief program. Additionally, the court also heard arguments in 2022 on race-based admissions practices from Harvard and UNC and is expected to rule on both cases separately later this June.
The last few months of 2022 were also action-packed for the Department of Education. Beyond President Biden releasing his long-awaited student debt forgiveness plan, 360,000 student loan borrowers received $24 billion in forgiveness through a temporary Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) waiver. The department also issued several rules, which include allowing Pell funds to be accessed by incarcerated individuals and closing a loophole to protect veterans and service members from predatory lending practices. Furthermore, the Department released Title IX guidance to protect pregnant students and is expected to release a Title IX proposed regulation concerning athletics in the coming year. In the coming months, the Department is also expected to issue rules on the TRIO program, third-party loan servicers, distance education, student loan forbearances, accreditation, state authorization, student withdrawal rules and student aid disbursement.
Federal Appointments and Roles
Throughout these milestones over the past several months, several individuals have been named to serve in key positions within the Biden administration. Among the appointments relevant to the higher education community, Arati Prabhakar was confirmed as the new director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) with Asad Ramzanali named Chief of Staff. In December, the Senate confirmed Evelyn Wang, the current head of the Department of Mechanical Engineering at MIT, as the new director of the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E). In October, President Biden also announced his appointment of Renee Wegrzyn as the first director of the ARPA-H, the agency newly established to drive cutting-edge biomedical and health solutions led after ARPA-E. President Biden also announced his intent to appoint 14 individuals to serve on the National Board for Education Sciences.
From the Duke community (as mentioned above), Ronnie Chatterji was announced as the White House Coordinator for CHIPS Implementation at the National Economic Council (NEC). Previously, Chatterji was serving as the Chief Economist of the Department of Commerce. Director of the Duke Marine Lab, Andrew Read, was confirmed by the Senate to be the Marine Mammal Commission (MMC) Commissioner in December. Read is a widely cited expert on marine vertebrates and has previously served on the MMC committee of scientific advisors on Marine Mammals. President Biden also nominated Duke alum Danny Werfel PPS ’97, to serve as the next head of the IRS. Finally, former principal deputy director of national intelligence and Duke University Rubenstein Fellow, Sue Gordon T’80, joined the reestablished Defense Innovation Board this fall to provide recommendations to the DOD regarding emerging technologies and innovative capabilities.
You can access the Federal Government page on the Duke Government Relations website for a complete list of federal appointments relevant to Duke.
Duke in DC Updates
Duke in DC hosted numerous events throughout 2022, including a return to in-person event programming. Moving into the new year, a brand new series, “NC in DC,” will kick off at Duke in DC in March that will highlight the university’s broad and far-reaching impact across North Carolina. Our office also continued its Direct Impact video series highlighting two faculty researchers, Sunshine Hillygus and Dalia Patino-Echeverri and their National Science Foundation (NSF) and DOE-funded work, respectively.
Follow us on social media (Twitter and LinkedIn) and subscribe to our mailing lists to stay updated on our office’s latest communications and events. If you are interested in using the Duke in DC office for a future event or gathering, fill out this space reservation request while space is still available.
On November 3rd, representatives from North Carolina’s state and federal government, economic development, defense, and higher education community were invited to visit Fort Bragg to highlight Soldiers’ need for innovative technologies to maintain combat readiness on the battlefield.
Organizations represented included the Economic Development Partnership of NC, NC General Assembly, Office of Senator Thom Tillis, NC Department of Commerce, NC Military Affairs Commission, Army Research Office, Assistant Office of the Secretary Army for Acquisition, Logistics and Technology (ASAALT), USAF AFWERX, the USAF SPARK, National Security Innovation Network, Defense Alliance of NC, NC Military Business Center, NC Defense Technology Transition Office, Fayetteville Cumberland Economic Development, Duke University, UNC-Chapel Hill, NC State University, and East Carolina University.
Fort Bragg is Home of the Airborne and Special Operations and is often called “the center of the military universe.” Fort Bragg is the largest U.S. military installation in terms of population, with approximately 48,000 troops and another 16,000 civilians who work on the post. With an economic impact of over $8.2 billion annually, the post supports a population of roughly 260,000, including military families, contractors, retirees and others.
