A joint message from President Tim Sands and Senior Vice President Dan Sui

To the Virginia Tech community,

As challenges to federally funded research are accumulating quickly, we are offering an update on the impact of federal actions on Virginia Tech’s research enterprise. Over the past three months, a number of federal memoranda, proclamations, and executive orders have been released that impact federal funding for research universities.

The National Institutes of Health's 15 percent cap on indirect costs, with a potential $13 million impact on Virginia Tech’s annual research budget, was barred permanently by a federal judge on April 4. That ruling will be appealed by the administration. Last Friday, the Department of Energy announced a similar 15 percent cap on facilities and administration reimbursement for grants to institutions of higher education that would have an approximately $5 million impact on Virginia Tech. This also has been challenged in court.

While we await the outcomes of legal challenges and congressional action on indirect cost recovery rates, shifting priorities have led several federal agencies to terminate or issue stop-work orders on Virginia Tech grants and contracts, including the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, National Endowment for the Humanities, Institute of Museum and Library Services, National Science Foundation, Department of State, Department of Agriculture, Department of Defense, Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Energy, Department of Interior, Department of Transportation, Department of Homeland Security, and the U.S. Agency for International Development.

Of Virginia Tech’s 2,315 active federal awards, 25 have been terminated and 12 are under full or partial stop-work orders, totaling $21.2 million or 1.3 percent of Virginia Tech’s $1.6 billion federal sponsored research portfolio. Programs generally were terminated due to the downsizing of government agencies, such as USAID and components of the Department of Health and Humans Services, or in response to executive orders and for no longer aligning with agency priorities.

In addition, we are monitoring the potential for decreased or reprioritized funding opportunities going forward. While Virginia Tech has not yet experienced a substantial decrease in newly awarded research programs under this administration, we are anticipating potential issues in the future and will work with leadership across the university on how we might respond to these scenarios.

While actions to date only affect a small percentage of our research enterprise, the impact on those projects and the people supporting them is significant. We are assisting the affected researchers, graduate students, and support staff by exploring the possibility of appealing grant cancellations, continuing research to a stage to have publishable results, and seeking other open research positions for displaced students or employees. In addition, Faculty Affairs has provided guidance on the impacts on promotion and tenure from impacted research grants and contracts.

We have asked deans, institute directors, and other senior leaders to be judicious in moving forward with new hires given the level of uncertainty and to monitor spending on nonpersonnel items, recognizing that no-cost extensions may be limited and additional reductions in federal funding may be forthcoming. For those making decisions on sponsored program-related spending, please exercise restraint, especially for long-term commitments. At the same time, it is imperative that principal investigators make progress on their active programs, meeting their milestones, submitting invoices and completing reports. Visit Virginia Tech Research for the latest federal updates.

Research is an essential part of Virginia Tech’s land-grant mission and our commitment to support the economic vitality of the commonwealth. Regardless of the challenges ahead, we will continue to maximize impactful research and scholarship activities that make a difference in the communities we serve.

Dan Sui,
Senior Vice President for Research and Innovation

Tim Sands,
President