Last month, Dr. Kathryn Huff was nominated by President Joe Biden for the open position of Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Energy for the Department of Energy.
The role for Assistant Secretary for the Office of Nuclear Energy has been vacant since January 8, 2021, when Rita Baranwal announced that she would be leaving her post.
In a statement issued by US Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm, the qualifications and skills of Dr. Huff were praised.
"I am thrilled that President Biden has nominated Dr. Kathryn Huff to serve as Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Energy at DOE," Granholm said. "Dr. Huff has been a trailblazer for her entire career as a leading nuclear scientist, and she brings endless enthusiasm and curiosity to her work. If confirmed, she would continue her groundbreaking work at DOE to advance zero-carbon nuclear energy technologies to tackle the climate crisis and provide affordable, secure, and reliable energy for all Americans.
"I am deeply grateful for Dr. Huff's willingness to serve the American people, and look forward to her speedy confirmation.”
Dr. Huff comes with years of experience and highly recommended by peers, having served as Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Office of Nuclear Energy since May of 2021.
"Prior to that role, she was an Assistant Professor in the Department of Nuclear, Plasma, and Radiological Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign where she led the Advanced Reactors and Fuel Cycles Research Group," the DOE said. "Huff was also a Blue Waters Assistant Professor with the National Center for Supercomputing Applications."
President Biden has been steadily filling vacant positions ever since he arrived in office early last year, in addition to focusing his administration's efforts on fighting the ongoing COVID pandemic.
