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Directors of the National Bureau of Standards (1901 – 1988) and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (1988 – present)
| Name | Tenure at NBS/NIST | Background/Comments |
|---|---|---|
| Samuel W. Stratton | 1901 – 1922 | First director of NBS. |
| George K. Burgess | 1923 – 1932 | Selected from NBS staff. |
| Lyman J. Briggs | 1932 – 1945 | Lent to NBS from Department of Agriculture. Selected while on staff at NBS. |
| Edward U. Condon | 1945 – 1951 | Selected as NBS director from Westinghouse. |
| Allen V. Astin | 1951 – 1969 | Selected from NBS staff. |
| Lewis M. Branscomb | 1969 – 1972 | Selected from NBS staff. |
| Richard W. Roberts | 1973 – 1975 | Selected as NBS director from General Electric. |
| Ernest Ambler | 1975 – 1989 | Selected from NBS staff. Presided over change from NBS to NIST in 1988. |
| John W. Lyons | 1990 – 1993 | Selected from NIST staff. |
| Arati Prabhakar | 1993 – 1997 | Selected as NIST director from Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. First woman to become director. |
| Raymond G. Kammer | 1997 – 2000 | Selected from NIST staff. First non-scientist or engineer to become director. |
| Karen Brown (acting director) | 2000 – 2001 | NIST deputy director. Served as acting director following Kammer's retirement. |
| Arden L. Bement Jr. | 2001 – 2004 | Selected from professorship at Purdue University. Served as head of two NIST advisory committees and on Board of Overseers for Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award. |
| Hratch Semerjian (acting director) | 2004 – 2005 | NIST deputy director. Served as acting director following Bement's appointment as director of the National Science Foundation. |
| William A. Jeffrey | July 2005 – August 2007 | Selected as NIST director from the Office of Science and Technology Policy within the Executive Office of the President. |
| James M. Turner (acting director and deputy director) | September 2007 – September 2008 | Assigned the duties and responsibilities of the NIST director. |
| Patrick D. Gallagher (deputy director) | September 2008 – November 2009 | Assigned the duties and responsibilities of the NIST director. |
| Patrick D. Gallagher | November 2009 – June 2014 | Selected from NIST staff. |
| Willie E. May (acting director) | June 2014 – May 2015 | Selected from NIST staff. |
| Willie E. May | May 2015 – January 2017 | Confirmed as NIST director. |
| Kent Rochford (acting director) | January 2017 – October 2017 | NIST associate director for laboratory programs. Served as acting director following May's retirement. |
| Walter G. Copan | October 2017 – January 2021 | Selected as NIST director from the IP Engineering Group Corporation. |
| James Olthoff (acting director) | January 2021 – April 2022 | NIST associate director for laboratory programs. Performing the non-exclusive functions and duties of the Under Secretary of Commerce for Standards and Technology and NIST Director following Copan's departure. |
| Laurie E. Locascio | April 2022 – December 2024 | Selected as NIST director from the University of Maryland. |
| Charles H. Romine (acting director) | December 2024 – January 2025 | NIST associate director for laboratory programs. Performing the non-exclusive functions and duties of the Under Secretary of Commerce for Standards and Technology and NIST Director following Locascio's departure. |
| Craig Burkhardt (acting director) | January 2025 – present | Deputy Under Secretary of Commerce for Standards and Technology and NIST Deputy Director Serving as acting director until Congress confirms new director. |
Created March 16, 2010, Updated January 21, 2025