The CASC Fall 2025 Meeting brought together members in Minneapolis and online for three days of
engaging discussions, strategic planning, and community-building. Your participation—whether in business sessions, policy updates, or hallway conversations—continues to strengthen the CASC network. For a full list of speakers and session details, see the CASC Fall 2025 Meeting Agenda.
Monday, September 22
CASC Business Meeting: Members received federal updates on FY26 appropriations, continuing resolutions, and litigation. The key takeaway: CASC members have opportunities to shape national science policy, even amid ongoing volatility.
Policy & Compliance: The NIST SP 800-171 Positions Committee workgroup highlighted governance, data regulation awareness, and compliance cost considerations.
Strategic Planning: Members were encouraged to join the Strategic Planning Action Committee and Positions Committee.
ROI Toolkit Presentation: Preston Smith (Purdue) presented practical strategies for quantifying and communicating cyberinfrastructure value to institutions, funders, and faculty leaders.
RRCoP Update: Progress in regulated research and data management was shared.
Sustainability & Funding Diversification Panel: A lively discussion explored strategies for navigating budget cuts, including cost-recovery models, dedicated funding, and overhead optimization.
Tuesday, September 23
Welcome from Senator Amy Klobuchar: Strong support for science and innovation set the tone for the day.
Policy Landscape Panel: Statewide AI initiatives in Tennessee, New York, and Ohio showcased how states are mobilizing around AI policy and economic growth.
AAAS Congressional Fellow: Adriana Bankston shared experiences advocating for science on Capitol Hill, covering AI, funding, and national lab modernization.
NSF OAC Update: Katie Antypas briefed members on new awards, leadership-class computing plans, NAIRR, cybersecurity initiatives, and future directions for data services.
FAIR Model Discussion: Kelvin Droegemeier sparked a productive debate on indirect cost rates and institutional research funding.
Wednesday, September 24
Positions Committee Workgroup Report: Updates on regional collaborations for research computing were shared.
International HPC Communities Panel: CASC partnered with UK and Nordic colleagues to explore shared governance, funding models, and potential global HPC networks.
Internet2 Update: Leaders discussed aligning strategies to support AI and regional RCD ecosystems through collaboration.
University of Minnesota Partnerships: Highlighted successful integration of research computing with medical, neuroscience, and policy research.
Industry Partnerships Panel: Focused on strengthening RCD-industry collaborations while navigating institutional ROI requirements.
Themed Discussions: Members brainstormed 2026 CASC position paper topics and next steps for collective action.
Lightning Talks
Short talks throughout the meeting highlighted new platforms, consortium initiatives, and CASC democratization efforts. Updates included CASC’s Democratization focus, CloudBank, NSF Cosmos, ROI consortium work, OneSciencePlace, CSSI and NAIRR awards, and PEARC26 announcements.
Key Themes from Fall 2025
CASC must remain proactive in a rapidly shifting policy environment.
Demonstrating ROI in cyberinfrastructure is essential for institutional and federal support.
Regional, national, and international collaborations are critical for HPC and RCD growth.
Broadening engagement beyond R1 institutions remains central to CASC’s mission.
Stronger academic and industry partnerships amplify research impact and create new opportunities for members.
CASC thanks all members and guests for making Fall 2025 a productive and inspiring meeting. Please join us on March 23-26, 2026, at George Mason University Arlington Campus.