All 22 members of the National Science Board were terminated by the Trump administration in a brief email on Friday.
The administration has given no explanation for purging the board, which helps run the National Science Foundation and serves as an independent advisory body to the President and Congress on scientific and engineering issues, providing reports throughout the year. The removal is another serious blow to NSF and the overall scientific enterprise in the US.
On Friday, members received a two-sentence email saying that, “on behalf of President Donald J. Trump,” their positions had been terminated “effective immediately.”
Kevan Stasun, professor of physics and astronomy at Vanderbilt University and director of the Vanderbilt Initiative in Data-Intensive Astrophysics, was among those dismissed. After reaching out to fellow board members and learning that he too had been dismissed, he described the move to the Los Angeles Times as “a wholesale removal of American leadership in science and technology on a global scale.”
NSB members are appointed by the President and serve six-year terms, overlapping to provide continuity. Other members who spoke to reporters at Nature News told the outlet that the board was scheduled to meet on May 5 and plan to issue a report on how the US is outpacing China in scientific efforts.
attack on science
NSF and the Board were established in 1950 by President Truman. Truman said after creating them, “We have discovered that our ability to survive and develop as a nation depends largely on our scientific progress.” “Furthermore, it is not enough to keep the rest of the world in the know on scientific matters. We must maintain our leadership.”
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