Scientists and students at the University of Washington gathered at Kane Hall on Monday to protest the Trump administration’s proposed 2026 federal budget, which they say could severely undermine scientific research and innovation.
The “Kill the Cuts” rally brought together dozens of researchers alarmed by the proposal to slash more than half of the National Science Foundation’s budget, along with significant reductions to the National Institutes of Health and the Department of Energy’s Office of Science. Computer science graduate student Carina Imburgia said the attacks on science are already having an effect, noting that “critical research is actively being stalled or going away” and that her own department has already experienced layoffs.
The University of Washington is one of the nation’s top recipients of federal research funding, and attendees stressed the far-reaching implications of the cuts. Mari Ostendorf, the university’s vice provost for research, pointed out that every dollar in research funding directly supports work that leads to innovations improving lives both in Washington state and across the country.
According to organizers, the proposed reductions could lead to job losses, stalled grants, and tighter budgets across UW’s research programs. Federal lawmakers were urged to step in, with Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., attending the rally to call for congressional action to preserve science funding.
Imburgia emphasized that losing the necessary resources to conduct essential research would be “a huge loss to the scientific community,” underscoring the urgency for Congress to fully fund research in the 2026 budget.
