Lab names Laura Gilliom University Relations director
Laura R. Gilliom, manager of Sandia National Laboratories’ Advanced
Design and Production Technology Program and an organic chemist, has been
named director of the Lab’s University Relations Program.
She will begin her appointment on June 11.
"I have always enjoyed working at the intersection of science and
national security. I absolutely resonate with what the three national
security labs are doing, so moving out to Livermore is natural for me,"
said Gilliom.
As URP director, Gilliom will oversee the day-to-day activities of university-Laboratory
collaborative research programs and institutes, and will continue the
effective interactions and relationships between the University of California
Office of the President, UC Davis and UC Merced administrations. She also
will oversee the activities of the Science and Technology Education Program,
as well as the five institutes — the Center for Accelerator Mass
Spectrometry, the Institute for Geophysics and Planetary Physics, the
Institute for Scientific Computing Research, the Materials Research Institute
and the Institute for Laser Science and Applications.
Gilliom said she was enticed by Livermore’s relationship with the
UC system as well as LLNL’s culture of "risk-taking, innovation
and creativity."
"University relations are relatively low-key at Sandia. But Livermore
is uniquely positioned to capitalize on the best university system in
the world. Getting the top people in and pulling in ideas is going to
be awfully important for the work we need to do in support of Livermore’s
mission."
"In the coming years, there will be increased emphasis on recruiting
and retention of the critical skills in the National Nuclear Security
Administration-funded programs at the laboratories," said Deputy
Director Jeff Wadsworth in announcing Gilliom’s selection. "Dr.
Gilliom’s experience with the NNSA’s national security missions
positions her well for meeting these challenges at the laboratories. She
brings significant strengths to this position, including outstanding communication
skills, broad experience in both leadership and management assignments,
and proven ability to build programs."
Gilliom has been at Sandia since 1985, initially working as a member of
the technical staff in materials science. Since that time, she has held
increasingly challenging management positions involving leadership of
exploratory research in diverse technical fields. Assignments have included
supervisor of SNL’s Chemical Instrumentation Research Division, a
management staff member of the National Security Sector Program Office,
manager of the Enhanced Surveillance Program and the Strategic Surety
Program, and a deputy within the Nuclear Weapons Program.
From 1991-93 she served as technical adviser at the Department of Energy,
Defense Programs, interacting with Sandia, Los Alamos and Lawrence Livermore
laboratories, as well as headquarters staff.
As manager of the Distributed Systems Assurance Department, a position
she has held since 1997, she significantly grew Sandia’s red-teaming
effort over a two-year timeframe. She also initiated and managed a large
internal LDRD investment in secure agent technology.
Gilliom earned her doctorate in organic chemistry from the California
Institute of Technology in 1986 and her bachelor’s degree in chemistry
from Princeton in 1980. She is married and has two daughters.
Gilliom replaces Harry Radousky, who has served as the acting URP director
since 1980. "I want to sincerely thank Harry for his leadership over
the last year and his continuing commitment to the organization,"
Wadsworth said.