March 26th, 2026

Following conversations in Washington earlier this week, it’s clear that the federal research environment continues to evolve—both in pace and in how funding opportunities are taking shape. Our role is to stay closely engaged and help bring clarity to what matters most for our research community.

We are seeing a shift in how federal research funding is deployed, toward larger, more coordinated initiatives, often on different timelines and with greater emphasis on scale and alignment.

Our response is focused: improving how we compete through AI-enabled tools, aligning around areas of growing federal investment, and building interdisciplinary teams positioned for these opportunities.

This is already seeing taking shape. Efforts aligned with opportunities like the Genesis Call and the 2026 MHSRS call are bringing teams together around emerging federal priorities. We are also entering a new CDMRP cycle, with funding levels restored to approximately $1.3B. For those who applied last year, this is a strong opportunity to revisit and resubmit proposals, particularly with reviewer feedback in hand. The AME Lab team is available to support those efforts.While recent milestones, including  the U’s dual recognition in global and U.S. patent rankings, reflect the continued strength and impact of our research enterprise.

At the same time, we continue to recognize and celebrate the people behind that work, from the U’s most distinguished scholars to the images of research,  which captures discovery across our campus.

In a fast-moving environment, our role is to stay steady, stay focused, and help ensure that our researchers are positioned to move quickly when opportunities emerge.

We will continue these conversations at upcoming town halls, where we’ll share updates and highlight opportunities to engage.

Erin Rothwell, PhD
Vice President for Research