Senate Poised to Pass Huge Industrial Policy Bill to Counter China
Faced with an urgent competitive threat from China, the Senate is poised to pass the most expansive industrial policy legislation in U.S. history, blowing past partisan divisions over government support for private industry to embrace a nearly quarter-trillion-dollar investment in building up America’s manufacturing and technological edge. The legislation, which could be voted on as early as Tuesday, is expected to pass by a large margin. That alone is a testament to how commercial and military competition with Beijing has become one of the few issues that can unite both political parties. Now, both parties are embracing an enormous investment in semiconductor manufacturing, artificial intelligence research, robotics, quantum computing and a range of other technologies. And while the bill’s sponsors are selling it in part as a jobs plan, the debate over its passage has been laced with Cold War references and warnings that a failure to act would leave the United States perilously dependent on its biggest geopolitical adversary. ( The New York Times - June 7, 2021)
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Biden’s New Science Adviser Shares Views on Foreign Influence, Research Budgets, and MorePresident Joe Biden’s newly installed science adviser says he understands why scientists are baffled by rules intended to prevent other nations from unfairly benefiting from U.S. science. In recent years, the U.S. government has cracked down on requiring federally funded scientists to report any sources of foreign funding—and has even prosecuted some who failed to follow the rules. But the effort has forced them to navigate a mélange of requirements, and Eric Lander thinks the government can do better. How the United States might better monitor foreign influence was one of several topics Lander addressed during a 30-minute phone interview that included Biden’s recent budget request, government efforts to make research results freely available to all, and his plans for staffing OSTP. ( Science Magazine - Jun. 3, 2021)
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Education Department Releases COVID-19 Handbook for Higher Ed
The Department of Education has released a COVID-19 resource guide to provide information for higher education institutions about how to safely reopen for in-person instruction. The 54-page handbook is meant to address priority areas specific to higher education, including strategies for implementing guidance from the Centers for Disease Control on campuses, ways they can support their communities' response and recovery from the pandemic, and how institutions can use funding from the American Rescue Plan to best support students. It addresses the most pressing questions the Education Department heard from colleges, students, families and educators during 15 listening sessions held by the department. Recommendations range from "leverage federal broadband funding to connect students and campuses" to "establish appropriate forums to listen to and address community concerns" and "refund room and board costs" if students move home. ( Inside Higher Ed - June 7, 2021)
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New CDC Guidance: Colleges Where ‘Everyone Is Vaccinated’ Can Return to Full, In-person Learning
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Friday released new guidance on how colleges can operate safely amid the Covid-19 pandemic, the severity of which is rapidly easing in the United States. Among other things, the guidance states that colleges “where everyone is fully vaccinated” may return to full, in-person learning without requiring or recommending the wearing of masks or requiring that students be regularly tested. For campuses where not all students and employees will be vaccinated, the CDC’s recommendations are less clear-cut. Among the CDC’s explicit recommendations for these campuses: Unvaccinated students living in on-campus housing should live in single-occupancy rooms “when feasible.” The new guidance arrives as colleges unveil plans for the fall semester. More than 450 institutions have announced that they will require at least some students or employees to be vaccinated before the academic year begins. ( The Chronicle of Higher Education - June 4, 2021)
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Vexing Visa ChallengesThe State Department is continuing to prioritize applications for student visas, but department officials do not expect to return to full capacity quickly. Higher education leaders have been worried for months about whether pandemic-related disruptions to visa processing will prevent some prospective students from getting their visas in time for the fall semester. The continuing uncertainty about fall international enrollments comes against the backdrop of an estimated 16 percent decline in total international students, and a 43 percent decline in new international students, enrolled at U.S. colleges and universities last fall. ( Inside Higher Ed - Jun. 4, 2021)
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