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Year In Review:
2012
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Year In Review: 2012
JEFFERSON LAB/Jefferson Science Associates, LLC
Jefferson Lab: A National, International Leader in S&T
In 1983, SURA was awarded the contract to build and run what is now the Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility for the U.S. Department of Energy in Newport News. When the contract was to be re-competed, SURA partnered with Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC), a $16 billion global IT services company, to form Jefferson Science Associates, LLC. JSA, for which SURA serves as majority and administrative partner, won the management and operating contract for Jefferson Lab in 2006.
Today, this world-leading nuclear physics research facility has a budget of over $100 million, employs nearly 800, and is completing a major accelerator upgrade. More than 1,300 scientists from around the world use the lab’s unique particle accelerator to conduct experiments to expand our understanding of the visible universe.
A recent economic impact study found the lab creates over 2,200 jobs in Virginia and 4,700 jobs nationally, and its innovation and technology has spawned over 110 U.S. patents. Over one-third of all nuclear physics Ph.D.’s awarded nationally are based on Jefferson Lab research.
The Jefferson Lab Highlights and Accomplishments for 2012 accompany this report.
JSA Awards $412K For FY13 Initiatives Fund Program
In November, JSA announced the award of $412,000 to support projects related to education, outreach and career development to staff and users at Jefferson Lab. Since 2006, JSA has provided over $3 million to support
140 projects under its Initiatives Fund Program. It supports programs, initiatives and activities that further the scientific outreach, and promote the science, education and
technology missions of Jefferson Lab in ways that complement its basic and applied research focus. The program is managed and administered by SURA for the JSA Programs Committee.
“Over the years, these diverse projects and initiatives have added value to the lab’s programs and helped to cultivate the support of the science and user communities,” said Hugh Montgomery, JSA president and Jefferson Lab director.
The FY13 Initiatives Fund Program includes new awards for 29 projects. More than 45 percent of the award funds support the education and outreach programs at the lab. The remaining awards support post doc career development, other Lab programs, Jefferson Lab users initiatives and activities, and several topical science meetings.
The 2013 evaluation committee was chaired by Elizabeth Beise from the University of Maryland. Other committee members included: JSA Programs Committee Chair June Matthews from MIT; David Armstrong from the College of William & Mary; William Briscoe from The George Washington University; Paul Eugenio from Florida State University; Daniel Sober from The Catholic University of America; Robert McKeown representing Jefferson Lab; and, Elizabeth Lawson, representing SURA/JSA.
“One of the important features of the Initiatives Fund Program is that its funds are often matched with other source funding. This year, more than $400,000 in matching and contributing funds have been committed to the new awards, making it possible to stretch Initiatives Fund dollars to support more proposals,” said Beise, who also commended the JSA owners for their continued support of the Program.
SURA President & CEO Jerry Draayer and CSC Vice President & General Manager Paul Branske noted that the investment in the Initiatives Fund Program enables Jefferson Lab and its users to engage more effectively in many educational, scientific, technical, and outreach activities that contribute to the Lab’s overall ability to accomplish its mission.
Hermann Grunder Honored with Prestigious SLACK Award
Hermann Grunder, founding director of the Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility, was awarded a Francis G. Slack Award by the Southeastern Section of the American Physical Society in recognition of his outstanding career and contributions to physics. Grunder, who served as lab director from 1985 to 2000, received the award November 16 during the 79th annual meeting of the APS Southeastern Section in Tallahassee.
Grunder was the deputy director of the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory in California when he was recruited to lead the design, construction and operation of Jefferson Lab, then known as the Continuous Electron Beam Accelerator Facility. As the lab’s first director, he commissioned an internal review of the design plans and brought forward a recommendation that the accelerator be based on superconducting technology. It was a bold move that he promoted beyond DOE to the Office of Science & Technology Policy (OSTP) and the Office of
Management & Budget (OMB). In the end, the decision to deploy superconducting technology proved to be a brilliant success, paving the way for other large-scale installations around the world to utilize the technology.
As director, Grunder also launched faculty joint appointments and bridge appointments at Jefferson Lab. “These have served as model initiatives for many other facilities. Since the establishment of these programs through Hermann’s tenure, over 70 new faculty lines have been added in nuclear physics in the Southeast,” according to SURA President Draayer, who nominated Grunder for the award. Draayer received the Slack Award in 2006.
After Jefferson Lab, Grunder served as director of Argonne National Laboratory from 2000 to 2005. Born in Basel, Switzerland, Grunder received his mechanical engineering degree from the University of Karlsruhe (Germany) and his Ph.D. in experimental nuclear physics from the University of Basel. He started his U.S. physics career at Lawrence Berkeley Lab in 1968.