North Carolina’s academic, economic and private sector industries have longstanding partnerships with Fort Bragg to support the needs of the military base and to contribute to the state’s growing defense innovation ecosystem. Major General (Retired) Rodney Anderson, chair of the NC Military Affairs Commission, and Denny Lewis, Business Development Manager, Defense Industry at the Economic Development Partnership of NC, led the tour of Fort Bragg, providing insight into the lives of Soldiers and their roles on base. The tour began with an overview briefing by the Garrison Commander, Colonel John Wilcox, who highlighted Fort Bragg’s presence, size and economic impact on the local community, along with the challenges faced and plans for continued growth. The group then visited the Training Simulation Support Center to demonstrate how soldiers are trained on the “Dragon Missile” to prepare for combat situations, and attendees had the opportunity to participate in a simulated firing range.
After sharing a meal with Soldiers in the dining facility, the tour included a stop at the new 82nd Airborne Innovation Lab (AIL). The AIL opened in October with the purpose of providing Paratroopers with tactical innovation support for the battlefield. The AIL offers robotics equipment, 3D printing, a woodshop, a textile station, and a computer lab for Soldiers to test and create new ideas. The AIL also plans to offer courses for Paratroopers to learn how to design technologies and materials on their own. The tour ended at Simmons Army Airfield where participants had the opportunity to learn how Army Aviators train in simulators.
Duke University is a key partner in North Carolina’s defense innovation ecosystem, as demonstrated most recently by an Educational Partnership Agreement with the U.S. Army’s 18th Airborne Corps to spur innovation, help streamline military processes and provide new research and learning opportunities for Duke faculty and students. The new partnership formalizes existing connections between Duke and the military, tapping into Duke’s expertise in science, technology, engineering and public policy to encourage opportunities for collaboration with the Army.
With a thriving dual-use innovation ecosystem and a concentration of strong and committed partners across the continuum to advance innovation, North Carolina is the frontline of the future for the military’s innovation needs.
It was anything but quiet in the nation’s capital since the end of the last academic year. While making progress on the FY23 budget, Congress also successfully passed major legislative packages on both climate and U.S. competitiveness, sending them to President Biden’s desk to be signed into law. The Biden administration also proposed new Title IX regulations, unveiled a much-anticipated student loan forgiveness program and nominated individuals to fill several key positions. Here is all you need to know about these and other federal highlights of significance to Duke University and the higher education community since Duke’s Office of Government Relations’ last update this spring.
Budget & Appropriations
As Congress makes its return from August recess, the FY23 budget and its impending September 30th deadline will be the focus for appropriators. In the final days before each chamber broke for recess, the House successfully passed half of its FY23 appropriation bills and Senate Democrats released their own twelve appropriations bills. With less than a month before government funding runs out, lawmakers will likely look to vote on a temporary stopgap bill to extend funding beyond its current deadline. However, political dynamics resulting from this summer’s maneuvering on various bills foreshadows a rocky path for a continuing resolution. Duke’s Office of Government Relations has prepared this flow chart to provide more information about the federal appropriations process. Below is a table illustrating the current status of some of Duke’s appropriations priorities.
President Biden also signed the Inflation Reduction Act into law on August 16th. The long-awaited climate, health care and tax legislation, previously shelved as the Build Back Better plan, will invest roughly $300 billion in climate and energy initiatives. Of interest to the higher education community, this includes $2 billion for the Department of Energy (DOE) National Labs to accelerate breakthrough energy research and several environmental and climate justice block grants and resiliency programs through which universities can be considered a partner.
Research, Innovation & Competition
This summer was marked by considerable drama and a final resolution to the ongoing conference negotiations to align the U.S. Innovation and Competition Act (USICA) and the America COMPETES Act. The prospects for passage of a competitiveness measure grew dim as negotiations stalled, first due to general disagreements over the direction of the final package, then after Republicans walked away after Senate Democrats announced movement on its Build Back Better budget reconciliation measure. In response to the legislative hold-up, Senate Democrats opted to draft the “CHIPS and Science Act,” which combined the $52 billion emergency funding the semiconductor industry under the CHIPS for America Act with negotiated section of USICA and COMPETES focused on key science authorizations. This ultimately bipartisan legislation officially authorizes the new Technology, Innovation and Partnerships Directorate at the National Science Foundation (NSF), reauthorizes the other core NSF directorates, along with the Department of Energy Office of Science, NASA, establishes a new federal initiative focused on bioengineering and much more.
In other innovation policy updates, Congress moved forward on the framework for the new Advanced Research Projects Agency – Health. Earlier this summer, the House of Representatives approved its vision for the agency and now awaits Senate action. On the administration side, it was announced that the new ARPA-H will be housed within the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and Adam Russell D.Phil.(T ‘95) was named acting deputy director. The agency will support transformative high-risk, high-reward research to drive biomedical and health breakthroughs.
