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Director's Corner
By Jonathan Dorfan
Thank you all for coming to the All Hands talks last week. I enjoyed the
opportunity to describe the direction that SLAC will be moving in the
next few years. I hope the presentation conveyed my personal excitement,
commitment and enthusiasm for the wonderful new scientific opportunities
that lie ahead. Never before have we had the opportunity of making
historic contributions over such a wide range of scientific disciplines.
I greatly appreciate the very positive e-mail responses that I received
after the talks.
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Jonathan
Dorfan, Director
(Photo by Diana Rogers) |
As I discussed in my April 6th All
Hands talk, we have a very exciting future. The breadth of the science
we are doing is expanding, as are the distinct entities that provide us
with financial support. Within the DOE Office of Science, the most
striking change will be the very large increase in funding coming from
the Basic Energy Sciences (BES) directorate. The High Energy Physics (HEP)
funding will continue to be very substantial, but linac operations will
increasingly be carried by the BES budget until, in 2009, BES will fully
fund linac operations. In addition to DOE, we anticipate that the
National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the National Aeronautics and
Space Administration (NASA) will continue to fund major activities at
SLAC. I am hopeful that, in addition, we will develop partnerships with
the National Science Foundation (NSF).
The development of the Ultra Fast Science Center and the Kavli Institute
means we will be sharing more support, such as personnel and other
activities, with Stanford University. This includes the application of
major gifts to the support of science at SLAC. We are also developing
new partnerships with commercial companies, seeking opportunities for
technology co-development.
We need to put the next few years of transition on a sound business
basis by striving to achieve the ‘best in class’ business practices at
SLAC. If we can indeed achieve that, we will all benefit in many ways.
This June, toward that goal, I commissioned a working group, the
Business Improvement and Transition Team (BITT), to explore business and
related systems at SLAC. The BITT will develop a broad array of
recommendations addressing financial and administrative topics during
the transition years and beyond. I have challenged them to seek methods
that streamline the way we do business, while retaining clear lines of
responsibility and accountability. Clearly, there are some changes that
are relatively urgent, like financials, that will need to be operational
for the beginning of FY06. Other tasks will take longer. The BITT is
expected to complete their agenda in time for FY07.
The BITT members are Stephanie Carlson (SSRL), Charlotte Chang (RD),
Mimi Chang (BSD), Dave Dungan (SSRL)—chair, Chris Foundoulis (OPS),
Wendy Sisson (LCLS) and Bob Strohecker (BSD), with Frank Topper (BSD)
providing facilitation services. They have a challenging task and I ask
you to provide them with your full support.
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