Members of the KeystoneREN leadership team participated in the colocated 2025 NSF CC* PI Workshop and Quilt Winter Member Meeting which was held February 3-6, 2025 in Tempe, AZ at the Tempe Mission Palms Hotel. The NSF CC* PI Workshop was the largest since the Quilt began hosting the PI workshop and saw nearly 180 attendees representing NSF-funded CC* projects from across the country spanning all areas of the NSF CC* program. Several members of the KeystoneREN leadership team and board were in attendance representing KeystoneREN and its higher education and research community at both events.

Wayne Figurelle, Assistant Director for Innovation and Outreach, Institute for Computational & Data Sciences (ICDS), Penn State University, and PI presented an update on the PA Science DMZ project as part of the CC* project briefs General Session on Tues. Feb. 4th.

Figurelle discussed status updates on the PA Science DMZ project and the benefits of Science DMZ architecture to the five participating campuses including Penn State University, Lafayette College, Swarthmore College, Indiana University of Pennsylvania, and Digital Foundry Penn State New Kensington.

On Wed. Feb. 5th KeystoneREN board chair Carrie Rampp, vice president and chief information officer, Franklin & Marshall College, presented as part of a panel discussion focused on Building a Campus Computing Center: Key Considerations for Research and Education Success which featured PIs from several Campus Compute initiatives sharing insights on building and sustaining their campus compute environments.

Wendy Huntoon, Strategic Consultant, KeystoneREN, led a pre-conference workshop on How to Submit a Compelling CC* Grant and Addressing other CI Challenges for Emerging Research Institutions and also facilitated a workshop breakout session on Grant Administration Best Practices: Reporting, Budgeting, and Beyond.

Other highlights of the NSF CC* PI Workshop included general sessions focused on NSF Program Impacts for Emerging Research Institutions (ERIs) and the Importance of Regional and National CI Resources as Collaborators, REN Assistance in Providing and Coordinating Regional CI Resources, and a KeystoneREN hosted lunch discussion table for NSF CC* PIs from Pennsylvania attending the workshop.

The 2025 Quilt Winter Member Meeting, which brought together staff and leadership from Research and Education Networks across the national Quilt Membership, immediately followed the 2025 NSF CC* PI Workshop and focused on opportunities and challenges facing RENs and their stakeholders. The semi-annual gathering is an opportunity for the R&E community to convene to share resources, best practices, and develop collaboration opportunities that benefit their respective R&E communities across the United States. Highlights of the Quilt Member Meeting included a presentation by Jason Zurawski, ESNet, on Science Driven Requirements for 400Gbps Networking and a panel discussion on Insights into CENIC AI Resource (CENIC AIR) which provides California’s research and education communities a platform for their faculty and students to contribute constructively to AI/ML research and collaborate with colleagues nationwide over the same infrastructure. KeystoneREN staff also participated in Quilt Member Working Groups including the Services Working Group, Member Development/Communications Working Group, and the CEO Roundtable.

Slides and other archived materials from most presentations from both meetings are available online at 2025 NSF CC* PI Workshop and Quilt Winter Member Meeting.