EVOLUTION INADVERTENTLY OMITTED BY DOE?
"Like a gap in the fossil record, evolutionary biology is missing from
a
list of majors that the U.S. Department of Education has deemed
eligible
for a new federal grant program designed to reward students majoring
in
engineering, mathematics, science, or certain foreign languages," the
Chronicle of Higher Education (August 22, 2006) reported. The grants
--
called Smart Grants, after the National Science and Mathematics Access
to
Retain Talent program -- were authorized by Congress in 2005 with
President Bush's support. The Chronicle suggested that the absence
of
evolutionary biology from the list "apparently indicates that students
in
the evolutionary sciences do not qualify for the grants," adding,
"and
some observers are wondering whether the omission was
deliberate."
On August 17, 2006, Lawrence M. Krauss of Case Western Reserve
University
expressed his concern to the Department of Education, which
administers
the Smart Grants, describing the omission of evolutionary biology as
"a
serious omission." He subsequently told the Chronicle, "I'm not
making
any accusations," but added, "I'm concerned it's not there." A
spokesperson for the Department of Education speculated that the
absence
of evolution from the list was a "clerical consolidation of some kind."
A
blank line appears in the list in lieu of 26.1303, where evolutionary
biology would normally have appeared; the only other such blank line
in
the section of the list for life sciences is 26.0908: Exercise
Physiology. Evolution is, however, mentioned elsewhere in the
list.
Two days after the Chronicle broke the story, both New Scientist and
The
New York Times provided further details. The Times (August 24, 2006)
reported that a spokesperson for the Department of Education described
the
omission of evolutionary biology as inadvertent: "There is no
explanation
for it being left off the list ... It has always been an eligible major."
And a press release (August 24, 2006) from the Department of
Education
states, "The misunderstanding occurred as the result of a draft
document
that omitted evolutionary biology from a list of majors put forth for
use
by colleges. As soon as the omission came to our attention, we took
steps
to correct it. However, regardless of its omission on that one
document,
evolutionary biology was and continues to be SMART grant
eligible."
Not everyone was wholly convinced by the explanation. Barmak Nassirian
of
the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions
Officers
told the Times, "I am not at all certain that the omission of this
particular major is unintentional," adding, "But I have to take them
at
their word." NCSE's Glenn Branch told New Scientist (August 24,
2006),
"On its own, it's not really a smoking gun ... But in the context of
actions that other people in the federal government have taken, it is
suspicious." Krauss told the Times, "Removing that one major is not
going
to make the nation stupid, but if this really was removed,
specifically
removed, then I see it as part of a pattern to put ideology over
knowledge." And Steven W. Rissing of Ohio State University commented,
"We
are doing a terrible disservice to our students if this is yet
another
example of making sure science doesnt offend anyone."
For the story in the Chronicle of Higher Education, visit:
For Krauss's e-mail to the Department of Education, visit:
For the list from which evolution is absent (PDF), visit:
For the story in The New York Times, visit:
For the Department of Education's press release, visit:
For the story in New Scientist, visit:
3:20:24 PM 
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