Senate Confirms New NSF Director

The U.S. Senate has confirmed Dr. Sethuraman “Panch” Panchanathan as the 15th Director of the National Science Foundation (NSF). The White House nominated Dr. Panchanathan, a computer scientist and Chief Research and Innovation officer at Arizona State University, to lead NSF in December 2019. Dr. Panchanathan has served as a member of the National Science Board, NSF’s governing body, since 2014. He is a Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors (NAI), and a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Engineering. He is also the Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), and the Society of Optical Engineering (SPIE). “Right now, the world faces significant scientific challenges — most obviously a pandemic.” Said Dr. Panchanathan. “But in addition to providing creative solutions to address current problems, our eyes are on the future, leveraging partnerships at every level and encouraging diversity that breeds new ideas for a robust pipeline of young scientists. It is only through that expansive perspective on the scientific and engineering enterprise that we can recognize the brightest ideas and nurture them into tomorrow’s world-class technological innovations.” According to NSF, Panch has identified three pillars of his vision for the agency: advancing research into the future, ensuring inclusivity, and continuing global leadership in science and engineering. Dr. Panchanathan replaces President...
Source: Public Policy Reports - Category: Biology Authors: Source Type: news