Tim Killeen shares his vision of NCAR, present and future

NCAR director Tim Killeen

by Lynda Lester On 29 November 2000, Tim Killeen shared his vision of NCAR at his first staff "town meeting" since becoming director on 1 July. At two open sessions, one in the morning at Foothills Lab and one in the afternoon at the Mesa Lab, he covered four main topics: Institutional priorities NCAR's resource base Program highlights The strategic planning process Institutional priorities Tim cited the original reasons (from 1959) for establishing a "National Institute for Atmospheric Research." These reasons are still compelling, he said: We need to mount an attack on fundamental atmospheric problems of a global nature; this requires facilities and technology beyond that available at universities. As in 1959, difficult atmospheric problems require interdisciplinary coordination of talented individuals and collaboration between research and education. Tim noted that NCAR is in the midst of three revolutions: the rapid advance of information technology, the convergence of atmospheric and earth-system sciences, and the synthesis of research and education. In the context of emerging national initiatives, NCAR can integrate research and tools across disciplines and institutions. High-quality science applied to society will be increasingly important for decision makers in the next decade, and NCAR will have an important role to play. Valuing people is an NCAR priority, Tim said. He observed that due to flat funding over the past six years, the number of young scientists at NCAR has declined. Funding is expected to increase, however, and NCAR is in the process of hiring four new scientist Is. Although NCAR matches the national average for hiring women and minorities, Tim is dissatisfied: "We should be leading." He discussed UCAR-wide efforts to improve diversity and mentoring: the Diversity Task Group report and NCAR mentoring guidelines report are available on the web. Plans are also in place to implement recommendations in a report (available internally to UCAR staff) submitted this year by the American Physical Society's Committee on the Status of Women in Physics. Tim reviewed the UCAR-wide education and outreach strategic plan, whose mission is "to advance and support education and training at all levels and to promote scientific literacy in all areas that relate to the earth's atmosphere." Examples include: Project LEARN (Laboratory Experience in Atmospheric Research at NCAR) SOARS (Significant Opportunities in Atmospheric Research and Science) The Mesa Lab visitor center, which 74,000 people visit annually Tim also noted the healthy numbers of NCAR scientific visitors (480) and the collaborative publications (1042) in 1999. NCAR's resource base Tim stated that 62% of NCAR funding in FY1999 came through National Science Foundation (NSF) regular funding, 6% through NSF special funding, and 32% through other sources. NCAR's budget has not kept pace with inflation, but funding may increase. A new NCAR budget process will relate sources and uses of funds to sectional, division, center-wide, and agency priorities. Program highlights To comply with the Government Performance Report Act (GRPA), each federal agency (including NSF) must report its performance to congress. Many of NSF's success stories in matching its goals come from NCAR research, Tim said, noting that "we're doing well to make a case for NSF to the federal government." He cited a number of noteworthy projects being pursued at NCAR. The strategic planning process Tim praised NCAR's strength in applications, chemistry, solar physics, climate, computing, and societal impact studies. He said he sees NCAR as integrating its own programs within the institution, with NSF, and with the larger biogeosciences and information technology spheres. An NCAR strategic plan is being developed containing a vision for the next ten years and addressing emerging themes. The plan discusses ways to connect discovery and new understanding to societal needs, continue core research programs, and measure institutional progress. It also examines NCAR's presence in the Internet world. This information will be available on the web by April 2001. As part of the strategic planning process, NCAR directors serve on a steering committee and work with the NCAR scientist assembly. Self-organizing groups have formed in these areas: Biogeosciences The megacities initiative Quantifying precipitation dynamics across scales Planetary atmospheres and space weather NCAR has an important role in providing leadership to the geosciences community, Tim said. He stressed the need for NCAR to define its role as an integrator order to remain a vital institution in the coming decade. He sees UCAR, NCAR, and NSF working together in "a successful model of management and partnership." NCAR should move toward becoming more of a center for all the geosciences, without limiting its traditional strengths in the atmospheric and related sciences. This interdisciplinary focus should include social interactions. Tim noted that NCAR is in a position to take advantage of advances in information technology and form new partnerships and collaborations. NCAR is also committed to research-enriched education and an environment that encourages professional growth. After his presentation, Tim opened the floor to questions.