CCST Project
Science & Policy Beyond California
COMPLETED: January 2016
State Fellowships Planning Grant
State legislators and policymakers around the United States are encountering increasingly complicated science- and technology-related matters — pertaining to water, agriculture, energy, privacy, health, natural resources, food security, and other pressing issues. Policy decisions on these topics have widespread and long-term impacts, so it is valuable for state government lawmakers to have rapid access to trusted, impartial experts who can provide advice on and help decipher these complex issues.
Since 2009, our own CCST Science & Technology Policy Fellows Program has placed PhD-level scientists annually in the California State Legislature for one-year appointments. These CCST Science Fellows gain valuable real-world experience working directly in the policymaking process as legislative staff, while California state legislators gain access to impartial, science-savvy staff to help them make critical decisions.
CCST has learned a great deal from offering this public service and government leadership training experience for scientists and engineers. Encouraged by this success, in summer 2016 CCST announced a new grant to encourage other states to replicate or adapt our CCST Science Fellows program. Funded by the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation (#GBMF5943) and the Simons Foundation, this planning grant would support each grantee in completing landscape analyses, feasibility studies, and other strategic steps towards creating their own state-based, immersive science and technology policy fellowship.
In early 2017, proposals from nine states were awarded grants. CCST invited all nine teams to participate in a grant launch workshop co-hosted with the AAAS Science & Technology Policy Fellowship program. Indeed, the CCST modeled its state fellowship program after that of AAAS, which places scientists in congressional offices and federal agencies.
The collective social impact of the AAAS and CCST policy fellowships has come full circle with this planning grant: of the nine awarded teams, three are led by former CCST or AAAS Science & Technology Policy Fellows. We hope this is a sign of even farther-reaching impact in the years to come.
Grant Recipients
Alaska
Host Institutions
University of Alaska System, University of Alaska Fairbanks
Points of Contact
Gwen Holdmann
Director, Alaska Center for Energy and Power, University of Alaska Fairbanks
[email protected]
George Roe
Research Professor, Alaska Center for Energy and Power, University of Alaska Fairbanks
[email protected]
Progress Update
The team was awarded a strategic planning grant from CCST in early 2017, and participated in the CCST grant launch workshop at the 2017 AAAS Annual Meeting. Grantee teams participated in a planning workshop held during the 2018 AAAS Annual Meeting.
Colorado
Host Institutions
University of Colorado, Boulder – Center for Science and Technology Policy Research
Points of Contact
Matthew L. Druckenmiller, PhD
Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, University of Colorado, Boulder
[email protected]
Progress Update
The team was awarded a strategic planning grant from CCST in early 2017, and participated in the CCST grant launch workshop at the 2017 AAAS Annual Meeting. Grantee teams participated in a planning workshop held during the 2017 NCSL Legislative Summit and during the 2018 AAAS Annual Meeting.
Fellowship Legacy
Matthew Druckenmiller was a AAAS Science & Technology Policy Fellow from 2013 to 2015, serving the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).
Connecticut
Host Institutions
Connecticut Academy of Science and Engineering
Points of Contact
Richard Strauss
Executive Director, Connecticut Academy of Science and Engineering
[email protected]
Progress Update
The team was awarded a strategic planning grant from CCST in early 2017, and participated in the CCST grant launch workshop at the 2017 AAAS Annual Meeting. Grantee teams most recently participated in a planning workshop held during the 2017 NCSL Legislative Summit and during the 2018 AAAS Annual Meeting.
For More Information:
http://www.ctcase.org/fellowship.html
Idaho
Host Institutions
University of Idaho
Boise State University
Idaho State University
Points of Contact
Katherine Himes, Ph.D.
Director, McClure Center for Public Policy Research
Progress Update
The team was awarded a strategic planning grant from CCST in early 2017, and participated in the CCST grant launch workshop at the 2017 AAAS Annual Meeting. Grantee teams most recently participated in a planning workshop held during the 2018 AAAS Annual Meeting.
In 2020, the Idaho Science & Technology Policy fellowship launched with its inaugural class of fellows placed within Idaho State Agencies aiding decision makers in a broad swath policy issue areas.
For More Information:
https://www.uidaho.edu/president/direct-reports/mcclure-center/istpf
Massachusetts
Host Institutions
Boston University
Points of Contact
Nathan Phillips, PhD
Professor, Department of Earth & Environment, Boston University
[email protected]
Progress Update
The team was awarded a strategic planning grant from CCST in early 2017, and participated in the CCST grant launch workshop at the 2017 AAAS Annual Meeting. Grantee teams most recently participated in a planning workshop held during the 2017 NCSL Legislative Summit and during the 2018 AAAS Annual Meeting.
