Consortium of Social Science Associations

What Consortium of Social Science Associations does

The Consortium of Social Science Associations (COSSA) is a nonprofit advocacy organization founded in 1981 in response to proposed Reagan-era budget cuts to social and behavioral sciences at the National Science Foundation. Headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia (Washington, DC metro), COSSA operates as a membership consortium of approximately 100 organizations across five categories: Governing Members (major disciplinary associations such as the American Economic Association, American Political Science Association, American Psychological Association, and American Sociological Association), other Membership Organizations, Colleges and Universities, Research Centers and Institutes, and Private Sector Affiliates. The organization advocates for sustainable federal funding for social and behavioral science research and for the integration of social science evidence in federal policymaking, engaging directly with Congress, federal agencies (notably NSF and NIH), and the executive branch on appropriations, policy, and regulatory matters.

COSSA does not sell technology products; its core deliverables are policy analysis (e.g., FY 2027 House CJS and LHHS appropriations bill analyses), a biweekly Washington Update newsletter, the annual Social Science Advocacy Day event, action alerts via its Action Center, and coalition letters and Congressional testimony. The organization attributes two landmark institutional outcomes to its advocacy — the creation of the NSF Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences Directorate and the NIH Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research. The team consists of three primary staff members (Executive Director Wendy Naus, Director of Public Affairs Elyse Bailey, Associate Director of Government Relations Kenzie Shelstad) supplemented by rolling undergraduate interns.

The revenue model is subscription/recurring membership dues across the five member categories, supplemented by public donations accepted through a GivingFuel portal. Pricing is not publicly disclosed and interested members are directed to contact the organization. Operating geographies are strictly domestic (United States). Recent activity has centered on mobilizing against proposed elimination of the NSF SBE Directorate under the current administration, including a "Save SBE" toolkit and a public survey on the impact of federal funding cuts on social and behavioral science research.

Name

Consortium of Social Science Associations

Legal name

Consortium of Social Science Associations

Website

https://cossa.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1981

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

COSSA is a nonprofit advocacy consortium founded in 1981 that unites approximately 100 member organizations — including major disciplinary associations, universities, and research institutes — to promote and protect federal funding for social and behavioral science research in Washington, DC.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Washington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: COSSA generates revenue through membership fees from professional associations, scientific societies, research centers, universities, and private sector partners across five membership categories (Governing Members, Membership Organizations, Colleges and Universities, Research Centers and Institutes, Private Sector Affiliates).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

COSSA is a nonprofit advocacy consortium that represents the interests of social and behavioral scientists in federal policymaking, with a core mission of ensuring federal policy decisions are informed by sound scientific evidence from the social and behavioral sciences. Founded in 1981 and headquartered in Alexandria, VA, COSSA serves approximately 100 member organizations through coordinated legislative advocacy, federal funding advocacy, policy analysis, and member communications.

Product overview

COSSA is a nonprofit advocacy organization that promotes and advances social and behavioral sciences in federal policymaking. The organization provides advocacy services, policy analysis, a biweekly Washington Update newsletter, and organizes the annual Social Science Advocacy Day event. Membership includes approximately 100 organizations across five categories: Governing Members, Membership Organizations, Colleges and Universities, Research Centers and Institutes, and Private Sector Affiliates.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• COSSA: Common acronym for Consortium of Social Science Associations used as an abbreviated name

Products and services

• COSSA Membership Institutional membership offered across five categories to U.S.-based universities, research institutions, professional associations, and scholarly societies that support social and behavioral science research; members receive access to coordinated federal advocacy, policy analysis, and member communications.
• Federal Policy Advocacy Direct advocacy services on Capitol Hill and with federal agencies to support funding and policy favorable to social and behavioral science research, delivered on behalf of member organizations.
• COSSA Newsletter and Policy Updates Member-facing communications service providing subscribers and member institutions with regular updates on federal agency, congressional, and policy developments relevant to social and behavioral science research.
• Coalition Advocacy Coordination Coordination service uniting COSSA members with peer coalitions to deliver joint advocacy campaigns, congressional briefings, and shared public statements on research funding and policy issues.

Quantifiable outcome

• Created the Social, Behavioral and Economic (SBE) Sciences Directorate at the National Science Foundation
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Why Social ScienceminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCOSSA partners with the Why Social Science initiative, an educational campaign explaining the importance of social science research. This partnership supports COSSA's mission to raise the profile of social and behavioral science research by promoting public understanding of the value of asking people questions to gain important insights.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• American Association of Universities (AAU) - listed above; using alternative: See AAU entry above.
• Research!America: Research!America is a nonprofit advocacy alliance dedicated to increasing federal funding for health and medical research, with a coalition model uniting academia, industry, and patient groups. It parallels COSSA's coalition advocacy structure for R&D funding and public-engagement mission (like COSSA's 'Why Social Science' initiative).
• Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB): FASEB is a coalition of biomedical research societies that advocates for federal life sciences funding at NIH and NSF. FASEB's disciplinary coalition model — multiple scientific societies pooling resources for advocacy — is structurally identical to COSSA, though focused on biological rather than social/behavioral sciences.
• American Council on Education (ACE): ACE is the major coordinating body for U.S. higher education institutions in federal policy advocacy, representing colleges and universities on appropriations, research policy, and student aid. ACE shares COSSA's coalition model of bringing together institutions to lobby Congress on research funding, but at broader higher-education scope.
• American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS): AAAS is the largest general scientific society advocacy organization in Washington, DC, running the Science & Technology Policy Fellowship and active federal R&D advocacy. Like COSSA, AAAS advocates for federal science funding and serves as a unified voice for the scientific community, though with broader scope across all sciences versus COSSA's social/behavioral focus.
• National Humanities Alliance (NHA): NHA advocates for federal funding of humanities research and education, serving as a coalition voice for humanities scholarship in Washington. NHA is the closest disciplinary analog to COSSA, sharing both structure (membership coalition of associations and institutions) and political environment (federal appropriations advocacy).
• Council on Governmental Relations (COGR): COGR is an association of research universities and medical centers that focuses specifically on the regulatory and policy environment for federal research funding, including grants compliance and indirect costs. COGR overlaps with COSSA on research-funding advocacy but emphasizes administrative policy rather than disciplinary advocacy.

Broad incumbents

• American Psychological Association (APA): APA is both a COSSA governing member and a substantially larger scientific society that runs its own federal advocacy operation. APA overlaps with COSSA on psychology research funding advocacy but operates its own Government Relations office, making it both a peer and a customer/member.

Emerging players

• American Educational Research Association (AERA): AERA is a major COSSA governing member that itself conducts federal advocacy for education research funding. While smaller than COSSA's broad coalition, AERA is comparable as a discipline-specific advocacy organization that depends on federal research dollars and engages with NSF and ED appropriations.
• American Sociological Association (ASA): ASA is one of COSSA's founding governing members and conducts discipline-specific advocacy for sociology research funding. ASA parallels COSSA's mission at the discipline level rather than the cross-disciplinary coalition level.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cossadc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Consortium of Social Science Associations