Extract

As I sit to write this editorial, research as we know it is in crisis. Recently, the Trump administration implemented several executive actions and policy changes impacting higher education research and anything related to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives. In January 2025, the administration released executive orders announcing a pause on federal loans and contracts and a reduction of indirect costs to federal funding agencies, such as the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The executive order announced a cap on the indirect costs that are usually paid by federal funders at 15% (down from the usual rate of roughly 55%). These indirect costs include money spent on offices, lab maintenance, and other expenses essential to university operations. If actualized, these cuts would cost research universities hundreds of millions of dollars in lost revenue each year and important health-related research will never be actualized. Federal judges blocked the pause on loans and contracts and the rate reduction, so the previous indirect costs are, for now, still in place (Ghosh et al., 2025; Neergaard & Casey, 2025).

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