Advisory Committee for Biological Sciences Convenes for September 2015 Meeting

NSF_BIO

On September 28th and 29th, 2015, NSF BIO hosted the Advisory Committee (AC) for Biological Sciences. The meeting web page, including the agenda and supplementary documents is here. View our Tweets from the meeting here.

The BIO Advisory Committee meets twice per year at NSF. These meetings are open to the public, as required by the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA).

The committee comprises experts in the field of biological sciences, across many subdisciplines of biology. The current AC roster is here. NSF officials (BIO staff/management) are present for all official meetings of the AC. Currently, Dr. Jim Olds, NSF’s Assistant Director (AD) for BIO, is the Designated Federal Officer (DFO) for the BIO AC.

Dr. Jim Olds leads a Q & A session with the BIO AC.
Dr. Jim Olds leads a Q&A session with the BIO AC.

The agenda for each AC meeting is developed by the AD of BIO in consultation with the BIO AC Chair (currently Dr. Kay Gross).

So what does the BIO AC do?

Objective: The role of the AC is to provide advice and recommendations to the NSF concerning support for research, education and human resources in the biological sciences.

Duties: The duties of the AC include: reviewing and advising on the impact of BIO’s research support programs; advising on program management, overall program balances, and program performance; and advising as to the impact of NSF-wide policies on the scientific community. The BIO AC has no oversight or approval authority.

Committee of Visitors (COV): The BIO AC participates in each BIO Division’s COV assessment. A COV assesses a Division’s performance in the “integrity and efficiency of the processes related to proposal [or pre-proposal] review.” The BIO AC designates a representative to each COV, who ultimately presents the final COV report to the BIO AC for approval. Each COV is considered a sub-committee of the BIO AC; its external members are approved and appointed by the BIO AD as the DFO. The BIO AD (or authorized representative; e.g., Division Director) prepares a written response to each COV report that is then presented to the AC and NSF Senior Management. COVs convene every three years.

Advice: The Directorate often seeks advice from the BIO AC, or AC sub-committees, as authorized by the BIO AD, about matters such as:

  • Anticipated or emerging areas of research in the biological sciences, including, but not limited to areas of “high-risk” research, inter- or trans-disciplinary research, and trends in fundamental research supported by the “core” programs in BIO.
  • Strategic planning for research, education and infrastructure support by BIO for the non-medical biological sciences.
  • Strategic human resource development in undergraduate and graduate biology education, and inclusion of members of under-represented groups in STEM professions relevant to biology.
  • Development of metrics to determine the outcomes and impacts of the aforementioned activities.
  • Strategic communication with academic communities, professional societies, and NGOs that engage in or support biological research and education.

If you would like to make a recommendation for membership on an NSF Advisory Committee, please review the instructions for doing so here.