Wrapping up the summer with some rather blockbuster news, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) released updated policy guidance to increase the accessibility of federally supported research, which includes dropping an optional 12-month embargo on publications and supporting data from federally funded research. The guidance memo requests federal agencies to update and/or develop public access policies to ensure immediate, equitable and transparent access to federally-funded research no later than December 31, 2025.
Foreign Influence and Research Security
As noted in previous updates, the competitiveness proposals moving through Congress were a focus for provisions related to research security. The final CHIPS + Science bill does contain several security-focused provisions related to foreign talent recruitment programs and a new provision requiring an annual summary report to NSF from universities outlining financial support of $50,000 or more from foreign sources associated with countries of concern. However, several of the more concerning provisions found in USICA, like the proposed expansion of a Committee on Foreign Investment in the US (CFIUS) review of certain gifts and contracts between foreign individuals and universities and new faculty disclosure of foreign gifts and contracts, were dropped from the package.
On the topic of disclosure, work has continued on the implementation of National Security Presidential Memorandum (NSPM)-33, which directs the federal science agencies to develop standardized guidelines for the disclosure of information to assess conflicts of interest and commitment among researchers applying for federal funding. Last week, the National Science and Technology Council’s Subcommittee on Research Security released draft standardized disclosure forms for biographical sketch and current and pending support with a public review and comment period.
As conversations around research security policy continue to develop, the National Science Foundation (NSF) has asked the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) to hold a workshop this fall on factors affecting the classification of federally funded research. Assistant Secretary for Export Enforcement at the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security, Matthew Axelrod, also announced a new initiative at the department to help academic research institutions protect themselves from national security threats.
Immigration
As the globe continues to rebound from COVID-19-related challenges, the Biden administration is making efforts to resolve ongoing immigration delays and backlogs. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) recently released its annual report, which outlines some of the most significant challenges individuals and employers encounter when applying for immigration benefits with the agency.
Student Aid & Other Issues Related to Higher Education
The Department of Education officially published its notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) to amend the regulations implementing Title IX in the Federal Register on July 12th, with comments on the proposed rule due on September 12th. Duke University has worked closely to help draft comments to be submitted on behalf of the Association of American Universities and the American Council on Education.
Meanwhile, the White House announced its three-part plan to address student loan relief as well as its plans to amend Title IV of the Higher Education Act (HEA) to create targeted student loan forgiveness programs. The plan includes a final extension of the pause on student loan repayment, interest, and collections and cancellation up to $20,000 for Pell Grant recipients and up to $10,000 for non-Pell Grant recipients. The administration will be releasing more specifics in the coming months.
The U.S. Supreme Court announced it will deconsolidate the Harvard and UNC-Chapel Hill affirmative action cases it plans to hear this fall. Duke University signed an amicus brief, along with a group of higher education institutions, in support of race-conscious admissions policies, emphasizing the profound importance of student body diversity.
Appointments and Confirmations of Relevance for Higher Education
Several key additions to the Biden administration have been named over the last several months, including Arati Prabhakar to be the next director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP). Prabhakar’s nomination was advanced through the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee by a vote of 15 to 13 and her nomination now awaits full committee approval. Prabhakar previously led both the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA).
For an updated list of key administration personnel relevant to higher education, view Duke’s Office of Government Relations’ Federal Government page here.
The 2022 Midterm Elections
North Carolina’s 2022 primary elections took place this June and the upcoming statewide general election will be held on November 8, 2022. Since the 2020 election, the state gained a new congressional seat, creating North Carolina’s fourteenth district. Our office will be closely watching the races for both the state’s fourth district and Senate (which includes Duke University) as Rep. David Price (D-NC), who represents the fourth district, and Sen. Richard Burr (R-NC) are set to retire at the end of the 117th Congress.
What’s Going On at Duke in DC and the Office of Government Relations
Duke in DC and Duke’s Office of Government Relations highlighted a mix of faculty expertise throughout this spring and summer. Event programming included a Beyond Talking Points series of briefings on pandemic preparedness – exploring topics related to the U.S. public health infrastructure and environmental practices – and a congressional briefing on the Blue Economy and ocean innovation.
On Capitol Hill, Duke’s Lanty L. Smith ’67 Professor of Law Joseph Blocher spoke before the Senate Judiciary Committee at a hearing titled “After the Highland Park Attack: Protecting Our Communities from Mass Shootings.” The hearing was centered on how gun violence might be curbed following recent mass shootings.
