President Barack Obama announced his intention to renominate OU’s research vice president to the National Science Board in a presidential press release Friday.

Research vice president and meteorology professor Kelvin Droegemeier completed his first six-year term as a member of the board in May.

The National Science Board is the governing board of the National Science Foundation, which is a government agency that promotes non-medical scientific research in the United States and advises the president and Congress on research and science issues.

The National Science Foundation supplies approximately one third of the research funding on OU’s Norman campus, Droegemeier said.

In his first term, Droegemeier co-chaired the Committee on Hurricane Research after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita and chaired the Committee on Programs and Plans, which reviews major grants from the National Science Foundation and works to promote research that focuses on science, technology, engineering and math advancements.

Droegemeier said the opportunity to identify research and education that promote technological improvements in the U.S. has been a fulfilling experience, one that he hopes to pursue in a second term.

The National Science Board works to competitively improve America’s scientific and technological advances, work that Droegemeier said is important to the nation’s global standing.

“You never know what basic research will lead to,” he said.

Experience on the National Science Board allows Droegemeier to bring cross-departmental knowledge and information to OU classrooms.

He said his work on the National Science Board helps him advise his meteorology students about future research opportunities and potential funding.

Droegemeier has also lectured political science students on public policy based on his experience testifying before Congress on matters of scientific research.

“I try my best to bring [the experience] back to campus and the state of Oklahoma,” he said.

As other countries, such as China and India, invest heavily in scientific research, the U.S. is being challenged in its pursuits to advance in technological developments, especially in an economic recession when funding is limited and less accessible, Droegemeier said.

“The challenge is going to be at the budget level for agencies like [the National Science Foundation],” he said.

Droegemeier said he looks forward to a second term on the National Science Board to confront the challenges that austere budgeting poses to scientific research.

Once Droegemeier is officially nominated by Obama, he must then be approved by the U.S. Senate, appointed by the president and sworn in to the National Science Board to be granted a second term of membership.

» Press release announcing President Barack Obama’s intention to renominate OU research vice president to the National Science Board

— Sydney McFerron contributed to this report.