Former postdoctoral fellow and research staff scientist Julie Morris (1982-86 and 1987-1994, respectively) of Washington University, St. Louis, joined the National Science Foundation in April as Director of the Ocean Sciences Division. In this position Morris’ time will be split between administration of the division and serving on the management team for the Geosciences Directorate—both of which involve overseeing a staff of 40 and a budget of more than $300 million. She will also be returning to Washington University periodically to oversee various research projects.

From October 2003 until mid-April 2006, Morris chaired MARGINS, an NSF-funded science program that serves as a link between the foundation and the national research community and focuses on processes that control the formation and evolution of the continental margins.

Discussing her new position, Morris told Washington University’s Record, “I think what interested me is that this is a job which requires the analytical skills one uses in research, plus the ability to work with people, make decisions, and build consensus. I’ve been working on that in the MARGINS office. This position will allow both of those sides of myself to grow in a way that research alone often doesn’t.”