Rounding out an event-filled summer, over 200 members of the Duke community traveled to Washington, DC as part of Duke’s reimagined immersive pre-orientation program. The Duke in DC office, located in the heart of downtown D.C., served as a home and central convening space for the first-year students, as well as faculty, staff and student orientation leaders.
Duke students at Arena Stage in Washington, DC (Lizzie Devitt)
Over 200 members of the Duke community traveled to Washington, D.C. this week as part of the university’s reimagined immersive orientation programs and QuadEx initiative. The Duke in DC office, located in the heart of downtown D.C., served as a home and central convening space for the first-year students, as well as faculty, staff and student orientation leaders.
The two groups – Project Citizen (led by POLIS: Center for Politics) and Project Identity and Culture (led by Duke’s Office of Student Affairs) – spent several days participating in enriching educational activities, including a special showing of the musical “American Prophet,” meetings with Duke alumni, and visits to the U.S. Capitol, embassies and Smithsonian Museums.
“The history of our country impacts how identities are valued and devalued in the present day. Creating an opportunity in Washington, D.C. for students to take in both the strengths of historically marginalized communities and the challenges these communities have navigated with their peers presents so many valuable opportunities,” said Duke’s Associate Vice President of Student Affairs for Student Engagement Shruti Desai.
Desai highlighted the value that the two programs bring to Duke’s undergraduate experience, “It teaches students to reflect, dialogue across differences and question their own assumptions and learnings. This experience is a catalyst to how we want students to take on their time at Duke.”
Henry Stephens IV, a first year from Georgia on the Project Citizen trip, added that the orientation programs’ emphasis on diverse thinking stood out to him. “We have so many different perspectives and I think that’s what makes us – as Blue Devils – so great,” he said.
The week was highlighted by several marquee programs including:
Duke students speaking with Duke alumnus and playwright Charles Randolph-Wright (A.B. ’78) after attending a performance of “American Prophet” (Eric Shipley)
A Night at Arena Stage – Students, faculty and staff from both programs gathered with over sixty alumni to attend “American Prophet,” a musical centered around abolitionist Frederick Douglass’s life and work. The musical, co-written and directed by Duke alumnus Charles Randolph-Wright ’78, is influenced by Douglass’s speeches and writings about escaping slavery and stewarding a national movement against racial injustice. Charles Randolph-Wright and members of the cast treated the Duke community to a post-performance discussion of key themes of the musical and took questions from the students.
Students hear from a panel of Duke alums at the Duke in DC office (Lizzie Devitt)
Alumni Networking – Recent alumni Elise Bousquette ’22, Kamran Kara-Pabani ’22, Amy Kramer ’18, Bryant Lewis ’21, Christina Oliver ’17, Ivan Robles ’20 and Janelle Taylor ’19 attended a dinner with the Project Identity and Culture students at the Duke in DC office. During a panel discussion with a lengthy Q&A, the alumni shared valuable advice on academics and student life, including how to maintain balance, find meaningful extracurricular activities and build community at Duke.
Students hear from a panel of Duke alums on Capitol Hill (Lizzie Devitt)
Tour of Capitol Hill – Project Citizen students toured the U.S. Capitol and then heard from a panel of Duke alumni congressional staffers: Leah Hill ’09, Madeline Perrino ’16, Sandeep Prasanna ’11 and Nathaniel Sizemore ’17 who shared their experiences living and working in the nation’s capital, how Duke helped shape their careers and advice for succeeding at Duke.
“Our Project-Citizen first-year orientation experience was an extraordinary opportunity for students to think seriously about how they want to engage as members of the Duke and Durham communities, of the states and nations that they call home, and as world citizens,” said Deondra Rose, the director of Polis: Center for Politics and an associate professor in the Sanford School of Public Policy. “It was an honor for Polis to be included and to have the chance to help inspire students as they embark on their journey at Duke.”
Tyné Kidd, a first year from Maryland on the Project Citizen trip said, “Visiting the Capitol building – even though I’m from the area – was a better experience with my peers because it has built my confidence and pushed me to do things I never would have considered, like reaching out to public officials in my home state.” Project Citizen also engaged their students with tours of several embassies and civic training with Braver Angels and the Close Up Foundation.
Project Identity and Culture’s Smithsonian tour – Project Identity and Culture students toured several museums including the National Museum of the American Indian, National Museum of American History: Molina Family Latino Gallery, National Museum of African American History and Culture, and the Holocaust Memorial Museum.