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Francis G. Slack was a distinguished Vanderbilt University scientist and a a charter member of the Southeastern Section, the largest regional section in the APS. The award in his name was established in 2000 to recognize those who have worked unselfishly to: (1) bring about significant new research facilities in the region; (2) significantly strengthen and raise the stature of particular departments of physics in the region; (3) provide significant leadership and work to strengthen and build the Section and other physics societies and regional organizations; (4) develop physics consortia of universities and/or research institutions that have benefited the region and the nation; and, (5) carry out other service and
administrative activities such as organizing major conferences held in the region, international exchanges, and public outreach to K-12.
JSA Awards 7 Graduate Fellowships for JLab Research
JSA announced in June the award of seven JSA/Jefferson Lab graduate fellowships. The doctoral students will use the fellowships to conduct research at their universities and at Jefferson Lab. The 2012-13 fellowship winners include:
Zachary Brown, College of William and Mary; Konstantinos Orginos, Advisor Min Huang, Duke University; Haiyan Gao, Advisor
Vojtech Krejcirik, University of Maryland; Thomas Cohen, Advisor Zhaozhu Li, College of William and Mary; Rosa Lukaszew, Advisor Ziyue Li, North Carolina State University; Chueng-Ryong Ji, Advisor Evan Phelps, University of South Carolina; Ralf Gothe, Advisor Christian Shultz, Old Dominion University; Jozef Dudek, Advisor
The students’ research proposals cover a broad scientific spectrum, including experimental physics, theoretical physics and particle accelerator research and development. Brown, Huang, and Ziyue Li are repeat JSA fellowship recipients who completed the 2011-12 academic year at Jefferson Lab.
JSA/JLab fellowship recipients attend universities that are SURA members. The SURA Board of Trustees first established the fellowship program in 1989. Since the program’s inception, over 170 fellowships have been awarded to students from 19 different SURA member universities. The JSA/JLab Graduate Fellowship Program is now supported by the JSA Initiatives Fund.
Each fellowship award is comprised of one-half of an academic year research assistant stipend, plus a $2,000 supplement. Each student’s home institution matches half of the research assistantship. An additional $2,000 is available for research-related travel support for the student.
The committee that reviewed and selected this year’s fellowship winners was chaired by and JSA Board Director June Matthews from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Other committee members included: Hari Areti, Jefferson Lab; Edward Brash, Christopher Newport University; Lawrence Cardman, Jefferson Lab; David Ernst, Vanderbilt University; George Lolos, University of Regina, Zein-Eddine Meziani, Temple University; and Elizabeth Lawson, SURA/JSA.
“We are pleased with the strong pool of applicants for JSA/JLab graduate fellowships this year. The quality of the proposals by these students shows that young researchers continue to be drawn to the theoretical and experimental nuclear physics program conducted at the Jefferson Lab as well as the accelerator technology development that is one of the Lab’s core competencies,” said Matthews. “The program provides opportunities for students to enhance their research capabilities by linking their academic studies with the Lab’s science and technology programs.”
Jefferson Lab Director Montgomery noted, “We are very pleased that we continue to attract the best and brightest students in our field to spend time at Jefferson Lab. During the year, these young researchers will become fully immersed in their research and tapping into the unique capabilities of the Lab. JSA’s continued support for the Graduate Fellowship Program has contributed to the Lab’s achievement of producing about one-third of the U.S. Ph.D.’s in nuclear physics each year.”
SURA Gains $3M for Free Electron Laser Upgrade
Jefferson Lab received a special, capital funds appropriation from the Commonwealth of Virginia of $3 million to equipment upgrades to the Free Electron Laser – a spin-off initiative from the nuclear physics facility. With the special interest in the FEL program from Del. Mike Watson, the funding was given final approval in late Spring at the conclusion of the General Assembly session.
Since Virginia’s initial support in that program in the mid-‘90’s – by providing $5 million for the FEL building – Jlab has leveraged over $120 million in external research funding. With significant support from the Office of Naval Research, the necessary equipment upgrade will grow the research activities and continue to fuel top-flight science and jobs in Virginia. (The economic impact study released in 2011 – see page 1 – showed the lab generates more than $271 million in economic output and 4,700 jobs in the nation annually.)
Del. Watson, a newly elected member to the Virginia House of Delegates, made the FEL upgrade one of three of his top legislative priorities in 2012. He was named “Freshman Legislator of the Year” in April by the Virginia Chamber of Commerce.
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
SURA IT Committee and Steering Group
The IT Steering Group (ITSG) provides the leadership function of the SURA IT Committee and is comprised of six members and a Chair, who serve three year terms. ITSG members are selected by the full IT Committee and approved by the SURA Board of Trustees.
