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October 27, 1997
By Mary Bodvarsson
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
A 24-year veteran of the Los Alamos National Laboratory, known for his skill at forging campus-laboratory ties as well as his scholarship in fusion energy research, is the University of California's newly appointed associate vice provost for research and laboratory programs.
Rulon K. Linford, currently UC coordinator for science and technology at the Los Alamos laboratory, will join the university's systemwide administration Nov. 1. He was appointed by Robert N. Shelton, UC vice provost for research.
Linford, 54, will work with Shelton and the Office of Research in overseeing a broad range of activities related to the university's academic and programmatic relationship with the Los Alamos laboratory, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. UC manages the three laboratories for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).
"Dr. Linford brings a unique blend of scientific excellence and administrative accomplishments to the Office of Research," Shelton said. "His extensive understanding of the laboratory research culture, combined with his strong interest in and familiarity with campus-based programs, will serve as an excellent foundation for his new responsibilities."
One of Linford's major responsibilities will be to guide and promote the existing and growing number of collaborative research activities and opportunities among the three DOE laboratories, UC's nine campuses, the larger scientific community, and private industry. In his current role as science and technology coordinator, Linford has already developed collaborative programs with faculty at all nine UC campuses.
Linford said he looks forward to working with Shelton and others in the UC Office of the President and with the faculty, staff, and administrators of the nine campuses and three labs. "The research and educational capabilities of this system are unmatched anywhere in the world," he said. "It is a privilege to be part of this system and an exciting opportunity to see if we can find ways of working even more effectively together."
Linford replaces Carl H. Poppe, who filled the post from its inception in April 1994 until his retirement earlier this year, and with whom Linford worked in developing lab-campus collaborations.
As science and technology coordinator at Los Alamos, Linford created the UC Coordination Team, which has initiated more than 70 collaborative research projects in the past 3 years. He is a member of the Council on Research and the Campus-Laboratory Collaborations Board. In prior laboratory posts, he has held two program director positions and headed one division dealing with various aspects of plasma physics, magnetic fusion energy, and accelerator-driven neutron sources, and has led a number of groups and programs in these areas.
Linford received his bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from the University of Utah in 1966, and his master's degree and Ph.D. in electrical engineering from MIT in 1969 and 1973, respectively. He is a fellow of the American Physical Society and a member of Sigma Xi. He received the Los Alamos National Laboratory Distinguished Performance Award in 1984 and the E.O. Lawrence Award in 1992. He is author and co-author of a number of articles and papers on fusion research and related topics.
As associate vice provost, Linford will receive an annual salary of $145,000.