Jenny Carlson Donnelly, who earned her doctorate in entomology from UC Davis with a focus on vector-borne diseases, was recently featured in the New York Times “Lost Science” column. The article examined the impact of job losses among scientists following funding cuts by the Trump administration. Donnelly lost her position as a Malaria Outbreak Emergency Advisor at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) earlier this year.
USAID, established in 1961 to provide international development and humanitarian assistance, was dismantled as part of these cuts. Before joining USAID in 2018, Donnelly conducted postdoctoral research on malaria mosquitoes at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Donnelly described the loss: “USAID was the first agency to go down,” she told reporter Alexas Robles-Gil. “I knew I was going to lose my job, but I didn’t know when or how. I was initially terminated as a probationary person in February, but because of incorrect paperwork and reinstatements, my termination date was July.”
She added: “For me, my career was over. I had spent years working up to that, and I would never again be able to do what I did as an entomologist there. It was just a complete loss. This research mattered because we were training people in each country to collect this data on their own. We invested a lot of money in building these insectaries or laboratories, and then it just suddenly stopped.”
Robles-Gil noted that Donnelly “built her career as an entomologist believing that science and data could help save lives.”
Now employed by Becton and Dickinson in urology, Donnelly commented on Facebook: “Grateful to the New York Times for this series and for documenting what is being lost in science and public health. While this piece centers on my experience, the real story is much bigger. It reflects the impact of the USAID shutdown on the communities we served, and on the partners, colleagues, and local teams who have been doing the hard, often invisible work on the ground for years. This is work that doesn’t make headlines when it’s happening, only when it’s gone.
“These stories help make visible the expertise, relationships, and trust that take decades to build, and only moments to dismantle. I’m thankful this reporting gives voice to the scientists and practitioners behind the data, and helps make visible what’s at stake when investment in public health and science falters.”
The New York Times article has attracted attention online with comments recognizing both Donnelly’s contributions and those of other affected professionals.
Donnelly emphasized: “I think for me it’s just important that we keep telling our stories! Storytelling is sometimes all we have to do to make a difference, even if it’s just to not let people forget!!!!”