Joseph Asamoah-Boadu, a first year from North Carolina, reflected on his experiences with Project Identity and Culture saying, “There is so much history that gets left behind, so much history that people don’t talk about. It will be a priority of mine to tell people’s stories. It’s so important for us to know our history because if we don’t, history will repeat itself.”
Joyce Gordon, the director of Jewish Life at Duke who led Project Identity and Culture, highlighted the program’s overall value. “The trip to DC afforded students the opportunity to think deeply about and experience various aspects of identity before they embark on their Duke career,” said Gordon, “Through the lenses of history, arts, and the learned wisdom of young alumni, these students spent two days asking thoughtful questions and developing friendships to help guide them through their first weeks at Duke.”
What do you get when you bring computational and molecular biology, data science and engineering all together? That’s what Daniel Reker and his lab are investigating. Daniel Reker is an assistant professor of biomedical engineering at the Pratt School for Engineering who joined Duke University’s Department of Biomedical Engineering in 2020. In his research, Reker uses machine learning and modeling to explore how drugs, excipients and nanoparticles behave once they enter the body. Duke’s Office of Government Relations asked Reker five questions about his work and its implications for the future of big data-driven protocols for precision medicine and personalized drug delivery.
“It was clear to me that both [machine learning and pharmacology] were incredibly powerful and that a lot of impact can be achieved by combining them. To me, it’s the perfect combination of intellectually challenging questions that have a very clear societal impact.” – Daniel Reker
What influenced you to study machine learning and its applications in designing drug therapies?
I have always been interested in both computer science and chemistry. Computer science enables us to design smart algorithms to solve problems and chemistry can explain complex, real-life phenomena from molecular interactions.
My determination to combine these two fields productively led me on a winding educational path, weaving different programs that emphasized the computational or chemical sciences. This allowed me to learn a lot about these two disciplines and collaborate with and learn from amazing peers and mentors that helped shape my path. I realized that machine learning and pharmacology are specialties that were particularly fascinating to me since they enable the autonomous development of predictive algorithms and the design of molecules to treat diseases. It was clear to me that both were incredibly powerful and that a lot of impact can be achieved by combining them. To me, it’s the perfect combination of intellectually challenging questions that have a very clear societal impact.
How does machine learning aid researchers’ ability to develop new drug therapies? What does your research and other research in the field mean for future developments in designing drug therapies?
Researchers have proposed impactful approaches to use machine learning to improve all stages of therapeutic development – from refining our understanding of the disease to analyzing clinical trial data. Our work is focused on drug discovery, development, and delivery, where we aim to identify new molecules that have useful therapeutic properties, optimize them, and create carrier materials to ensure that the medication can reach the desired organ.
Machine learning algorithms can learn from past experiments to predict the outcome of future experiments. This enables us to focus our experiments on the most promising candidates, and thereby save time and resources.
Can you provide an example where machine learning proved useful?
One particularly promising direction is the use of “active machine learning”, where the machine can ask a scientist to perform experiments that the algorithm is uncertain about – which are most informative and thereby can generate data that helps the algorithm improve future predictions.
More recently, we have started to use machine learning to predict a wide range of other properties of drug candidates, such as potential side effects or ease of synthesis. Such machine learning models enable us to anticipate potential “dead ends” in our drug development campaigns and thereby de-risk the process. 90% of all drug development campaigns fail, so reducing risk could help us to bring more life-saving medications to patients.
In the future, I believe that we will be able to combine thousands of machine learning models to predict all the positive and negative effects medication could have on a specific, individual patient. Such systems will enable pharmaceutical companies and clinicians to develop and prescribe the safest and most effective medication for every individual patient – thereby providing an important tool to personalize medicine and making pharmaceutical research and development more equitable.
What findings in your research have you found most significant?
The most significant part of our work to me is when we can see a “real world” effect of our predictions. For example, it is always exciting to see when our designed molecules change the behavior of cells and proteins in the laboratory. Other examples are predicted side effects of medications: many patients reached out to us to thank us for helping them better understand these issues and for raising awareness about complications that they or a loved one have been struggling with for decades. Similarly, I still vividly remember when we were treating mice with our computationally designed nanoparticles and saw them improving much faster compared to the mice that received the standard treatment. It is this real-world impact that has drawn me to study pharmacology, and it is what keeps me motivated every day.
What are you looking forward to most in your time at Duke?
Aspects that set Duke apart from other institutions are the sense of community and the collaborative climate. The work of my laboratory synergizes with many other scientists and, although we have only been at Duke for a bit over a year and started working here during a pandemic, we have already established seven collaborative projects with colleagues in Pharmacology, Biology, Chemistry, Biomedical Engineering, Environmental Engineering, and Immunology. Especially the proximity between the university and the hospital provides unique opportunities for translational research at Duke.
