About Us
The SECURE Center is a non-government, independent entity formed to address foreign government interference, support security-informed decision-making, and serve as a conduit that connects research community stakeholders with one another and with U.S. government (USG) agencies via NSF. The SECURE Center is led by the University of Washington’s Center on Collaborative Systems for Security, Safety, and Resilience (CoSSaR).
About Us
The SECURE Center is a non-government, independent entity formed to address foreign government interference, support security-informed decision-making, and serve as a conduit that connects research community stakeholders with one another and with U.S. government (USG) agencies via NSF. The SECURE Center is led by the University of Washington.
SECURE Center Location
The SECURE Center operates as a mostly virtual organization with team members and activities happening throughout the U.S.
The National Center is located in Seattle, Washington at the University of Washington.
The Regional Centers are based out of Boston, Massachusetts at Northeastern University; Atlanta, Georgia at Emory University; Kansas City, Missouri at the University of Missouri; College Station, Texas at Texas A & M University; Fort Collins, Colorado at Colorado State University; and Seattle, Washington at the University of Washington.
The Expert and Values Areas are based out of Starkville, Mississippi at Mississippi State University; South Bend, Indiana at Notre Dame University; Palo Alto, California at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University; Ann Arbor, Michigan at the University of Michigan; Cincinnati, Ohio at the University of Cincinnati; Charleston, South Carolina at MindCette, LLC; and Raleigh, North Carolina at Impulsion Consulting, LLC.
SECURE Center Timeline
The NSF SECURE Center was awarded to the University of Washington (PI: Dr. Mark Haselkorn) with a funding period of September 1, 2024 through August 31, 2029. We expect to launch a set of initial products and services (Minimum Viable Products, or MVP) during Year 1; make further progress to support the duties as outlined in the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022 in Year 2; and perform all duties completely by the end of Year 5. Any opinions, findings and conclusions or recommendations expressed are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. National Science Foundation.
Why Does the SECURE Center Exist?
Every day, security and integrity violations disrupt and subvert the success of critical research that greatly benefits the United States and the world. At the same time, major scientific breakthroughs and technical developments occur through collaborative efforts that include international partners.
To help the research community mitigate foreign threats to the security and integrity of the U.S. research enterprise, Section 10338(a) of the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022 directed the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) to establish a Research Security & Integrity Information Sharing Analysis Organization, which has subsequently been rebranded the NSF SECURE Center, standing for Safeguarding the Entire Community of the U.S. Research Ecosystem.
NSF published solicitation NSF 23-613 seeking proposals from organizations interested in establishing and running the NSF SECURE Center, a non-government entity that will form a bridge between the U.S. Government and the research community to empower the research community to meet research security requirements by providing information, tools, and other services.
Timeline
Location
Mission
Strategic Goals
Vision
Deliver a shared virtual environment that research community members use to enhance the security of the value they produce, without harming the collaboration that is critical to their production of that value.
Our Values
Collaborate with and help integrate a research community that achieves enhanced security based on integrity, respect, trust, openness, and sharing.
5
Enhance the capacity, situational awareness and equitable access of the research community as they make security-informed decisions.
4
Deliver a Shared Virtual Environment (SVE) where community members can come together in a safe, protected, supportive environment to learn from and share co-created solutions.
3
Develop and apply a structured, collaborative process that brings together research security community members, designers, and developers to identify their most urgent and high-impact challenges to co-create practical, effective solutions that address those needs.
2
Build and inspire community, collaborative spirit, trust, and shared solution ownership among the research community and funding agencies.
1
Develop, maintain and sustain the SECURE Center as an organization to support the research community.
Year 1 Strategic Goals
Our Values
1
Navigating Open and Secure Research
It is in the American tradition to champion scientific innovations which contribute to the security and economic wellbeing of the US, while also navigating the challenges those innovations present to national security.
2
Empowering Researchers
Researchers are on the front-lines of research security. We want to empower those most impacted both by security risk and the burdens of security policy, understand what these mean for their research and communities, and how to plan/navigate the best path forward.
3
Minimizing Burden
With increased regulation, increases in work, processes, and responsibilities follow. The Center will provide tools and space for discussion to comply with these requirements efficiently, reducing administrative workloads.
4
Enabling secure research within emerging research institutions, nonprofit research institutions, and small to medium businesses
The Center will support institutions new to, or on the threshold of meeting, research security guidelines and requirements by developing resources and tools, and forums to connect with peers.
5
Sustainability
The NSF SECURE Center will provide the US Research Ecosystem with lasting value and long-term vision. The Center will adapt to novel challenges and provide resources for the ongoing protection of the ecosystem, ensuring the burden of these challenges does not unevenly fall on emerging and nonprofit research institutions and small to medium businesses.
6
Sustaining international scientific collaborations
Global collaboration is essential to innovation and to addressing complex, shared challenges. We aim to support researchers and institutions in maintaining strong international partnerships while navigating evolving research security considerations in ways that preserve openness, trust, and scientific progress.