Biophysical Society Bulletin | February 2022

Public Affairs

NIH Bids Farewell to Francis Collins On December 20, Francis Collins ended his 12 years as Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) with fanfare worthy of his tenure, featuring tributes from former presidents of the United States and even cellist Yo-Yo Ma . Collins—the guitar-playing, motorcycle-riding geneticist and physician—steered the $43 billion agency through three administrations, won budget increas- es, and launched major new programs in cancer, neuroscience, and personalized medicine. He also led NIH’s efforts to fight the coronavirus pandemic. Collins is returning to his lab at NIH’s National Human Genome Research Institute.

Lawrence Tabak Steps in as InterimNIH Administrator At the close of December, Lawrence Tabak began serving as Interim Administrator of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) following the departure of Francis Collins . A permanent successor will need to be nominated by President Joe Biden and confirmed by the Senate. Tabak, who was trained as a dentist and then earned a PhD in endodontics, came to the NIH in 2000 from the University of Rochester, where he served as a senior associate dean as well as a researcher. At the agency, he first directed the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research, then held the position of Acting Principal Deputy Director of the NIH. He has held his current position of Principal Deputy Director and Deputy Ethics Counselor since 2010. Chan Zuckerberg Initiative Pledges $3.4 Billion in Science Funding The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI), a philanthropic organi- zation established by Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan , announced in December an investment of $3.4 billion in research to help cure, prevent, and manage human disease. CZI was founded in 2015 with a $3 billion investment to support scientific research for a period of 10–15 years, with a focus on establishing the development of three new research centers, including an artificial intelligence institute, a

biomedical imaging center, and supporting collaborative projects such as the CZ Biohub Network, which will connect researchers working on disease mechanisms and therapies. The Biohub project, launched in 2016, will be expanded and funded through 2031 by a share of up to $1 billion of the newly donated funds. HHMI Invests in STEMDiversity Initiative The Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) launched a new initiative to increase diversity, equity, and inclusion in STEM at the end of December. HHMI intends to invest $2 billion over the next 10 years in an effort to change the historical lack of diversity in science and related fields. According to Educational Researcher , more than 40 percent of white undergraduate students with an intended major in STEM graduated with a STEM degree, while only 29 percent of Hispanic and 22 percent of Black students did so (Does STEM stand out? Examining racial/ethnic gaps in persistence across postsec- ondary fields. Educ. Researcher 48: 133–144.). A recent study published in Sociological Science warns that the pandemic could make matters worse: hires of Black, Hispanic, and Asian-American faculty declined disproportionately during the Great Recession of the late ’00s (Crisis and uncertainty: did the Great Recession reduce the diversity of new faculty? Sociol. Sci. 8: 308–324.), and the COVID-19 crisis could have a similar effect. HHMI’s diversity goals will be quantified at least annually as numerical and demographic data become available, such as the number of students colleges and uni- versities added to their programs.

February 2022

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