Another big advantage for Duke is the incredible students that are smart, driven, and creative. These students drive a lot of our research and are also excited to explore new research directions. I have recently established a new class “Machine Learning in Pharmacology” at Duke that is very popular. We are also setting up a “Biomedical Data Science Master’s Certificate” at Duke together with some of my colleagues. These are just some examples of how we are working to further enhance the training at Duke. Seeing the student’s excitement and passion for the field is hugely rewarding and gives me hope for a brighter future.
What would you like to tell students who are also interested in computer science and its biomedical applications?
It is a very exciting time to work in computational biomedical sciences. Not only has computational power and algorithms improved in the last years, but we now also have access to larger datasets thanks to increasing automation from biomedical experiments. Maybe even more importantly, the quality of biomedical data has been dramatically improving and technologies such as CRISPR, cell painting, single-cell biology, and broader access to sequencing technologies are improving our understanding of the biological systems we are trying to model and treat. All these improvements have created a big hype around AI-driven drug development, which is currently resulting in rapidly growing educational and job opportunities. It is very interdisciplinary work that profits from many different perspectives, and I have seen students with many different backgrounds be very successful in this field. My advice for students is to seek out learning opportunities not in one area alone but in both biomedical sciences and computation as well as at their interface. For example, our laboratory has access to a cluster computer, but we also run our biological experiments in our wet laboratory. I have specifically designed our laboratory in this way to increase our scientific impact but also to provide a training environment where students are engaged in both computation and experiments. The future of our field will require scientists that are “multilingual” to translate between fields, identify relevant medical challenges, and tailor appropriate computational algorithms to solve them.
Experts Discuss their Research and the First Captures from the James Webb Space Telescope
From the left: Michael Troxel and Dan Scolnic
By now, people all over the world have been awed by the first images captured by the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). Cosmologists Dan Scolnic and Michael Troxel, who are both assistant professors of physics at Duke University, explain the significance of this discovery and its implications for the future of studying the universe.
What first influenced you to begin a career studying cosmology?
Dan Scolnic: I was struck in the beginning by the bigness of it. That we can be stuck on one small planet, at one brief moment in time, and understand things that are billions of years old and light-years away, was a huge pull.
What’s something you wished lawmakers (or the general public) better understood about the work you do?
First, that we are extremely appreciative that we have agencies like NASA, the National Science Foundation (NSF), Department of Energy (DOE), that fund large projects doing cutting-edge research. And second, these types of projects take a lot of time, even decades, to pull off. Science, from the outside, can seem really quiet and then super exciting, like with the launch of JWST. But to get to that point, there are thousands of people working for many years, and this whole thing only works when resources are committed both to the projects, but also to the scientists who will work on and use them, on the type of timescales that this incredible new science takes.
Why are these new JWST images significant and what do they mean for our understanding of the universe?
What we’ve learned from these first images is that JWST is even better than we hoped, which is amazing. What will we learn? We know some things, but we also know that we will be surprised. We will learn about the atmospheres on potentially habitable planets, we will learn about the expansion history of the universe. But also, every time astronomers have created a new telescope that surpasses previous ones by this much, we learn many new facets of the universe. We weren’t sure something like dark energy existed before we launched the Hubble Space Telescope, for example.
JWST is expected to be the premier observatory for the next decade. What is next for NASA, and how are you/Duke playing a role in the next-generation of space observation?
We are working on designing the next flagship mission after JWST, which is called the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope. While JWST is amazing at looking at a tiny part of the sky, Roman will be more like its predecessor, the Hubble Space Telescope, except with 100x the field-of-view. This will allow Roman to find thousands of supernovae to map the expansion of the Universe and measure the bending of light from hundreds of millions of galaxies to map dark matter and the large-scale structure of the Universe to map dark matter and the large-scale structure of the Universe.
Troxel and Scolnic in front of US Capitol during a March 2020 visit to discuss the Roman Space Telescope Program with congressional offices.
How has the federal government played a key role in supporting your research and advancing the field?
The type of projects we work on cost billions of dollars. They are impossible to do without federal funding. Every ten years, the astronomy community gathers to decide on its priorities for the next decades, and the government really listens to the outcome of this process and puts their weight behind it. That’s incredible. Our group at Duke is committed to these large, long-term projects built by the DOE (the Dark Energy Survey and the Rubin Observatory Legacy Survey of Space and Time), and NASA (the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope).
