UA Hosts Inaugural Legislative Research Summit in D.C.
UA Federal and State Relations jointly hosted a bipartisan group of Arizona state lawmakers in Washington, DC for the inaugural UA – DC Legislative Research Summit. The Summit primarily focused on UA’s expertise in space and defense and presented lawmakers with a close-up view of the UA partnership with federal agencies and Capitol Hill. Comprised of lawmakers from across the state, the delegation included members who serve on Appropriations, Government, Education and Natural Resources committees.
Participants included:
- Senator David Gowan, Legislative District 14: Cochise County, Greenlee County and Southern Graham County
- Senator Sine Kerr, Legislative District 13: Western Maricopa County, Yuma County
- Senator Vince Leach, Legislative District 11: Pima County, Pinal County
- Representative Regina Cobb, Legislative District 5: Mohave County
- Representative Domingo DeGrazia, Legislative District 10: Pima County (Central and East Tucson)
- Representative Tim Dunn, Legislative District 13: Western Maricopa County, Yuma County
- Representative Daniel Hernandez, Legislative District 2: Pima County (South Tucson, Sahuarita, Green Valley), Santa Cruz County
- Representative Jeff Weninger, Legislative District 17: Maricopa County (Gilbert, Sun Lakes, Chandler)
President Robbins welcomed lawmakers to DC and was joined by U.S. Senator Martha McSally and her State Director Tanya Wheeless, Congressman Paul Gosar, NASA CFO Jeff DeWit, and Congresswoman Ann Kirkpatrick’s Chief of Staff, Carmen Frias. The following day, UA Federal Relations AVP Julia Smith briefed lawmakers on the UA federal agenda on space and defense issues, and she outlined how faculty and staff work with federal agencies to conduct basic and applied research.
Senior Vice President of Research and Innovation Betsy Cantwell joined lawmakers to discuss UA’s research portfolio, the direction of higher education, and the importance of university/federal government partnership. Lawmakers brainstormed with Dr. Cantwell about ways the state of Arizona could better and more effectively partner with UA to solve Arizona’s most pressing problems.
With an overview and backdrop of UA’s expertise and strengths, lawmakers spent the next day in private briefings with top officials at NASA, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, and the Department of Defense. Lawmakers learned first-hand the importance of federal investment, research grants and opportunities, and how the UA’s expert faculty and researchers capitalize on these opportunities. Lawmakers learned how these discoveries have benefit our students, the nation, the globe, and why UA is ranked among the top research universities in the world.
While state lawmakers are regularly exposed to UA’s budget as it relates to cost of education and capital improvements, the Summit provided a more unique opportunity to learn about UA’s first-class research. Lawmakers walked away with an understanding of the social and economic impact that UA research has on local and global scales. Lawmakers appreciated the opportunity to engage with federal policymakers and subsequently requested to join agency officials and GCR staff for campus visits to tour our research facilities.
Government and Community Relations plans to hold the next UA – DC Summit in Fall 2020.
GCR would also like to thank the following speakers for providing their time and expertise to help make the Summit a success:
- Deputy Administrator Jim Morhard, NASA
- Chief Financial Officer Jeff DeWit, NASA
- International Space Station Operations Manager Kevin Metrocavage, NASA
- Director Kelvin Droegemeier, White House Office of Science and Technology Policy
- Interim Director for Basic Research Bindu Nair, Department of Defense
- HBC/MSI Program Manager Evelyn Kent, Department of Defense
- Vice President for Policy Tobin Smith, Association of American Universities
- Dave Sackett, The Tarrance Group