WASHINGTON, D.C. – We are pleased to welcome Dr. Adriana Bankston to the Universities Research Association as our first Senior Fellow in STEM Research Policy. In this role, Adriana will support URA’s STEM and science policy portfolio, including the SPARC program, STEM Ambassadors, and the National Laboratories Seminar Series. As a non-profit serving as a conduit between national research facilities and academia, URA seeks to accelerate innovation and scientific discovery for the nation’s benefit by sparking dialogue on federal science policy between researchers and policymakers, and to cultivate the next generation of civic-minded STEM professionals.
Dr. Bankston is a strong advocate for scientific research, developing a robust STEM research workforce in U.S. universities, and preserving American leadership in science. Previously, Adriana was a Principal Legislative Analyst at the University of California (UC) Office of Federal Governmental Relations, where she advocated for the university’s federal research priorities with Congress, the Administration, and federal agencies. UC is one of the largest recipients of federal research funding, and is involved in the management of three national laboratories through contracts with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). In addition, UC campuses are also part of URA. In this role, Adriana was responsible for legislative analysis and advocacy for federal policy impacting university research. As part of this position, she drafted a STEM pipeline amendment to support postdoctoral researchers, which was included in Section 10313 of the CHIPS and Science Act (Graduate STEM Education). Prior to this position, Adriana was a Policy & Advocacy Fellow at the Society for Neuroscience, advocating for neuroscience research funding and contributing to SfN’s Hill Day.
More recently, she spent time in the U.S. House of Representatives working for Rep. Bill Foster (D-IL), supporting federal scientific research and innovation as the inaugural AAAS/ASGCT Congressional Policy Fellow. He is the only Ph.D. physicist in Congress, representing a district that is home to two world-class research laboratories, Argonne and Fermilab. Adriana’s policy portfolio included research, science & technology, STEM education and immigration. In these projects, she worked closely with the House Science, Space and Technology Committee, R&D Caucus and National Labs Caucus to advance national research priorities in a bipartisan fashion. Her perspective in working for Rep. Foster is important to URA, and part of the parent Manager & Operator of Fermilab.
“Ensuring that we continue to fund scientific research and support the next generation STEM workforce across universities is pivotal to our nation’s leadership in science and technology. I look forward to contributing to the mission of URA by supporting STEM programs enabling the development of future leaders and changemakers in the research enterprise,” said Dr. Bankston.
Adriana’s insights have appeared in multiple national outlets, and she has published several scholarly articles. A frequent speaker and leader in research advocacy, she has given numerous talks and workshops, led projects focused on university research and STEM workforce development, and held leadership positions in several national research organizations. Her research advocacy work was recognized with honors and awards for excellence in advocacy, broader impacts, service, and leadership in the research enterprise. Adriana earned her Ph.D. in Biochemistry, Cell and Developmental Biology from Emory University.
ABOUT URA
Universities Research Association (URA) is a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) consortium composed of over 90 premier research universities across the United States, United Kingdom, and Italy headquartered in Washington, D.C. As a parent company in the management and operation of Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory; a member of Honeywell’s National Technology and Engineering Solutions of Sandia for the management and operation of Sandia National Laboratories; and a steward of the National Science Foundation for the nation’s participation in the Pierre Auger Cosmic Ray Observatory in Argentina, our mission is to augment the exchange of scientific expertise between universities & national labs, to accelerate U.S. discovery and innovation.