Computer science and its products are undoubtedly a key part of our society’s future. As a result, it is of the utmost importance that we ensure diversity in terms of those who are working in computer science, as well as its effects on society.
Shani Daily is a professor of practice in Electrical and Computer Engineering & Computer Science at Duke University and was named among North Carolina’s Black STEM Leaders by Governor Roy Cooper this year. Last year, Daily and her colleague Nicki Washington were awarded $10 million by the National Science Foundation (NSF) to establish the Alliance for Identity-Inclusive Computing Education (AiiCE). The program aims to increase the entry, retention and degree completion rates of high school and undergraduate students from groups that are historically underrepresented in computing.
We spoke with Daily about this federal support for her work, her start in computer science and ways to attract the next generation of students to her field.
What influenced you to study computer science and its role in supporting diversity and inclusion?
I have always been interested in building things (e.g., software, robots) that could support education. When I was in graduate school, I noticed a couple of things: first, there were not a lot of people in STEM who looked like me, and second, if STEM environments were going to be more inclusive, people would need the interpersonal skills necessary to work together. My work from there was either building technologies and programs to create more pathways for people to engage with STEM or technologies to cultivate emotional self-awareness and empathy. One example is a virtual environment where learners could program 3D dance partners. Another is a digital diary where learners could tell meaningful stories and see how their bodies physically responded to those stories. Ultimately, my dream is to be a part of creating an environment where diverse groups can come together to design computational solutions to the world’s most pressing challenges.
What are the ways we can use machine learning to improve the quality and diversity of computing education and what are some important factors when considering these interventions?
When I think about machine learning (ML), I think about understanding patterns. What we want to continually get better at accomplishing is understanding how DEI interventions influence the computing landscape. Moving forward, our interest is to utilize ML approaches to make data-driven decisions about the types of interventions that will best impact students.
Can you discuss the Alliance for Identity-Inclusive Computing Education’s (AiiCE’s) mission and how the Nationals Science Foundation (NSF) supports the program’s objectives?
The Alliance for Identity-Inclusive Computing Education (AiiCE) was formed to address barriers to marginalized groups participating in computing and create measurable change by increasing and normalizing course and degree enrollment, retention and completion rates of students from groups that are historically underrepresented in computing. The National Science Foundation’s (NSF) cooperative agreement provides $10 million over five years to enable us to establish a network of educators, policymakers, administrators, industry leaders and others to transform the computing landscape.
Are there any policy-driven changes that you would like to see in the higher education system and/or how we prepare students who are entering the workforce?
Our work is based on the thought that policy can impact students’ abilities to enter the workforce. We also look at the need to change practices and influence how educators and administrators work to create inclusive environments. Specific policies might include ensuring educators, staff and TAs can adopt practices and dispositions that support inclusive excellence; expanding research opportunities to include agendas that influence social justice work; ensuring DEI policies and practices are a part of larger accountability structures; developing incentive structures to recruit, prepare and retain a diverse pool of computer science teachers (K-12); and providing comprehensive educator preparation and professional development programs that support identity-inclusive pedagogy and practices.
What would you like to tell students who are interested in computer science and engineering at Duke?
Duke is an extraordinary place with lots of interdisciplinary opportunities for students. The Duke Technology Scholars Program also provides unmatched support for students. I’d encourage students who want to develop any fluency in computation to explore the wide range of opportunities to engage at Duke.
“Oceans are in transition,” said Dan Vermeer, “We know that both ecosystems and economies are changing faster than ever before.”
This was the framing shared at the start of Duke in DC’s recent briefing for federal policymakers “Oceanpreneurship: Creating a Vibrant Ecosystem to Scale Ocean Innovation.” The conversation was centered around World Ocean Day, Capitol Hill Ocean Week and the 2022 United Nations Ocean Conference – all coinciding in June. The panelists discussed the blue innovation landscape and assessed how policymakers, investors, entrepreneurs and universities can foster rapid development and large-scale deployment of these exciting solutions.
The ocean economy has long been dominated by large, global companies in traditional industries like oil and gas, shipping and fishing. However, alongside these incumbent industries, there is a rapidly evolving ecosystem of startups using innovative technologies and business models to solve ocean problems, and sustainably use ocean resources to address global challenges.
