CRA Holds Annual Computing Leadership Summit

On Monday, February 22, near Washington, D.C., the Computing Research Association hosted its annual Computing Leadership Summit for senior leadership of CRA affiliate societies and the National Research Council’s Computer Science and Telecommunications Board.

Several engaging sessions provided valuable information on current issues important to the organizations. CRA Director of Government Affairs Peter Harsha explained the implications for science of the President’s FY17 federal budget request. Randy Bryant, who recently completed a rotation at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, and Margaret Martonosi, a CRA board member who is currently a Jefferson Science Fellow at the State Department, provided insight and updates about their time in government positions. Jim Kurose, Assistant Director of the CISE Directorate at NSF, gave an update on current and new initiatives and hosted a Q&A session. Bryant, Kurose and Martonosi have all been featured in the Computing Research News CS in DC column, which profiles computing researchers in policy roles.

Each organization was able to discuss current projects and new initiatives and, during this process, many opportunities for collaboration and support were identified.

Immediately following the meeting, the Leadership Summit participants attended a reception with participants of CRA’s Career Mentoring Workshop, and CRA Board Members.