Current ITSG members are:
IT Committee Chair, Marc Hoit*, North Carolina State University
J.L. Albert*, Georgia State University
Sara Graves*, University of Alabama in Huntsville
Richard Newman*, Florida Institute of Technology
Bliss Baily, Auburn University
Charles McMahon, Tulane University
Elias Eldayrie, University of Florida
(*) indicates a SURA Trustee Position on the ITSG
Appointed, non-voting positions on the SURA IT Steering Group include:
Gary Crane, SURA IT Director, Staff Liaison
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Research Data Management Initiative
Building on outcomes from the Spring and Fall 2012 IT Committee meetings, SURA began facilitating a collaboration to explore multi-institutional projects targeted at improving the way our members manage institutional research data. Having teamed with the Association of Southeastern Research Libraries (ASERL), SURA engaged a group of IT and library
professionals participating in regular, bi-weekly community calls. The group is comprised of over 55 individuals from more than 25 SURA member institutions.
The bi-weekly calls are focused on prioritizing and developing Research Data Management (RDM) topics identified through a SURA member community survey, developing a set of goals and projects to improve the institutional management of research data and identifying individuals willing to provide leadership for specific projects. The RDM group held a face-to-face meeting in Atlanta in August. Outcomes from that
meeting included an institutional Step-By-Step Guide to Data Management and a discipline specific metadata scheme
directory that can be used to assist researchers in finding existing metadata models for their research data. Also completed was a document submitted to the NSF DataWay Program lead offering the group’s input on this new NSF program.
Recent efforts are focused on the development of a multi-institutional pilot implementation of the Dataverse Network (an open source application that facilitates the ability to publish, share, reference, extract and analyze research data). Materials associated with the work of this group are available on the ASERL/SURA RDM WiKi: http://www.lib.ua.edu/wiki/sura/.
SURA IT Provides Training, Education and Outreach
XSEDE Outreach Award
In 2012, SURA continued to provide exemplary outreach and training programs for communities traditionally underrepresented and underserved by high performance computing for the National Science Foundation-funded Extreme Science and Engineering Discovery Environment (XSEDE) program. As an outreach partner, SURA’s role is to engage Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs) as participants in XSEDE services and support the broader XSEDE Outreach and training program.
SURA IT staff members made numerous campus visits, organized two regional workshops (hosted by Vanderbilt and North Carolina Central Universities), hosted a special session at the XSEDE12 meeting on MSI Engagement with HPC. They also sponsored faculty to SC12 and the TACC Summer Supercomputing Institute, and developed a community of new users that meet monthly via teleconferencing to explore topics in HPC and Computational Science. Through these efforts, SURA increased the engagement of MSIs with XSEDE by adding six new Campus Champions, initiated education program development at six institutions to infuse computational science into their curriculum and add degree programs, and engaged three MSI institutions in the requirements development of Campus Bridging technology. Further, SURA was able to add 15 new users with 8.5 million service units (CPU hours) of time on XSEDE computational and visualization resources.
SURA member institutions participating in the XSEDE MSI Outreach activities include Clark Atlanta, Hampton, Norfolk State, Virginia State, and the Vanderbilt-Fisk Masters-to-PhD Bridge Program.
TACC Advanced Data Analysis and Visualization Outreach & Training
During this last grant year, SURA presented one-day Intro to Scientific Visualization
workshops at Old Dominion University, Florida A&M University, and Clark Atlanta University. The 2012 workshops bring the total of faculty and graduate students participating in training to 175 from 16 different institutions, representing a variety of scientific disciplines.
SURA IT Team Supports IOOS Coastal Modeling Testbed
In 2012, SURA continued to support the cyberinfrastructure needs of the IOOS Coastal Modeling Testbed.
Access to HPC Resources
Over the life of the project, SURA IT has acquired 16.45 million service units (SUs), valued at approximately $2,467,500, on large scale computational resources through the
development and submission of successful competitive proposals to LONI, TeraGrid, and XSEDE (TeraGrid’s NSF funded successor). This value is based on a rate of 15 cents/SU which TACC charges for use of Ranger by those without NSF approved allocations. SURA IT staff monitors and coordinates the use of these resources by Testbed researchers.
Access to these systems has been deemed essential to the significant progress achieved by the Inundation Team and has enabled the project team to assess the ability of selected models to accurately predict the impact of storm related flooding and wave action. Use of these systems enabled the Inundation Team to run simulations using larger grid sizes, move from 2-D to 3-D models, and explore model coupling such as coupled wind and wave models. Resources acquired include: Queen Bee at LONI and Ranger at TACC.
SURA IT successfully negotiated an extension of the XSEDE allocation on the TACC Ranger system that was scheduled to expire at the end of the 2012 calendar year. This six month extension (through June 30, 2013) will allow the Inundation Team to transition their model codes from Ranger to Stampede, the XSEDE system that will be replacing Ranger in
February.
SURA IT has also represented the Coastal Testbed community in NSF EarthCube activities by participating on the EarthCube Governance Steering Committee.
Testbed Server
SURA provided software and hardware used for hosting the Coastal Testbed collaboration website (testbed.sura.org) and the Testbed data and tools repository in 2012. SURA purchased a second server that will be dedicated to supporting new data analysis and visualization applications developed by the Coastal Testbed Project team to assess the capabilities of the various models being examined by the Testbed participants. Under contract with SURA, LSU continues to provide server hosting, system administration and operational support services for the Coastal Testbed servers while SURA IT provides problem management facilitation and additional technical guidance.
