Dear colleagues,

I hope your week has started well. I look forward to seeing faculty and staff at School Assembly this morning where we will be joined by Boston University President, Melissa Gilliam.

Last week I was in Washington DC for a lively meeting of the Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health. I took a trip across town to meet with Jennifer Grodsky and Jessica Wong, Boston University’s Federal Relations team to compare notes. They are regularly using our research and content in meetings with congressional offices as it relates to the current moment. If you are conducting research and happen to be traveling to DC in the near future, please reach out to their office to let them know. You can also sign up for their weekly Beltway BUzz newsletter here.

Below, please find updates and guidance on this week’s federal actions. As always, please feel free to reach out to me directly with any questions.

Let’s start with good news.

The Congressional Continuing Resolution was signed into law. Federal agencies now know their budgets through September 30, 2025, the current fiscal year. Most science agencies are funded at their FY24 level.

The BU Federal Relations website has an explainer about the FY2025 Continuing Resolution. It details the NIH and Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDRMP) budgets for the remainder of FY25. We now await the agency spend plans to truly understand what will happen. These are due to Congress by May 1st.

The one exception to these stable budgets: Department of Defense RDT&E programs were cut by 5% and CDRMP programs were cut by 57% for the remainder of the year.

If you want to see for yourself which NIH study sections and advisory councils are being scheduled, you can view Federal Register updates from the NIH. Jocelyn Kaiser of Science also had some reporting on this: https://www.science.org/content/article/nih-council-meetings-back-questioning-scientists-slow-payments-niaid-trump-tracker.

An additional resource related to Federal data worth noting: Finding Federal Information and Data.

For those of you writing grants related to health disparities, there are several sites worth visiting. The NIMHD definition of health disparities and the NIMHD Research Framework provide important updates to consider as you write.

Boston University leadership and our Federal Relations team continue to monitor new directives on information hub which aims to keep our community informed about how notifications and policies from the executive branch are being implemented at BU, with links to frequently asked questions about federally funded research; diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI); and immigration and safety.

Guidance from the University Office of Sponsored Programs remains unchanged. Any concerns by PIs about non-renewal of federal grant funding, stop work orders, or notices of funding “pauses” should be directed to Dean McClean. PIs should not take personnel actions in response to anticipated federal funding disruptions without prior consultation with and approval from Sponsored Programs, which Dean McClean will help facilitate.

 All labor requests, travel, and external consultants on unrestricted funds (school money) and discretionary funds continue to fall under the budget controls and a request for approval is required. Please direct any questions to the Associate Dean for Administration and Finance, Dean Lazic at iralazic@bu.edu.

Of continuing concern is the treatment of our international students, faculty and research scholars in light of recently signed executive orders that could impact international travel and visa processing. The ISSO has established a special news page to update the community on immigration-related actions under the new Trump administration. We have been reminding our international students and scholars about the basics of maintaining their status, carrying their immigration documents, making prudent decisions about international travel.

International Travel Risks on Wednesday, March 26, 3 pm | REGISTER

The session will feature Elizabeth Goss, CEO and founding immigration attorney of Goss Associates, Stephen Kerr, Associate General Counsel in the BU Office of General Counsel and Jeanne Kelley, Managing Director of the BU ISSO, and will cover the following topics:

  • discussion of executive orders that will impact travel and visa processing
  • potential travel bans
  • travel considerations in this current pollical climate
  • overview of the process for admission to the US at a US Port of Entry
  • resources to stay safe on campus

Know Your Rights on Thursday, April 3, 4 pm | REGISTER

The session will feature Susan Church, the current Chief Operating Officer for the Commonwealth’s Office for Refugees and Immigrants, and will cover the following topics:

  • immigrant and refugee rights considering incoming changes to immigration policy at the federal level
  • overview of legal resources for immigrants in the Commonwealth,
  • know your rights resources
  • guidance for interaction with immigration and law enforcement officers

Both sessions are limited to members of the BU community.

I want to highlight upcoming opportunities to engage with our SPH community:

Thank you for working as hard as always as we move the work of our school forward despite these challenging times.

Thank you,

Michael Stein
Dean ad interim
mdstein@bu.edu

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