Science agency fills its new head of research security role

The National Science Foundation is concerned about the security of federally funded research, and named a new chief of research security strategy and policy March 2 as part of its efforts to ensure that foreign actors don’t take advantage of U.S. government research.

Rebecca Spyke Keiser, who previously worked as the leader of NSF’s Office of International Science and Engineering, will be the first person to take up the new security role, after a report issued by independent science advisory group JASON called for the creation of a post dedicated to security.

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“The JASON report was clear that the U.S. science community faces threats to its longstanding position of openness and transparency of research and its results. Navigating this situation will require substantive engagement with the research community, intelligence agencies, oversight committees and law enforcement. Dr. Keiser will lead our engagement efforts,” said NSF Director France Córdova in a news release. “All of us at NSF are taking this issue very seriously.”

According to the NSF news release, the threats to U.S. research stem not from foreign-born scientists, but from the governments of countries like China that have been striving to benefit from international research without upholding the values of “openness, transparency and reciprocal international collaboration on basic research.”

“The challenges we face today are different from those of the past,” said Keiser in a press release. “They’re more complex and require us to very quickly define them, communicate them to our partners and address them. I’m gratified to see NSF serving as a leader in this area and look forward to helping us move forward.”

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