The Vision for American Science & Technology (VAST) will chart the way for the U.S. science & technology (S&T) enterprise to support America’s global leadership. Drawing from the collective insights and experiences of an unprecedented array of leaders in modern history, VAST will empower U.S. decisionmakers with a roadmap to ensure the American S&T enterprise remains the vanguard on an increasingly competitive world stage. VAST’s work is supported by the Simons Foundation, the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, the Rita Allen Foundation, and the Paul G. Allen Frontiers Group.
VAST Task Force
Sudip Parikh, PhD, Chair CEO, American Association for the Advancement of Science and Executive Publisher, Science Journals
Noubar Afeyan, PhD, Founder and CEO, Flagship Pioneering
John Anderson, PhD, President, National Academy of Engineering
Joseph Aoun, PhD, President, Northeastern University
Valerie Sheares Ashby, PhD, President, University of Maryland, Baltimore County
Gilda Barabino, PhD, President, Olin College of Engineering
Muyinatu Bell, PhD, Associate Professor, The Johns Hopkins University
Georges Benjamin, MD, CEO, American Public Health Association
Robert Conn, PhD, Distinguished Professor and Dean of Engineering, Emeritus, University of California, San Diego
France Córdova, PhD, President, Science Philanthropy Alliance; Former Director, National Science Foundation (2014-20)
Michael Crow, PhD, President, Arizona State University
John Crowley, President & CEO, Biotechnology Industry Organization
Ron Daniels, JD, President, The Johns Hopkins University
Hon. Tom Daschle, CEO, The Daschle Group; U.S. Senator (D-SD, 1987-2005; Senate Democratic Leader, 1995-2005); U.S. Representative (D- SD, 1979-87)
Sean Decatur, PhD, President, American Museum of Natural History
Jennifer Doudna, PhD, Professor, University of California, Berkeley; Founder, Innovative Genomics Institute; Nobel Laureate in Chemistry (2020)
Kelvin Droegemeier, PhD, Professor and Special Advisor to the Chancellor for Science Policy, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign; Former Director, White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (2019-21)
Monica Dus, PhD, Associate Professor, University of Michigan
Victor Dzau, MD, President, National Academy of Medicine
Kafui Dzirasa, MD, PhD, Professor, Duke University Medical Center
Hon. Sue Ellspermann, PhD, President, Ivy Tech Community College; Lieutenant Governor of Indiana (2013-16)
Arthur Evans, PhD, CEO, American Psychological Association
Robert Fofrich, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow, University of California, Los Angeles; Council Member, National Postdoctoral Association
Cynthia Friend, PhD, President and CEO, The Kavli Foundation; Professor Emerita, Harvard University
S. James Gates, Jr., PhD, Clark Leadership Chair in Science, University of Maryland, College Park
Darío Gil, PhD, Senior Vice President and Director, IBM Research; Chair, National Science Board
Hon. Bart Gordon, JD, Partner, K&L Gates; U.S. Representative (D-TN, 1985-2011); Chair, House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology (2007-10)
Kathleen Hall Jamieson, PhD, Professor and Director, Annenberg Public Policy Center, University of Pennsylvania
Margaret Hamburg, MD, President, InterAcademy Partnership; Former Commissioner, Food and Drug Administration (2009-15)
Hon. Roger Hanshaw, PhD, JD, Speaker, West Virginia House of Delegates; Partner, Bowles Rice LLP
Kristina Johnson, PhD, CEO, Johnson Energy Holdings; President Emerita, The Ohio State University
Jenelle Krishnamoorthy, PhD, Vice President and Head, Global Public Policy, Merck & Co.
Samarth Kulkarni, PhD, CEO, CRISPR Therapeutics
Neal Lane, PhD, Senior Fellow, Science and Technology, Baker Institute for Public Policy, and Professor Emeritus, Rice University; Former Director, National Science Foundation (1993-98) and White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (1998-2001)
Alan Leshner, PhD, CEO Emeritus, American Association for the Advancement of Science
Bruce Lewenstein, PhD, Professor, Cornell University
General Lester Lyles, United States Air Force (Ret.)
Theresa Maldonado, PhD, PE Vice President for Research & Innovation, University of California Office of the President
Mary Maxon, PhD, Executive Vice President, Carnegie Institution for Science
Willie E. May, PhD, Vice President for Research, Morgan State University; Member, National Science Board; Former Under Secretary of Commerce for Standards & Technology and Director, National Institute of Standards and Technology (2015-17)
Alison McCarthy, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow, U.S. Naval Research Laboratory; Council Member, National Postdoctoral Association
Marcia McNutt, PhD, President, National Academy of Sciences; Former Director, U.S. Geological Survey (2010-13)
Juan Meza, PhD, Associate Director, Simons Laufer Mathematical Sciences Institute; Professor, University of California, Merced
Marie Lynn Miranda, PhD, Chancellor, University of Illinois Chicago
Michael Moloney, PhD, CEO, American Institute of Physics
Wendy Naus, Executive Director, Consortium of Social Science Associations
Christopher Nomura, PhD, Vice President for Research & Economic Development, University of Idaho
Bill Novelli, Professor Emeritus, Georgetown University McDonough School of Business
Stephen Pruitt, PhD, President, Southern Regional Education Board
Stephen Quake, PhD, Head of Science, Chan Zuckerberg Initiative and President, Chan Zuckerberg Biohub Network; Professor, Stanford University
John Reed, MD, PhD, Executive Vice President, Innovative Medicine R&D, Johnson & Johnson
Euan Robertson, Chief Operating Officer, Simons Foundation
Katalina Salas, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow and Assistant Research Professor, University of Texas at El Paso
Jayshree Seth, PhD, Chief Science Advocate and Corporate Scientist, 3M
Hon. Donna Shalala, PhD, President Emerita, University of Miami; U.S. Representative (D-FL, 2019-21); Secretary of Health and Human Services (1993-2001)
Alison Sheets-Singer, PhD, Principal Researcher, Nike
Erika Shugart, PhD, CEO, National Science Teaching Association
David Siegel, PhD, Chair, Siegel Family Endowment; Co-Founder, Two Sigma
David Skorton, MD, President & CEO, Association of American Medical Colleges
Barbara Snyder, JD, President, Association of American Universities
David Spergel, PhD, President, Simons Foundation
Bonnielin Swenor, PhD, MPH Professor and Director, Disability Health Research Center, The Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing
Antonia Villarruel, PhD, RN Dean, University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing
Lisa Wagar, PhD, Assistant Professor, University of California, Irvine
Hon. Heather Wilson, PhD, President, The University of Texas at El Paso; Member, National Science Board; Secretary of the Air Force (2017-19); U.S. Representative (R-NM, 1998-2009)
Mary Woolley, President & CEO, Research!America
Catherine Woteki, PhD, Professor, Iowa State University; Member, President’s Council on Advisors for Science & Technology; Former Under Secretary of Agriculture for Research (2010-17)
Keith Yamamoto, PhD, Vice Chancellor, Science Policy and Strategy; Director, Precision Medicine; and Professor, University of California, San Francisco
Elias Zerhouni, MD, President and Vice Chairman, OPKO Health; Former Director, National Institutes of Health (2002-08)
Hon. Andrew Zwicker, PhD, New Jersey State Senator; Head, Strategic Partnerships & Public Engagement, Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory
Andrew Black, JD, Executive Director, Chief Public Affairs Officer and Chief of Staff, American Association for the Advancement of Science