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AtlanticWave (AWave)
AtlanticWave (A-Wave) has been in production since November 2006 when SURA’s
investment enabled the establishment of a 10 Gigabit Ethernet wave along the Atlantic rim, from Miami to New York City. AtlanticWave is a distributed exchange point peering fabric along the Atlantic rim, facilitating exchange and peering services between U.S. and international networks connected at the following key exchange points on the U.S. East Coast: International Exchange Points MANLAN in NYC and AMPATH in Miami; Mid-Atlantic Crossroads (MAX) gigapop and NGIX-East in Washington, DC; Southern Crossroads (SoX)/Southern Light Rail (SLR) in Atlanta.
AtlanticWave supports U.S. science research and education communities by enhancing information and data exchange between U.S. and international networks connected at the exchange points. SURA continues to participate on the Governance
Committee of the AtlanticWave collaboration.
AtlanticWave is an integral component of the National Science Foundation (NSF)
International Research Network Connections (IRNC) program. The NSF and FIU established a 5-year cooperative agreement for the Americas Lightpaths (AMLIGHT) project, starting in 2010, to enhance network infrastructure to support U.S.-Latin America science and
engineering research and education. Via the AMLIGHT project, AtlanticWave has been extended to Sao Paulo, Brazil, where it interconnects with the Brazilian international exchange point.
The AtlanticWave Governance Committee has finalized a new five-year agreement to extend the original five-year Memorandum of Understanding. The committee is now working to develop plans for evolving AtlanticWave to be part of the growing national
cyberinfrastructure and international science and engineering research and education community. This plan will determine the role of AtlanticWave relative to developing
initiatives, such as Internet2’s Network Development and Deployment Initiative (NDDI), the GENI Meso-scale deployment, and Internet2’s and ESnet’s 100Gb network deployments.
COASTAL & ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH
Final Report of Testbed Submitted
The final report of the first phase of the Super Regional Modeling Testbed was submitted in late Spring 2012. The report was reviewed by the independent Testbed Advisory and Evaluation Group (TAEG) and the successes received strong praise from that group. Some excerpts from the TAEG report included:
The IOOS Modeling Testbed in Year 1 has made significant progress in developing a framework for improving predictive capability in the coastal ocean. It has used a four-pronged approach: (1) development of skill metrics for specific issues of societal importance, (2) assessment of modeling system components and parameterizations against these skill metrics, (3) development of tools to make assessment easier, and (4) building collaboration between academic modeling research and operational development personnel ….
The Testbed PIs, Management and team members have successfully worked in the difficult area between research and operations, and have delivered significant
advancements in modeling capabilities, process-understanding, and community- building in Inundation, Shelf Hypoxia, Estuarine Hypoxia and Cyberinfrastructure, as outlined in the Final Report. They have acquired significant technical and
management experience, in a pilot study sense, that should inform the design and evaluation of the next stage of IOOS testbed activity….
The IOOS Modeling Testbed has been an exciting and productive program thus far, and the TAEG has been pleased to be a part of it.
CERC Responds to FFO for Testbed Funding
In December, the NOAA/IOOS office released an announcement of a Federal Funding Opportunity (FFO) to re-compete a continuation of a Coastal Ocean Modeling Testbed (COMT), with proposals due in February 2013. SURA is leading a response to the announcement to pursue the next phase of COMT. Rick Luettich of University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill will continue as the SURA Principal Investigator on this submission. SURA broadly solicited letters of intent from anyone interested in leading a COMT project within the broader proposal. After initial screening of 26 responses, roughly half of the individuals who have expressed interest in leading projects were asked to prepare concise, 5-page proposals for review by SURA and a SURA-convened Scientific and Requirements Advisory Committee (SRAC).
A large number of top tier scientists responded, many of whom were not involved in initial testbed activities. Several pre-proposals were for large multi-investigator submissions. If SURA succeeds in competing for this opportunity, it could secure a five-year cooperative agreement from IOOS. The funding level is expected to be $1M – $1.5 million per year for five years but with project contracts renewed annually.
DEVELOPMENT & RELATIONS
SURA Gains CIT Funding Eligibility from Virginia
In addition to the $3 million capital funds appropriation for an upgrade at Jefferson Lab (see article on page 4), the Virginia General Assembly approved an amendment to open Center for Innovative Technology (CIT) grant funding eligibility to SURA. The technical amendment sponsored by Del. Joe May was approved as a part of the funding bill.
CIT, a state-chartered, non-profit association created in 1985, was established to generate technology-based economic development strategies for the Commonwealth.
