The research community in the US is reeling after the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) director, Sethuraman Panchanathan, resigned effective immediately on 24 April with more than a year left in his six-year term. The electrical engineer and computer informaticist, also known as ‘Panch,’ was nominated by Trump to head the $9 billion (£6.75 billion) agency in December 2019 and took up the role the following month. His departure from the NSF, which supports fundamental research and education in non-medical fields of science and engineering like chemistry, comes after a tumultuous few months in which the Trump administration has targeted the agency with cuts to its funding and staff.
In a statement announcing his departure Panchanathan said ‘I believe I have done all I can to advance the critical mission of the agency and feel that it is time for me to pass the baton to new leadership.’ The statement did not elaborate on why he was stepping down but in his resignation letter, sent to NSF staff and subsequently obtained by Science, Panchanathan wrote: ‘While NSF has always been an efficient agency, we still took the challenge of identifying other possible efficiencies and reducing our commitments to serve the scientific community even better … This is a pivotal moment for our nation in terms of global competitiveness … A thoughtful approach to efficiencies and investments is incredibly important.’
It remains unclear who will serve as the agency’s acting director in the interim before a permanent leader is announced.
Massive budget cuts, layoffs expected
The turmoil currently surrounding the agency includes reports earlier this month that the Trump administration has slated a 55% reduction to the NSF’s budget, on top of significant staff layoffs, and a recent announcement that the NSF is terminating research grants related to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) or combating misinformation.
Meanwhile, active research projects funded by the NSF and other federal agencies at universities across the country are also being suddenly terminated, and reports have recently surfaced indicating that members of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), headed by billionaire Elon Musk, are seeking a role in research grant funding decisions.
‘The National Science Foundation 55% budget cut is a deliberate dismemberment of America’s innovation engine by [White House Office of Management and Budget’s director] Russell Vought and DOGE,’ stated Senator Maria Cantwell, the top Democrat on the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee that has jurisdiction over science, engineering, and technology policy. ‘Don’t blame Panch for stepping down.’
Neal Lane, a physicist who served as science adviser to former president Bill Clinton and previously as director of the NSF, says he admires Panch for staying at the agency as long as he did. ‘I can’t imagine how hard it must have been trying to protect NSF from the attacks … by Trump and Musk,’ Lane tells Chemistry World. ‘My sense is that the White House simply ignored his authority and did whatever they wanted, while the Republican leadership in Congress looked the other way,’ he continues.
Chemistry World contributor Chemjobber, a US-based chemist who works in the chemical manufacturing industry, feels this is unlikely to change soon. ‘We have no idea what the Trump administration’s plans for the US federal R&D apparatus is, other than summary cancellation of grants,’ he says.
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