Director of MIT’s Washington Office stepping down

Dear colleagues,

I write with the news that the longtime director of the MIT Washington Office, David Goldston, has decided to step down this spring. His last day in the role will be April 30.

MIT’s ambassador in Washington, DC

In 1991, then–MIT President Chuck Vest established the MIT Washington Office to champion federal support for university research, and to serve, in effect, as MIT’s "embassy" in the nation’s capital. Since David took on the director’s post in 2017, he has been the Institute’s most important ambassador to federal policymakers, from Congress and funding agencies to the White House.

Serving as a dynamic two-way connector, David has injected MIT’s perspective into pivotal policy discussions across Washington, built bridges between key government players and MIT faculty and student research leads, and alerted MIT’s senior leaders to emerging opportunities and vulnerabilities in DC. Having attended many meetings with policymakers with David as my guide, I can attest to his gifts as an interpreter of the ways of Washington.

David's record of accomplishments for the Institute

David brought to MIT more than 20 years of Capitol Hill expertise, mainly in advancing science and environmental policy, from his work as the first director of government affairs for the Natural Resources Defense Council, a leading US environmental group, to six years as chief of staff for the US House Committee on Science.

From the start, he set out to give MIT a leading voice in informing government policy related to reseach, innovation and higher ed, and his results have been deeply consequential and far-reaching.

On MIT’s behalf, he worked closely with then-President Rafael Reif to help develop and enact what became the science portion of the "CHIPS and Science Act."  While playing a key role in MIT’s internal process for evaluating proposed Institute interactions with China, Russia and Saudi Arabia, he also helped develop MIT’s overall approach to China and shape the 2022 report "University Engagement with China: An MIT Approach," often cited as a model for other institutions.

To close the gap of understanding, he brought dozens of Congressional staff and members of Congress to campus for briefings. He also helped develop, write and disseminate MIT’s AI Policy Briefs, was an active participant in the MIT Work of the Future project and its reports – and advised both me and my predecessor on a wide range of strategic communications.

Currently, he also serves on three committees at the National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine – the advisory panel for Climate Crossroads, the Academies’ flagship effort on climate; the Board on Science Education; and a committee focused on the impact of the reversal of the Chevron doctrine.

Every year, David also made time to work with MIT students interested in science policy, including teaching a weeklong class on the subject each spring, an endeavor he particularly loves.

As David prepares to leave, I take this opportunity to express how deeply I appreciate his insight, acumen and judgment, as well as his moral compass and sense of humor. Much of his work was behind the scenes, but his contributions are unmistakable. I believe he made a huge difference for MIT and for the cause of university research – and thereby for the nation and the world. Please join me in thanking David for his extraordinary service.

Next steps

In the wake of David’s decision, and given the importance of our engagement with every tier of government, we will immediately launch a search for a new vice president for government affairs (VPGA).

The VPGA will advance the Institute’s educational and policy interests at the federal, state, city and community levels and will serve as my senior advisor on government engagement. Going forward, both our local Office of Government and Community Relations and the MIT Washington Office will report to the VPGA, who will move quickly to appoint a new director for the DC office.

I’m grateful to Maria Zuber, presidential advisor for science and technology policy, who has agreed to oversee our DC staff and strategy until the VPGA is in place.

Sincerely,

Sally Kornbluth
President