The National Science Foundation (NSF) welcomes two new leaders—France Cordóva as NSF director and Fay Lomax Cook as assistant director for NSF’s Directorate for Social, Behavioral & Economic Sciences (SBE). The appointments come at an intense period of unrest for the social science community, with the House poised to cut SBE funding.
The U.S. Senate voted on March 12 to confirm President Barack Obama’s nomination of Cordóva as NSF director. An astrophysicist who comes to the NSF having served as the chairwoman of the Smithsonian Institution’s board of regents and as a member of the National Science Board, Cordóva will make communicating the importance of NSF-supported research a top priority.
“We have to better explain why we do what we do,” said Cordóva.
In tandem with the SBE directorship appointment on March 12, the NSF selected Fay Lomax Cook to serve as assistant director. The SBE supports fundamental research on human behavior and interaction, social and economic systems, and organizations and institutions.
Cook is a professor at Northwestern University, where she is a faculty fellow of the Institute for Policy Research and a professor of human development and social policy in the School of Education and Social Policy. Her research focuses on public opinion and social policy and how they interrelate.
“Dr. Cook will lead a directorate that enriches all parts of our society, including government, academia, education, and business and industry,” said NSF Acting Director Cora B. Marrett. “Her deep experience and expertise in these areas will be of great value to NSF and to the research community.”
For more on the potential impact of NSF funding cuts, read the AERA Highlights article “AERA Speaks Out Against Unprecedented Cuts to NSF Social Science Funding.”