Vermeer, executive director of EDGE (Energy, Development, and the Global Environment) and associate professor of the practice at Duke’s Fuqua School of Business, went on to note in his opening remarks, “The nature of innovation and entrepreneurship is changing as we speak,” said Vermeer. The blue economy covers a large swath of business – energy, food, tourism, biotech, fashion and coastal resilience – however, they are all connected by the ocean.
After attending a United Nations conference as a college student, Daniela Fernandez, founder and CEO of Sustainable Ocean Alliance (SOA), saw a clear need for a centralized platform that provided “intersectoral and intergenerational collaboration,” to solve pressing oceanic problems. “The maritime industry has been around for a really long time,” said Fernandez, “what is new is the fact that we are taking the approach of regenerating and sustaining the ocean.”
Fernandez explained SOA’s goal is to help accelerate “ocean positive” startups that aim to make a positive impact on the ocean. She explained that from wave-generated energy to ocean floor mapping, “we all have the same purpose.”One company that embodies this mission is Algiknit, a startup that focuses on producing seaweed-based sustainable textiles.
Aleksandra Gosiewski, another panelist and co-founder and COO of Algiknit, drew upon her experience in the fashion industry to identify a more sustainable fabric solution. Algiknit is a startup that focuses on producing seaweed-based sustainable textiles. Gosiewski said that early on, “there’s clearly a need for more sustainable materials,” and companies that have set sustainability targets are looking for novel solutions. However, it is an early industry, with risk involved and specifically “when it comes to grants, they are also few and far between because it is a new space.”
From right to left: Aleksandra Gosiewski, Mark Huang and Alexis Grosskropf
Mark Huang, co-founder and managing director of SeaAhead, discussed some of the issues currently facing the ocean and what policy and industry interventions are promising.
“The policy we all know is hard,” but Huang noted that a ray of hope is the “changing is the power of the consumer and the public.” He observed that as consumers are starting to use their pocketbooks to drive change, we will begin to move the needle faster.
Several panelists underscored the increasing urgency for both government and industry to act, develop frameworks and rapidly develop solutions to avoid more entrenched issues related to climate change. “You can’t improve what you can’t measure,” said Alexis Grosskopf, founder and CEO of OceanHub Africa, “we need to have a better understanding of what’s happening in the ocean.” Grosskopf added that all sectors need to get involved to better manage the ocean and design solutions.
Among her recommendations to Congress, Fernandez outlined a need for more government funding and additional permitting for companies that enter the ocean space. She also called for policymakers to direct their focus to short-term targets rather than loftier environmental goals over the next several decades. “The reality for all of us is that we are the last generation that can do something significant to change the trajectory we are on.”
“This is our responsibility,” said Fernandez, “and this is our problem, and we need to link arms and work together on this as a collective because we don’t have another choice.”
Reflecting on the vital role this federal program has played for students at Duke over the years
The Pell Grant, one of America’s premier means of providing financial aid to college students, hits a big milestone this week as the program turns 50 years old. On June 23rd, Duke joins the higher education community in marking Pell’s golden anniversary and day of advocacy.
First created in 1972 by the Higher Education Act (HEA) Reauthorization, Pell Grants have provided aid to tens of millions of college students who are most in need of financial support. According to the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA), the Pell Grant supplied nearly 7 million college students student aid in the 2019-2020 academic year. In the same academic year, the program also supported 14% of all Duke University undergraduate students.
“Pell Grants play a vital role in helping all students have access to higher education,” explained Miranda McCall, the assistant vice provost and director of the Karsh Office of Undergraduate Financial Support at Duke. “Since the program began 50 years ago, it has helped millions of people in our country attend college. Duke provides robust additional financial support for Pell recipients to meet demonstrated financial need, and we stand with other colleges and universities in advocating for the doubling of the Pell Grant to ensure broader access to higher education nationwide.”
Strengthening the Pell Grant remains a key priority for Duke’s federal advocacy agenda. Chris Simmons, Duke’s associate vice president for government relations, emphasized that Pell Grants give “recipients an additional boost as they make their way through the college years. It also offers a glimmer of hope and optimism, politically, as it enjoys strong bipartisan support year to year.”
“While the support and program are celebrated,” said Simmons, “the anniversary is a good reminder that more must be done to support our most financially vulnerable students.”
As the anniversary date of June 23, 2022, approaches, Duke has continued to reiterate its support for Pell Grants and advocates for doubling the maximum Pell Grant to the North Carolina Congressional delegation. We have also been supportive of the recent bipartisan, bicameral resolutions honoring the Pell Grant program.
More activity and celebration of this anniversary will be found on Duke in DC’s Twitter feed and at #PellTurns50 on social media all week.