CIT manages the Commonwealth Research Commercialization Fund (CRCF) which was set up to advance science- and technology-based research, development, and
commercialization in Virginia. It also leverages those funds to encourage collaboration among its institutions of higher education and partnerships between these colleges and universities and business and industry. In support of these goals, Governor Robert McDonnell and the General Assembly appropriated $4.8 million to the Fund each for FY13 and for FY14.
As a consortium of universities, including 12 Virginia institutions, SURA was not eligible to apply for funds used to assist collaborations at Jefferson Lab. Therefore, SURA sought a technical amendment to expand that eligibility, which was successful.
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SURA Distinguished Service Awards
The SURA Distinguished Service Awards were established in 2006 to commemorate the organization’s 25th Anniversary. SURA’s Executive Committee manages the solicitation, screening and selection of the Distinguished Friend of Science Award – typically presented at the Fall Board of Trustees meeting. And the SURA Development and Relations
Committee serves that role for the Distinguished Scientist Award – presented at the Spring board meeting. Each of SURA’s 62 member institutions is eligible to nominate candidates for the award.
Distinguished Scientist Award
Henry F. Schaefer III, Graham Perdue Professor of Chemistry at the University of Georgia, was presented the 2012 SURA Distinguished Scientist Award. The annual honor goes to a research scientist whose extraordinary work fulfills the SURA mission of “fostering
excellence in scientific research.” The award and its honorarium was presented to Schaefer on March 29 at the SURA Board of Trustees meeting held at the University of South Florida in Tampa.
“Not only is the University of Georgia fortunate to have a scientist of Dr. Schaefer’s caliber on its campus, but the entire region and country benefit from his service as well,” said Charles W. Steger, President of Virginia Tech and Chair of the SURA Council of Presidents. “His impact on chemistry and research has been felt far beyond his lab and classroom, bringing great distinction to himself, his university, and his field of study. It is an honor for SURA to be able to recognize Dr. Schaefer’s years of outstanding achievements.”
In over 30 years of academic service, Schaefer has focused his field of study on the cutting-edge theoretical and
computations methods for calculating electronic structure in order to better understand the structure stability and reactivity of molecules. He applies the resulting insights to a broad set of interests ranging from atmospheric and organic chemistry to combustion. His list of publications number over 1,300, with the vast majority in the field’s highest quality journals. In their
letter of nomination of D. Schaefer, UGA President Michael F. Adams and Vice President for Research David Lee noted, “Collectively, his publications have been cited more than 50,000 times, making him one of the most high cited chemists (as well as scientists) in the world.” He’s also given plenary lectures at over 240 scientific conferences as well as
named/endowed lectures at over 50 universities worldwide.
A native of Michigan, Dr. Schaefer received his bachelor’s degree in chemical physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and doctorate in the same field from Stanford University. He served as a professor of chemistry at the University of California, Berkeley from 1969 to 1987.
In 1987, he was appointed Graham Perdue Professor of Chemistry and Director of the Center for Computational Quantum Chemistry at UGA. Though his career, he has accepted numerous academic appointments including at Berkley, the University of Paris, the
Eidgenössische Technische Hochshule in Zürich and the Australian National University.
SURA presented its 2012 Distinguished Scientist Award to Henry F. Schaefer III of the University of Georgia. (L to R) Jerry P. Draayer, SURA President & CEO; David Lee, SURA Relations & Development Committee Chair; Schaefer; and Dave Ernst, SURA Board of Trustees Chair.
Among his many awards and honors, Schaefer has been recognized by the American Chemical Society with its Award in Pure Chemistry (1979), the Leo Hendrik Baekeland Award (1983), the Award in Theoretical Chemistry and the annual Ira Remsen Award (2003). He received the Schrödinger Medal (1990), the Centenary Medal of the Royal Society of Chemistry (1992), the prestigious Joseph O. Hirschfelder Prize from the
University of Wisconsin (2005), and the Ide P. Trotter Prize of Texas A&M University (2011). The Journal of Physical Chemistry published a special issue in honor of Dr. Schaefer in 2004. And he was elected a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (2004), the Royal Society of Chemistry in London (2005) and was among the inaugural class of Fellows of the American Chemical Society (2009).
In their nomination letter of nominee, Adams and Lee added, “Fritz is always quick to credit a steady stream of brilliant trainees and colleagues over the past 30 years.” As Preceptor and mentor, he’s had 58 undergraduate research publish papers with him, 97 successful Ph.D. students as well as 48 postdoctoral fellows.
The first SURA Distinguished Scientist Award was presented in 2007 to Susan Wessler, another UGA professor at the time.
Distinguished Friend of Science
SURA presented the Task Force for American Innovation with its 2012 Distinguished Friend of Science Award on November 1. The coalition was honored for its extraordinary efforts to “fulfill the SURA mission of strengthening the scientific and technical capabilities of the Southeast and nation.”
