3 NIST Researchers Receive Presidential Rank Awards

GAITHERSBURG, Md. — Three senior research scientists at the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have received 2024 Presidential Rank Awards, one of the most prestigious awards for career civil servants in the federal government.

All three were awarded the “Distinguished Rank” — the highest category of Presidential Rank Awards — which recognizes senior career employees with a sustained, extraordinary record of professional, technical or scientific achievement in the public service.

“I am so proud to have served with these three outstanding individuals and with all the dedicated public servants at NIST who helped make their achievements possible,” said Under Secretary of Commerce for Standards and Technology and NIST Director Laurie E. Locascio. “These scientists are working on critical emerging technologies that are key to our economic and national security. This is a great example of how publicly funded science helps the U.S. stay ahead in the global competition for technology leadership.”

The three NIST award recipients are:

• Nada Golmie, who has significantly advanced the field of wireless communications through her technology leadership and internationally recognized expertise. As a founding member of the NIST NextG Channel Model Alliance, she has been instrumental in cultivating vital private-public partnerships that prioritize a measurement-based approach to standards development. Her dedicated public service and groundbreaking research have been essential to the establishment of globally accepted standards for Wi-Fi and cellular networks.
• John Kitching, who has pioneered the development of low-power, chip-scale atomic clocks that have been successfully commercialized and are making a broad impact in a variety of applications. Examples of his leadership include the development of chip-scale atomic magnetometers used in brain imaging and neuroscience and the initiation of the NIST on a Chip program, which seeks to provide the world with inexpensive instruments for in-situ calibrations and measurement traceable to the International System of Units (SI).
• John Lehman, whose transformative work on sensors for optical power measurements have important applications in additive manufacturing, communications, climate monitoring, national defense and other fields. Examples of his leadership include development of novel optical sensors, including carbon-nanotube based radiometers for remote sensing and photon momentum sensors that offer a new physical paradigm for high-power laser measurements, as well as contributions to workforce development in the emerging quantum industry.

The Civil Service Reform Act of 1978 established the Presidential Rank Awards Program, which is administered by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM). The complete list of 2024 Presidential Rank Award winners is available on the OPM’s website.  

NIST is the nation’s measurement institute. Its mission is to promote U.S. innovation and industrial competitiveness by advancing measurement science, standards and technology in ways that enhance economic security and improve our quality of life.