Dr. Danielle Maxwell

@daniellemaxwell.bsky.social

Wife | Cat Mom | Assistant Professor of Chemistry at the University of Detroit Mercy | #ChemEd | #CASFutureLeaders ‘24 | #LatinaInSTEM | she/ella

🚨 Breaking: NSF faces radical shake-up as officials abolish its 37 divisions 1️⃣ Removes/demotes division director leaders 2️⃣ Forced layoff notices to NSF staff going out tonight 3️⃣ More grant terminations expected tomorrow One glimmer of hope: the 8 directorates appear to be staying

Exclusive: NSF faces radical shake-up as officials abolish its 37 divisions

Changes seen as a response to presidential directives on what research to fund

science.org

Last night was the 250th anniversary of Paul Revere's midnight ride to warn the Minutemen of approaching British troops. I want to take a moment to share an excerpt from the Declaration of Independence's grievances against King George III. Remind you of anyone?

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Shout out to the tenured and emeritus faculty who are speaking up on here, at rallies, in calls and emails to legislators, in board meetings, in meetings with funders, so that us non-tenured folks don't risk our careers to speak out against *waves hands wildly* all of this

Is Kilmar Abrego Garcia alive? Because the amount of resistance to addressing his being trafficked gives the distinct impression that either he is dead or what they have done to him is so unspeakable that they cannot afford for him to be freed, seen, or spoken with.

Today I had the honor of moderating the National Center for Institutional Diversity Anti-Racism Graduate Research Showcase at University of Michigan. UM may have eliminated DEI, but that will not stop these students from advancing equity-centered research. Congratulations to all of the grantees!

A photo of all of the 2024 NCID anti-racism graduate research grant recipients A photo of me speaking behind a podium. I am wearing an orange floral blouse and there are gold chairs to my left for the grantee Q&A panel.

After 24 hours on his feet, Cory Booker is defending the scientific research establishment of this country - calling out an experience like the one that drives me and SO MANY of my fellow scientists to do the work we do - that maybe we can do for others what we couldn't for our own loved ones.

Long before the 21-hour mark, Strom Thurmond was reading the phone book, and Ted Cruz was reading Green Eggs and Ham. Cory Booker is talking about the economy right now. He's going to obstruct an entire day of Senate business with an actual policy speech.

If you do not have a passport, and your ID does not match your birth certificate, you cannot prove your citizenship, according to the SAVE Act. You will not be able to vote. The SAVE Act will disenfranchise tens of millions of women in America. It’s blatant voter suppression.

It's official. The subject link is "Evolving our approach to DEI" but the instructions say "All units will evaluate their web presence to reflect the status of current programmatic directions and for compliance with federal executive orders and guidance." So disappointed in my university right now.

University of Michigan, a longtime champion of progressive values, to close its DEI office

University President Santa Ono informed staffers in an email, saying Michigan remains committed to diversity among its students, faculty and staff.

freep.com

I’m not surprised, but it doesn’t ease my anger, frustration, & disappointment as an alum & faculty member. Please miss me with any more talk of being the “leaders & best” moving forward. I’ve always been critical of this concept, but it rings especially hollow now. #AcademicSky

Detroit Free Press@freep.com · last yr.

BREAKING: The University of Michigan is closing its Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, a major retreat for a school that has long championed its progressive values.

being an indie bookseller in the helltimes has felt both very stable and very stabilizing, and part of me wishes everyone could be on my side of the counter for a little while, because I think it would help some of you be a little less cynical and doomy right now. so here is my VERY anecdotal data:

With everything happening in the US right now, how safe are scientific conferences for foreign participants in the US? I think this is something we have to discuss as a scientific community. I am hesitating to register for US meetings due to the unpredictable situation. Others who feel the same?

The SAVE plan helped millions of people stay above water while repaying their student loan debt. Now that Trump has shut it down, borrowers are reporting as much as a 10x monthly payment increase. How is this supposed to lower people’s cost of living?

This is your periodic reminder: NSF's Directorate for STEM Education (EDU) *still* remains paused in new awards. Here's an updated graph. But also see below thread about why the nation needs these #STEMed investments, including for sustaining the *future* of scientific research.

3 EDU awards since Jan 20 in FY25, whereas 82 in FY24.
Dr. David Miller 🏳️‍🌈@davidimiller.bsky.social · 2y ago

🧪🚨 NSF's Directorate for STEM Education (EDU) has halted making nearly all new awards since inauguration day. Among *many* other things, EDU runs the Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP). We need to protect the education & training of the next gen of scientists #StandUpForScience Thread👇🧵

Graph between 1/20 and 2/28 of fiscal year 2024 and 2025 new awards in the EDU directorate.

My personal take is that I really feel for these students. They went from COVID to this mess. Like many of the folks we spoke to, I'm also very worried about who'll end up leaving science as opportunities continue to disappear.

"I didn’t get a prom; I didn’t get my high school graduation; my freshman year of college was fully online. . . . It feels really cruel that these next 4 years, we’re kind of going through a situation that’s limiting us." Anonymous student, applicant who was accepted to a PhD program and then moved to a waitlist
Krystal Vasquez@kvasquez.bsky.social · 2y ago

Senior chem majors spoke with @laureloldach.bsky.social, @rowanwalrath.bsky.social and I and shared how federal funding cuts are starting to shape their career paths. cen.acs.org/careers/empl... #ChemSky @cenmag.bsky.social

That is both messed up and disgraceful! You can’t just delete history! Arlington National Cemetery has removed information about prominent Black, Hispanic, and female service members, as well as topics such as the Civil War, from its website.