The award and its $10,000 honorarium honored the Task Force’s advocacy for science, technology and innovation. As the first organizational recipient of this award, the TFAI was an enthusiastic choice for recognition by SURA’s Executive Committee, chaired by President Steger.
“The Task Force has led a tireless campaign to promote the innovation agenda on Capitol Hill and with the White House,” said Steger. “Their efforts have demonstrated the strength and non-partisan nature of advocating for research and science as a means to economic competitiveness.”
An alliance of more than 60 of America’s most innovative companies and leading scientific societies and business and research university associations, the Task Force on American Innovation was formed in 2004 to support federal funding of scientific research in the physical sciences.
Based in Washington, DC, TFAI holds weekly meetings and works with the Administration and Congress to support science budgets which fund critical research at universities and national laboratories and build the skills of our scientific workforce. SURA operates one such lab, the Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility, for the U.S. Department of Energy through Jefferson Science Associates – a SURA/Computer Sciences Corporation joint venture.
SURA began working with the organization in 2004 with its “Don’t Flat Line our Future” campaign. The task force held nearly 120 meeting that first year with Congressional leaders to advocate the innovation and R&D agenda. In February 2005, it released the Benchmarks of Our Innovation Future study, and continued working with Congress and the White House – influencing the Bush administration to include the American Competitiveness
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Initiative in the FY07 budget. That effort helped lead to the America Competes legislation which was aimed at doubling funding of basic research in physical sciences at key agencies over ten years. More recent efforts included supporting the research funding in the
Economic Recovery and Reinvestment Act (2009) and the America Competes reauthorization (2010) – efforts that brought together a coalition of major research
universities and corporations such as Intel, Lockheed Martin, Texas Instruments, IBM, and Google.
Previous Friend of Science Awardees include U.S. Senators Lamar Alexander and John Warner; Norman Augustine, former CEO of Lockheed Martin and advocate for American leadership in research and innovation; Chuck Robb, former governor and U.S. Senator from Virginia; and Neal Lane, former NSF Director and White House science advisor.
Leaders of the TFAI were presented the honorarium at a reception held in conjunction with the SURA Board of Trustees Fall Meeting in Washington, DC.
SURA, TFAI Urge Funding for NSF, Warn of “Fiscal Cliff” Impacts
SURA continued to work with the broader research and innovation advocacy community in 2012, particularly the Task Force for American Innovation. (See preceding article.) In light of continued federal budget gridlock, the coalition appealed to policymakers to support research budgets in key federal agencies.
In a May letter to the U.S. House of Representatives, SURA and the task force applauded a rejected cut in research. “We especially appreciate that the House rejected an amendment to cut proposed NSF funding by some $1.2 billion, a cut of more than 15%. This would have taken NSF resources back five years …”. The letter went on to explain, “The level of funding
proposed in this amendment would have meant the loss of 3,800 research grants affecting 44,000 researchers, students, technicians, and others involved in conducting this research.”
With the private sector investing $300 billion in R&D annually, the statement explained, ”There has been a bipartisan consensus since World War II that supporting basic research, which takes place mainly at universities and U.S. laboratories, is primarily the role of the federal government. Technological innovation, medical advances, our national security, the training of young scientists, and our economic future all depend on the research funded by NSF and other federal science agencies.”
As the “fiscal cliff” negotiations continued toward the end of the year, and threat of sequestration growing stronger, SURA again joined the task force to warn the
Administration and Congress of the dire consequences to de-funding research agencies. The December 7 letter warned the President and Congressional leaders, “Almost every national priority—from health and defense, agriculture and conservation, to hazards and natural disasters—relies on science and engineering. Sequestration threatens all these priorities, by requiring up to $12 billion in R&D funding cuts annually across defense and nondefense programs over the next decade.”
With federal non-defense research budgets having declined by five percent in the previous two years, the coalition said, “What is needed is a balanced approach to deficit reduction
that does not simply take an axe to discretionary federal programs without also considering the contributions of tax revenue solutions and entitlement reform in addressing the federal deficit.” Noting that several bipartisan studies and commissions have proposed such
equitable strategies that spare R&D from indiscriminate cuts, the letter concluded, “We urge you to come together on just such a balanced solution.”
New Chief Development Officer Hired
Formerly with Computer Sciences Corporation at the time of JSA’s formation in the recompetition for the Jefferson Lab contract in 2006, Larry Hare was hired part-time to serve the role of SURA Chief Development Officer in March 2012. Initiatives he’s helped SURA and the Development and Relations Committee study have included the Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA) and the Strategic Petroleum Reserve recompetitions, as well as opportunities with the Savannah River National Lab and Sandia National Lab.
Additionally, at the invitation of the U.S. Department of Energy, with Hare’s leadership, SURA provided constructive input to shape the acquisition strategy of multiple new initiatives: A Response to the Blue Ribbon Commission on Spent Fuel Management; Consolidation of Sandia National Labs with other NNSA operations; and a strategy for a sustainable future for the Savannah River National Laboratory.