On July 12, 2018, Massachusetts State Senate President Harriette Chandler (First Worcester) introduced a resolution where the Commonwealth of Massachusetts “invites and encourages non-partisan, non-profit science, engineering, technology, and scholarly societies; institutions of higher learning; not-for-profit philanthropic foundations; and allied organizations to convene a planning process and engage with legislators in Massachusetts for the establishment of a non-partisan science and technology legislative fellows program for the purpose of informing science and technology policy development in the Commonwealth.” Senate President Chandler presented the resolution to Dr. Nathan Phillips on the Massachusetts State Senate floor session that day. (Video at 34:20 mark, courtesy of The General Court)
Fellowship Legacy
Nathan Phillips was a CCST Science & Technology Policy Fellow in 2014, serving the California State Senate Transportation and Housing Committee under then-Chair Mark DeSaulnier. Read Phillips’ fellowship Q&A here.
Michigan
Host Institutions
Michigan State University
Points of Contact
David W. Bertram
Associate Vice President of State Affairs, Michigan State University
[email protected]
Progress Update
The team was awarded a strategic planning grant from CCST in early 2017, and participated in the CCST grant launch workshop at the 2017 AAAS Annual Meeting. Grantee teams participated in a planning workshop held during the 2017 NCSL Legislative Summit and during the 2018 AAAS Annual Meeting.
New Jersey
Host Institutions
Rutgers University – Eagleton Institute of Politics
Points of Contact
John Weingart
Associate Director, Eagleton Institute of Politics
[email protected]
Progress Update
The team was awarded a strategic planning grant from CCST in early 2017, and participated in the CCST grant launch workshop at the 2017 AAAS Annual Meeting. Grantee teams participated in a planning workshop held during the 2017 NCSL Legislative Summit and during the 2018 AAAS Annual Meeting.
In 2020, the first class of Eagleton Science and Politics Fellowship fellows were placed within legislative offices and executive agencies for a full year experience in New Jersey Government.
For More Information:
https://eagleton.rutgers.edu/eagleton-science-and-politics-initiative/
North Carolina
Host Institutions
Duke University Science & Society Initiative, Duke University Sanford School for Public Policy, Duke University Government Affairs Office, and North Carolina Sea Grant
Points of Contact
Andrew George
PhD Candidate, Duke University
[email protected]
Daniel Keeley
PhD Candidate, Duke University
[email protected]
Twitter: @NCSTEMPolFellow
Progress Update
The team was awarded a strategic planning grant from CCST in early 2017, and participated in the CCST grant launch workshop at the 2017 AAAS Annual Meeting. Grantee teams participated in a planning workshop held during the 2017 NCSL Legislative Summit and during the 2018 AAAS Annual Meeting.
In 2020, the NC STEM Policy Fellowship placed its inaugural class of fellows in the NC Department of Environmental Quality and Department of Commerce. These and future fellows will spend a year in service to North Carolina State Government aiding decision makers and providing insight on state matters.
For More Information:
https://ncseagrant.ncsu.edu/funding-opps/fellowships/nc-stem-policy-fellowship/
Washington
Host Institutions
Washington State Academy of Sciences, Washington State University William D. Ruckelshaus Center
Points of Contact
Donna Gerardi Riordan
Executive Director, Washington Academy of Sciences
[email protected]
Melanie Roberts, PhD
ST4S Consulting
[email protected]
Progress Update
The team was awarded a strategic planning grant from CCST in early 2017, and participated in the CCST grant launch workshop at the 2017 AAAS Annual Meeting. Grantee teams participated in a planning workshop held during the 2017 NCSL Legislative Summit and during the 2018 AAAS Annual Meeting.
Fellowship Legacy
Melanie Roberts was a AAAS Science & Technology Policy Fellow from 2006 to 2008, serving in the U.S. Senate and the National Science Foundation. Roberts is also the founding director of Emerging Leaders in Science & Society (ELISS), a program hosted by American Association for the Advancement of Science, which recruits graduate students to lead cross-sector dialogues on a range of science policy issues.
Donna Gerardi Riordan is the former Director of Programs at CCST, playing a leading role during the establishment of the CCST Science & Technology Policy Fellowship program.
Timeline
(July 2016)
(February 2017)
(Other)
Media
2017
Our Mission
To engage leading experts in science and technology to advise State decision makers - ensuring that California policy is strengthened and informed by scientific knowledge, research, and innovation.
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