W. M. Keck Foundation Provides Bridge Funding to Support Early Career Scientists Amid Federal Funding Uncertainty:
The W. M. Keck Foundation announced $76 million in total grantmaking for 2025, including a one-time bridge funding initiative designed to support early career scientists navigating reductions in federal research funding. The special initiative increased the Foundation’s annual investment in basic research grants by over 50 percent.
Through its Keck Scholar-Fellow Bridge Initiative, the Foundation provided two-year grants to 75 pairs of promising faculty members and their Ph.D. students at California institutions, funding doctoral student support and essential research expenses during a period of significant uncertainty in the federal funding landscape.
With this funding the Foundation aims to provide continuity in the research and training pipeline that drives American innovation.