GOVERNANCE
Ohio University Joins SURA as Affiliate, Clark Atlantic Re-joins
SURA proudly welcomed Ohio University as an affiliate member in 2012. OU’s Department of Physics and Astronomy has had a long history with Jefferson Lab, going back to
collaborations beginning in 1993. OU joins Idaho State University as a university outside the region to be granted this status since the new membership categories were expanded and established in 2008. The ability of universities and businesses to affiliate with SURA is intended to enrich the research capabilities of the coalition.
In a letter supporting the application, long-time JLab leader Larry Cardman noted, “The experimentalists at [OU’s] Institute of Nuclear and Particle Physics there have a strong record of involvement at Jefferson Lab.” He added, “Ohio physicists are also intimately involved in planning and preparation for the 12 GeV era at Jefferson Lab.”
The 12GeV project is a multi-year upgrade of the accelerator to be completed by 2016. Cardman concluded, “This formal association promises to further strengthen the partnership between JLab and Ohio University to our mutual benefit.”
Additionally, after several years hiatus, Clark Atlanta University, an HBCU in Atlanta, rejoined SURA as a full member. Council member and CAU President Carlton Brown stressed the University's strides in the fields of bioinformatics and cancer research, computation
science, nanomaterials, and energy research, which are closely aligned with SURA's mission. CAU is one of four SURA members from Georgia.
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SOUTHEASTERN UNIVERSITIES RESEARCH ASSOCIATION, INC.
Consolidated Statements of Financial Position September 30, 2012 and 2011
Assets 2012 2011
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents $ 728,855 905,425 Accounts receivable, net 20,497,237 26,639,371 Prepaid assets 226,152 627,416
Total current assets 21,452,244 28,171,212 Investments, net 19,469,863 17,260,839 Property and equipment, net 983,773 997,195
Total assets $ 41,905,880 46,430,246
Liabilities and Net Assets
Current liabilities:
Accounts payable and accrued expenses $ 19,732,258 24,442,553 Deferred revenue 1,104,708 3,001,905 Deferred rent 88,534 107,434 Lines of credit 2,250,000 1,425,000 Total current liabilities 23,175,500 28,976,892 Commitments and contingencies
Unrestricted net assets
Controlling interests 18,453,320 17,167,463 Noncontrolling interests 277,060 285,891
Total net assets 18,730,380 17,453,354 Total liabilities and net assets $ 41,905,880 46,430,246
SOUTHEASTERN UNIVERSITIES RESEARCH ASSOCIATION, INC.
Consolidated Statements of Activities Years ended September 30, 2012 and 2011
2012 2011
Revenues:
DOE contract revenues $ 179,607,483 205,177,277 DOE management fees 2,821,000 2,914,000 Grant revenues 1,564,815 2,915,280 Contributed facilities, services, and equipment 536,348 536,348 Commonwealth of Virginia funding 1,034,774 585,144 Membership fees 230,393 218,000 Other 937,722 2,662,444 Total revenues 186,732,535 215,008,493
Expenses:
Salaries and fringe benefits 87,780,547 86,707,568 Materials and supplies 34,786,082 37,960,194 Professional services 29,755,743 46,179,005 Utilities 8,925,712 8,097,944 Capital procurements 13,229,804 23,963,239 Plant and equipment maintenance 5,632,402 4,601,509 Travel 3,784,858 4,665,961 Rent 1,923,125 1,902,111 Insurance 397,419 345,800
Depreciation and amortization 39,754 36,697 Minority interest in net income of Jefferson Science
Associates, LLC 910,248 889,089 Other 1,340,923 1,328,001 Total expenses 188,506,617 216,667,118 Operating loss (1,774,082) (1,668,625) Nonoperating activites:
Interest and dividends, net of fees 235,598 326,945 Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments 2,824,341 (881,597)
Net nonoperating income (loss) 3,059,939 (554,652) Changes in unrestricted net assets 1,285,857 (2,223,277) Change in noncontrolling interest in undistributed
earnings of Jefferson Science Associates, LLC (8,831) (2,045) Unrestricted net assets at beginning of year 17,453,354 19,678,676
15
SURA MEMBER INSTITUTIONS COUNCIL OF PRESIDENTS BOARD OF TRUSTEES
The University of Alabama Judy Bonner Donald J. Benson The University of Alabama at Birmingham Richard B. Marchase Doug Rigney The University of Alabama in Huntsville Robert A. Altenkirch Sara J. Graves University of Arkansas G. David Gearhart James M. Rankin Auburn University Jay Gogue John M. Mason Baylor University Kenneth W. Starr Truell Hyde The Catholic University of America John H. Garvey Daniel I. Sober University of Central Florida John C. Hitt M. J. Soileau Christopher Newport University Paul S. Trible, Jr. Edward Brash Clemson University James F. Barker Gerald Sonnenfeld Clark Atlanta University Carlton E. Brown Marcus W. Shute University of Delaware Patrick T. Harker Charles G. Riordan Duke University Richard H. Brodhead * James Siedow East Carolina University Steven C. Ballard Lisa Clough University of Florida J. Bernard Machen David P. Norton Florida Atlantic University Mary Jane Saunders Barry T. Rosson Florida Institute of Technology Anthony J. Catanese Richard Newman Florida International University Mark B. Rosenberg Andres Gil Florida State University Eric J. Barron Paul Eugenio George Mason University Angel Cabrera Roger R. Stough George Mason University Gil Brown, Special Trustee The George Washington University Steven Knapp Leo M. Chalupa
