When Doug Hudson ’75 was a child, he remembers being terrified of polio, and with good reason. In 1952, the year before he was born, nearly 58,000 Americans contracted the disease, and 3,200 died. But by his fourth birthday, those rates had plummeted by more than 90 percent, and decades later, polio would be a distant memory. This dramatic change was all thanks to the development of the polio vaccine.
“Polio left a mark on an entire generation,” Hudson says. “People just a few years older than me are still living with the effects of having had it as children. So it’s never been lost on me that scientific research matters.”
That lesson was hammered home by watching his father, Lincoln Hudson ’51 MEng, lead teams of engineers who designed guidance and control systems for the Apollo missions that first put man on the moon.
“My dad loved to talk about how discoveries from the Apollo missions ended up shaping our way of life,” Hudson says, noting that everything from computer microchips and CAT scans to cordless tools and GPS was accelerated by NASA research. “Pulling the plug on a research project is not just ending one line of inquiry, it’s cutting off all the possibilities that could have grown out of it.”
These reasons are why Hudson has chosen to give to Yale’s Research Resilience Fund, which provides short term funding to support researchers across the university whose projects are facing sudden federal cuts. His gift was part of a Yale College reunion giving challenge for the Class of 1975, which was one of three challenges supporting the fund.
“What concerns me most is seeing long-running research programs have the rug yanked out from under them after years of work,” Hudson says. “At the very least, the best of those projects deserve to be put on life support until more permanent funding can be secured, and that’s what the Research Resilience Fund is all about.”
An Uncertain Research Environment
Hudson is one of dozens of donors who have chosen to support the fund, which the provost’s office established this spring to shield Yale’s research community from budget shortfalls.
“The current environment is chaotic and unpredictable,” says Vice Provost for Research Michael Crair, who notes that Yale researchers have seen more than 100 grants terminated or suspended, in some cases wiping out all federal support for a faculty member’s work. While some awards have been reinstated, the majority remain affected.
“One of our faculty members has been tracking the genetics of malaria in West Africa for a decade,” says Megan Ranney, dean of the School of Public Health. “When her federal grants were canceled, the future of her life-saving work was uncertain. Thanks to the Research Resilience Fund, she was able to keep her team employed while she found new funding sources, including partnerships with industry, allowing her research to continue without interruption.”
Proposed cuts to some federal agencies and systemic changes to policies for reimbursement of critical research expenses (known as facilities and administrative costs) could further jeopardize critical projects, all while a significantly higher endowment tax puts additional pressure on the university’s budget. Policies that curtail international collaborations, limit grant applications, and more undermine progress to research that saves lives, powers the American economy, and bolsters national competitiveness.
By providing rapid, flexible funding, the Research Resilience Fund allows faculty to maintain momentum, keep staff employed, and continue their training of students while they find new sources of financial support for their research programs.
“Science thrives when researchers can take risks and aim high,” says Yale Engineering Dean Jeff Brock. “This fund is absolutely critical for giving faculty the support they need to keep asking those big questions, even in the midst of uncertainty.”
Rallying Around Research
For many alumni, the fund’s creation struck a chord of both gratitude and responsibility. Camille Chwalek ’75 says she was “thrilled” to see an opportunity to help protect critical research.
“It seems like every morning I wake up to an email from Yale about some marvelous new research happening across the university,” she says. “I’m a big believer in science, and I’m grateful for everything researchers have done to make our lives better—healthier, more knowledgeable, more connected. It feels like my responsibility to do my small part to make sure that progress isn’t lost.”
That sense of responsibility resonated with many of her classmates, who saw the fund as a way to transform concern into concrete action.
“It’s an urgent need,” says Gordon Burns ’75. “Behind every research grant are people who’ve devoted their lives to discovery. When that funding disappears, we all lose. Without research and discovery, we wouldn’t be where we are today, or capable of improving our lives going forward.”
An Opportunity
Alumni celebrating Yale College reunions this spring now have an opportunity to amplify their impact. Inspired by last year’s challenge, a generous donor has called upon fellow Yalies in the 1s and 6s to support research with a special $1 million challenge.
Donors making gifts of $50,000 or more* to the Research Resilience Fund will receive Yale College reunion class credit for double the amount of their gift and will be invited to hear updates from university leaders on the initiative.
Alternately, gifts under $50,000 can be made to the new Yale College Alumni Fund/Sciences: Research Resilience designation and will receive regular reunion credit.
If you have already made your reunion gift, thank you for your support. To learn more or make a gift, please contact Chris Seager at christine.seager@yale.edu before June 30, 2026.
*Eligible for this double credit are donors with Yale College reunions in spring 2026 making individual gifts and gift intentions of $50,000 or more to support Research Resilience. Bequests and group gifts are not eligible. Only the actual amount of the donor’s gift or gift intention will be counted in the reported For Humanity campaign total and entered in the donor’s record. Gifts can be made up to June 30, 2026.