Suzette Kimball
Dr. Kimball was the 16th Director of USGS.
Career History and Highlights
Dr. Kimball is currently a Senior Advisor to the Office of the Director. Prior to her becoming the Director, Dr. Kimball was the USGS Deputy Director. In 2008, she became the Associate Director for Geology, and prior to that was the Director of the USGS Eastern Region, starting in 2004. She joined the USGS as Eastern Regional Executive for Biology. In that position, she built many partnerships, helped shape programs, and led the establishment of the USGS Florida Integrated Science Center. She came to the USGS from the National Park Service in Atlanta, where she was Associate Regional Director.
She entered the National Park Service as a research coordinator in the Global Climate Change Program, became Southeast Regional Chief Scientist, and then Associate Regional Director. She was assistant professor of environmental sciences at the University of Virginia, co-director of the Center for Coastal Management and Policy and marine scientist at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science, and managed coastal morphology and barrier island studies in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
She serves on executive boards and many State and national committees, including the Consortium for Coastal Restoration through Science & Technology, the Council of Examiners of the National Association of State Boards of Geology, and the DOI Senior Executive Service Advisory Council. She was on the board of directors of the Coastal Society and has served as secretary of the American Geophysical Union's Ocean Sciences Section.
She has authored numerous publications on barrier island dynamics, coastal ecosystem science, coastal zone management and policy, and natural resource exploration, evaluation, and management. She has received the Presidential Rank Award and the Secretary of the Interior's Meritorious Service Award.
Education
Dr. Kimball has a doctorate in environmental sciences with a specialty in coastal processes from the University of Virginia, a master's in geology and geophysics from Ball State University, and a bachelor's in English and geology from the College of William & Mary.