Georgetown University John J. DeGioia Lisa Davis The University of Georgia Michael F. Adams * David C. Lee Georgia Institute of Technology G.P. "Bud" Peterson James O'Connor Georgia State University Mark P. Becker James Weyhenmeyer Hampton University William R. Harvey Calvin Lowe University of Houston Renu Khator Rathindra N. Bose James Madison University Jonathan R. Alger A. Jerry Benson University of Kentucky Eli Capilouto James W. Tracy University of Louisiana at Lafayette E. Joseph Savoie Robert R. Twilley Louisiana State University William L. Jenkins * Christopher F. D'Elia Louisiana Tech University Daniel D. Reneau Leslie Guice
University of Maryland Wallace D. Loh * Elizabeth J. Beise University of Maryland, Baltimore County Freeman A. Hrabowski, III Geoffrey Summers Massachusetts Institute of Technology L. Rafael Reif June L. Matthews The University of Memphis Shirley C. Raines Andrew W. Meyers University of Miami Donna E. Shalala Roni Avissar The University of Mississippi Daniel W. Jones Alice M. Clark Mississippi State University Mark E. Keenum David R. Shaw University of New Orleans Peter J. Fos Steven G. Johnson Norfolk State University Tony Atwater Adebisi Oladipupo North Carolina A&T State University Harold L. Martin, Sr. Barry L. Burks The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Holden Thorp TBD North Carolina State University Randy Woodson * Marc Hoit The University of Oklahoma David L. Boren Kelvin Droegemeier Old Dominion University John R. Broderick * Mohammad Karim University of Regina Vianne Timmons Zisis Papandreou Rice University David W. Leebron Vicki L. Colvin University of Richmond Edward L. Ayers Gerard P. Gilfoyle University of South Carolina Harris Pastides Prakash Nagarkatti University of South Florida Judy Genshaft Paul R. Sanberg The University of Southern Mississippi Aubrey K. Lucas Denis A. Wiesenburg The University of Tennessee Joe DiPietro Fred D. Tompkins The University of Texas at Austin William Powers, Jr. Juan Sanchez Texas A&M University R. Bowen Loftin Theresa Fossum Tulane University Scott S. Cowen Charlie McMahon Vanderbilt University Nicholas S. Zeppos * David J. Ernst University of Virginia Teresa A. Sullivan Thomas C. Skalak Virginia Commonwealth University Michael Rao Francis L. Macrina Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University * Charles W. Steger Terry L. Herdman Virginia State University Keith T. Miller Keith Williamson West Virginia University James P. Clements Fred King College of William and Mary W. Taylor Reveley Dennis M. Manos
SURA President and CEO Jerry P. Draayer *
AFFILIATE MEMBERS ORGANIZATIONAL REPRESENTATIVE
Idaho State University Philip Cole Ohio University Kenneth H. Hicks
* = SURA Executive Committee Member
SURA STAFF / LEADERSHIP:
Name Title
Linda Akli IT Initiatives Program Manager
Peter Bjonerud Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Treasurer / JSA Treasurer
Gary Crane Director of IT Initiatives Jeri Cravens Controller
Jerry P. Draayer President and CEO
Rose Durham Residence Facility Manager Larry Hare Chief Development Officer John Holly Program Administrator Greg D. Kubiak Chief Public Affairs Officer
Elizabeth Lawson Chief Governance Officer & Principal JSA/JLab Liaison Corporate Secretary / JSA Secretary
Lisa Miller Program Administrator Russell Moy General Counsel
A’Fenia Pirtle-Hubbard Senior Staff Accountant
Elizabeth Smith Coastal Research Program Manager Janette Stout Director of Administration &
Human Resource Services Don Wright Director of Coastal Research
SURA MISSION:
The Southeastern Universities Research Association, Inc. (SURA) is a non-stock, non-profit consortium incorporated in the Commonwealth of Virginia in 1980 exclusively for charitable, scientific and
educational purposes. The SURA membership is comprised of over 60 leading research institutions in the southern United States and Washington, DC. SURA’s mission is to serve as an entity by which colleges, universities and other organizations may cooperate with one another, government and industry, developing, and using laboratories and other research facilities, and in furthering knowledge and the application of that knowledge in the physical, biological, and other natural sciences and engineering.
