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1998

1983 1987

Dr. Rita R. Colwell became the 11th Director of the National Science Foundation on August 4, 1998.

Dr. Colwell spearheaded the agency's emphases in K-12 science and mathematics education, graduate science and engineering education/training and the increased participation of women and minorities in science and engineering.

Her policy approach enabled the agency to strengthen its core activities, as well as establish major initiatives, including Nanotechnology, Biocomplexity, Information Technology, Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences and the 21st Century Workforce. In her capacity as NSF Director, she served as Co-chair of the Committee on Science of the National Science and Technology Council.

Under her leadership, the Foundation received significant budget increases, and its funding recently reached a level of more than $5.3 billion.

Before coming to NSF, Dr. Colwell was President of the University of Maryland Biotechnology Institute, 1991-1998, and she remains Professor of Microbiology and Biotechnology (on leave) at the University Maryland. She was also a member of the National Science Board from 1984 to 1990.

Dr. Colwell has held many advisory positions in the U.S. Government, non-profit science policy organizations, and private foundations, as well as in the international scientific research community. She is a nationally respected scientist and educator, and has authored or co-authored 16 books and more than 600 scientific publications. She produced the award-winning film, Invisible Seas, and has served on editorial boards of numerous scientific journals.

She is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Medal of Distinction from Columbia University, the Gold Medal of Charles University, Prague, the UCLA Medal from the University of California, Los Angeles, and the Alumna Summa Laude Dignata from the University of Washington, Seattle.

Dr. Colwell has also been awarded 35 honorary degrees from institutions of higher education, including her Alma Mater, Purdue University. Dr. Colwell is an honorary member of the microbiological societies of the UK, France, Israel, Bangladesh, and the U.S. and has held several honorary professorships, including the University of Queensland, Australia. A geological site in Antarctica, Colwell Massif, has been named in recognition of her work in the polar regions.

Dr. Colwell has previously served as Chairman of the Board of Governors of the American Academy of Microbiology and also as President of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American Society for Microbiology, the Sigma Xi National Science Honorary Society, and the International Union of Microbiological Societies. Dr. Colwell is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the American Philosophical Society and the National Academy of Sciences. ²⁾

Dr. Rita Colwell is Distinguished University Professor both at the University of Maryland at College Park and at Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health, Senior Advisor and Chairman Emeritus, Canon US Life Sciences, Inc., and President and Chairman of CosmosID, Inc. Her interests are focused on global infectious diseases, water, and health, and she is currently developing an international network to address emerging infectious diseases and water issues, including safe drinking water for both the developed and developing world, in collaboration with Safe Water Network, headquartered in New York City.

Dr. Colwell has been awarded 55 honorary degrees from institutions of higher education, including her Alma Mater, Purdue University and is the recipient of the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Star, bestowed by the Emperor of Japan, the 2006 National Medal of Science awarded by the President of the United States, and the 2010 Stockholm Water Prize awarded by the King of Sweden. Dr. Colwell is an honorary member of the microbiological societies of the UK, Australia, France, Israel, Bangladesh, Czechoslovakia, and the U.S. and has held several honorary professorships, including the University of Queensland, Australia. A geological site in Antarctica, Colwell Massif, has been named in recognition of her work in the polar regions. ³⁾

Rita Colwell is listed without any role noted in her stock bio but she is featured on the Board of Directors page. ^{4) 5)}

The Global Council for Science and the Environment (GCSE) is a nongovernmental organization established in 1990 that advances the use of science to inform environmental decision-making. The work of GCSE spans boundaries between science and decision-making to strengthen the impact of durable solutions to environmental challenges. GCSE engages scientists, educators, policymakers, business leaders, and officials at all levels of government. ⁶⁾

Global Council for Science and the Environment * formerly the National Council for Science and the Environment 1776 Eye Street NW Suite 750 Washington DC 20006

Inspired by challenges in biothreat detection and epidemiology, world-renowned microbiologist, Professor Rita Colwell, started CosmosID® in 2008 to develop computational methods that could leverage Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) technologies to achieve strain-level detection of microorganisms in any complex sample and better our understanding of human health & disease.

Based in Germantown, MD, CosmosID®’s CLIA-certified, GCP-compliant laboratory provides the microbiome field with access to standardized and validated metagenomics solutions so that industry, academia & clinicians can unlock the microbiome with confidence! ⁷⁾

U.S. president bestows medal on Penn State maize geneticist Friday, July 27, 2007

Photo: Greg Grieco

President Bush and Nina Fedoroff smile after he presented her with the 2006 Science Medal of Honor.

Washington, D.C. — Sixteen scientists including Penn State's Nina Fedoroff, three corporations, one research team and seven innovators were honored today (July 27, 2007) as the latest National Medal of Science and Technology Laureates for their contributions in areas ranging from paleoclimatology to the chemical synthesis of DNA, from mathematics education to the dissecting of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).

The National Medal of Science honors individuals for pioneering scientific research in a range of fields that enhances our understanding of the world and leads to innovations that give the U.S. its global economic edge. The National Medal of Technology recognizes individuals, teams and/or companies/divisions for their outstanding contributions to America's economic, environmental and social well-being through the development and commercialization of technology products, processes and concepts.

The full list of the 2005 and 2006 National Medal of Science and National Medal of Technology recipients is at http://www.technology.gov

Fedoroff, the Verne M. Williaman chair in life sciences and an Evan Pugh professor at Penn State, is one of the nation's most prominent researchers in the life sciences and biotechnology. At the ceremony, the Penn State scientist was recognized for “pioneering work on plant molecular biology and for her being the first to clone and characterize maize transposons. She has contributed to education and public policy pertaining to recombinant DNA and genetic modication of plants.”

Fedoroff noted, “It is extremely rewarding to have such recognition for your life's work. Professionally, it is my hope that it will help me in my new position as science and technology adviser to the Secretary of State.”

In a 2005 Research Penn State online article, the scientist noted, “We've been changing the genetic makeup of our food for millennia, coaxing nature to do our bidding. Long before scientists understood what genes were and how they worked, early civilizations created wheat and corn. These crops, so very different from their wild ancestors, were mankind's first ventures in genetic modification. In time, plant breeders learned to stir up plant genes faster, using novel hybridization methods, chemicals and even radiation, to produce such marvels as white blackberries, Ice Cube lettuce and Rio Red grapefruit.

“The label sparks heated debate,” she said. “Genetically modified foods are as safe to eat as foods made from plants modified by more traditional methods of plant breeding. In fact, they are very probably safer, simply because they undergo testing that has never been required for food plants modified either by traditional breeding techniques or by mutagenesis, both of which can alter a plant's chemical composition.

Rita Colwell, the University of Maryland researcher of marine microbes, most notably the causative agent of pandemic cholera, joined Fedoroff as the only women in both groups of awardees.