Alabama A&M and Florida A&M universities recently obtained National Science Foundation (NSF) grants for research and innovation. However, U.S. science is at a critical point as budget reductions endanger research and development.
With federal science funding in the U.S. facing substantial cuts amid increasing global competition, the AAAS has issued a warning about the 'Extreme Risk' to science due to shrinking R&D budgets in 2025. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) and NSF have modified their grants to address the ongoing decreases in federal funding.
The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) reports that federal R&D funding in 2025 is facing major challenges. A full-year continuing resolution has led to a 3.7% cut, bringing the total to about $193.39 billion.
NIH grant success rates have dropped, with early-stage investigator rates now at 19% and the number of total investigator grants falling from 7,720 in 2024 to 5,885 in 2025. To prepare for expected cuts in 2026, agencies like NIH and NSF are issuing multiyear grants in lump sums, which has reduced the number of new projects funded in 2025 by 5% to 10%.
The 2025 AAAS Annual Report calls this an "extreme risk" period for science, with proposed 2026 budgets showing big cuts, including a possible 57% reduction for NSF. These changes have caused instability, even though Congress has tried to keep funding steady. The U.S. is still the largest R&D spender, but its lead is now the smallest since the mid-1990s, and AAAS now ranks the U.S. 13th in government R&D intensity.
Most R&D investment in the U.S. comes from private industry, which provides nearly 70% of the total funding.
Alabama A&M University is taking part in a $2.8 million National Science Foundation (NSF) grant to create an undergraduate curriculum in research administration and management. This three-year project brings together more than 40 universities from the U.S., South Africa, and Namibia. The goal is to develop a credit-bearing program that prepares students for careers in research administration. Alabama A&M will work with the University of South Alabama, University of Miami (Ohio), University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, University of California San Diego, and New Mexico State University to design the main courses.
The curriculum will include topics like grant management, legal issues in sponsored research, budgeting, intellectual property, and federal compliance, helping students learn the skills needed for research administration. The program aims to train future research administrators who can support innovation and scholarship in many fields.
The Florida A&M University-Florida State University College of Engineering has received a $7.5 million NSF grant for the Center of Research Excellence in Science and Technology (CREST) Phase II program. Building on Phase I, the Center works to develop new materials and turn them into useful structures and devices. The CREST Phase II program combines research and education to help FAMU reach R1 research status. Students will do research, work with national labs, and take specialized courses.
The program plans to graduate over 30 Ph.D. students, involve 50 undergraduates, and include more students through research partnerships.
This effort will boost FAMU’s research strength, help recruit new faculty, and expand funding opportunities. The research focuses on how complex building blocks, such as polymers and proteins, come together to form advanced structures for various uses. The team will use advanced methods and machine learning to design custom materials. Experts from various engineering and science fields will work together to improve current technology. CREST partners with industry leaders and national labs, including ExxonMobil, DOW, and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. The team also works with nScrypt, a 3D printing company that serves the defense and NASA sectors, and collaborates with scientists at Sandia, Brookhaven, and Oak Ridge National Laboratories to develop new ways to study and make materials.
At the University of Delaware, the team works with Professor Thomas Epps, a polymers and composites specialist, to advance research on materials for batteries, fuel cells, and solar panels.