Cherry A. Murray, Dean of Harvard’s School of Engineering and Applied Sciences since 2009, has been appointed to the U.S. Secretary of Energy Advisory Board, the U.S. Department of Energy announced in August.
In that role she, along with the 18 other scientists, engineers, and former government officials drawn from a variety of institutions, will advise U.S. Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz on issues ranging from research activities to national security policy.
Murray will sit on the science subcommittee of the board and will take part in quarterly meetings.
Although her new appointment represents an additional commitment outside her role as dean, Murray noted that her involvement in the board might foster connections that could benefit SEAS affiliates.
“I believe that serving on committees like this is beneficial to Harvard: to be engaged in Washington and to be able to connect SEAS faculty and students with people in government and at other important science and engineering institutions,” Murray wrote in an email.
This is not the first time Murray has been asked to serve in an advisory role in government. In June 2010, President Barack Obama appointed Murray to the national commission that investigated the BP oil spill to prevent future spills from offshore drilling. In January 2011, the seven-member committee released its final report to the President, and Murray’s involvement ended shortly thereafter.
Since 2008, Murray has also served as chair of the National Research Council’s Division of Engineering and Physical Sciences. Murray’s term as chair will end in January 2014, a change that Murray wrote “will free up a significant amount of time to undertake my new responsibilities to the Secretary of Energy Advisory Board.”
Murray, who received her B.S. and Ph.D. in physics from MIT, is also the John A. and Elizabeth S. Armstrong Professor of Engineering and Applied Sciences.
Moniz, who began his term in May 2013 following the departure of former Secretary of Energy Steven Chu, praised the intellect and diversity of the newly appointed Secretary of Energy Advisory Board.
“These individuals represent some of the best and brightest in their respective fields and it is a great privilege that they have agreed to offer their expertise to the Energy Department,” Moniz said in a press release. “Having a diverse set of voices around the table will ensure that the Department has a strategic approach to the nation’s energy, science, nuclear security, and environmental stewardship future.”
—Staff writer Brian C. Zhang can be reached at brian.zhang@thecrimson.com. Follow him on Twitter @brianczhang.
Read more in Faculty News
Harvard Affiliates Discuss SyriaRecommended Articles
-
Computational Science And Engineering Introduces Masters ProgramsFor the first time, the School of Engineering and Applied Science is accepting applications for its new graduate degree programs in Computational Science and Engineering. Students can now apply to pursue a Master of Science or a Master of Engineering in the field.
-
Joseph E. Murray Dies at 93More than half a century after Joseph E. Murray made history by conducting the first successful human organ transplant in 1954, he drove for four hours to attend the funerary services of an old patient—the man who had donated his kidney in that original surgery.
-
SEAS Anticipates Growth in Faculty Numbers
-
With Space and Personnel at a Premium, SEAS To Increase Faculty by Nearly 30 PercentFacing constraints in manpower and space, the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences is set to make twenty new tenure-track hires and is preparing for its building projects in Allston, SEAS Dean Cherry A. Murray told The Crimson in an interview this week.
-
America is Coming Apart, Libertarian Author Says at IOP
-
Dean of SEAS Joins Board of Directors for Photonics Company