Federal Relations

To address the complexities AI poses to the nation’s economy and security, Vanderbilt University experts retired Gen. Paul Nakasone, founding director of Vanderbilt’s Institute of National Security, and Jesse Spencer-Smith, interim director of the Data Science Institute, shared crucial insights with a bipartisan group of congressional staff on Capitol Hill. Read More

18 Vanderbilt graduate students and postdoctoral researchers traveled to Washington, D.C., in October to participate in Vanderbilt’s Federal STEM Policy and Advocacy Seminar. This two-day event is designed to provide STEM professionals with an inside look at the federal policymaking process, the importance of advocacy in advancing science and research priorities and to explore careers in science policy. Read More

Krish Roy, Bruce and Bridgitt Evans Dean of the School of Engineering, recently engaged in a leadership roundtable in Washington, D.C. with NIH Director Dr. Monica M. Bertagnolli. Hosted by United for Medical Research (UMR), the forum addressed critical issues in biomedical research funding and efforts to secure sustained federal investments in this vital area. Read More

Vanderbilt University’s Office of Federal Relations hosted U.S. Rep. Mark Green, R-Tenn., and Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Director Jen Easterly on campus to talk about cybersecurity workforce shortages and the higher education cybersecurity ecosystem. Read More

Vanderbilt University’s Jules White, a leading computer scientist and expert on large language models and prompt engineering, visited Capitol Hill recently to share his expertise with lawmakers. Read More

On National Humanities Alliance’s advocacy day in D.C., through a series of meetings and a social media campaign, Vanderbilt students advocated for federal funding to support the National Endowment for the Humanities. This effort was part of the Robert Penn Warren Center’s Humanities in the Real World: Undergraduate Advocacy Fellowship in collaboration with Vanderbilt’s Office of Federal Relations.  Read More

Krish Roy, Bruce and Bridgitt Evans Dean of the School of Engineering and University Distinguished Professor, met with members of Congress in early February to discuss the importance of engineering’s role in improving living standards, socioeconomic growth and global competitiveness. Read More

The Pathfinder program, a collaboration of Vanderbilt University, the U.S. Army and the nonprofit Civil-Military Innovation Institute, continues launching innovative technology projects designed to address real-world military challenges and fostering technology commercialization through startup businesses. Read More

New technology to mitigate enemy radio jamming developed at Vanderbilt and advanced in collaboration with Soldiers at Fort Campbell has been delivered to U.S. Army Soldiers in the field. Read More

Federal policies have a significant impact on Vanderbilt, impacting the academic mission as well as the research enterprise. DCbrief covers the breadth of federal policy issues that could impact the university and provides readers with a concise roundup of important developments. Read More

Chancellor Daniel Diermeier met with members of Congress to advocate for federal investments in research and higher education. He urged for robust federal research funding and student aid programs, and highlighted Vanderbilt’s leading role in building the innovation ecosystem in Tennessee, particularly in the automotive industry. Read More

Philippe Fauchet, the Bruce and Bridgitt Evans Dean of Engineering at Vanderbilt University, met with members of Congress last week while in Washington, D.C., to emphasize the integral role that engineering research plays in strengthening the United States’ competitiveness and security. Read More

Vanderbilt University Chancellor Daniel Diermeier led 66 other leaders of Tennessee’s colleges and universities today in sending a letter to the Tennessee congressional delegation urging them to make an affordable, high-quality college education more attainable for students by doubling the maximum Pell Grant award and permanently indexing the grant to inflation to ensure that its value will no longer diminish over time. Read More

Two graduate students from Vanderbilt’s School of Engineering and one from the School of Medicine Basic Sciences recently addressed legislators in Washington, D.C., virtually, sharing stories about the important role funding from the National Science Foundation has played in their research and training. Read More

United States Space Force Chief of Space Operations Gen. John W. "Jay" Raymond recently visited Vanderbilt to learn about the pioneering aerospace engineering projects at the university’s research institutes and trans-institutional programs. Read More

A back-assist exoskeleton developed by Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering Karl Zelik at Vanderbilt is being recognized by the Association of American Universities and the Association of Public Land-Grant Universities for their annual innovation showcase. Read More

Vanderbilt University is urging the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to withdraw a new proposal that would limit the duration of international student visas to either four or two years, depending on a student’s home country or country of birth. Read More

Chancellor Daniel Diermeier and Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs Susan R. Wente recently wrote to members of the Tennessee congressional delegation, urging them to support America’s leading research universities as they work through the ramifications of the COVID-19 global health pandemic. Read More

United States competitiveness, workforce development and university partnerships were the topics of interest for Philippe Fauchet, Bruce and Bridgitt Evans Dean of the School of Engineering, and members and staff of the Tennessee congressional delegation earlier this month in Washington, D.C. Read More

Christina West, associate vice chancellor for federal relations, has been appointed to the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities Board of Directors. She will serve as an ad-hoc non-voting government relations representative for a three-year term. Read More