P E O P L E

People spotlight, briefs...

Sussman named to new post; search begins for graduate alumni director

Princeton NJ -- Sandy Sussman has been named administrative assistant to William Russel, dean of the Graduate School. She replaces Nancy Carnes, who has retired.
     Sussman joined the Graduate School in 1996 as assistant to MaryMargaret Halsey, director of graduate alumni relations and development, who recently left the University to pursue other interests. They played a major role in the successful centennial celebration of the Graduate School in 2000.
     Sussman will continue as acting director of graduate alumni relations as well until a new staff member is in place. The position, which has been posted on the human resources Web site, will be responsible for defining and implementing a comprehensive strategy for strengthening the relationship between the 17,000 alumni of the Graduate School and the University and enhancing the role of the Graduate School within the University.

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Sarnak named to endowed professorship

Princeton NJ -- Peter Sarnak has been named to an endowed professorship by the Board of Trustees. He was selected as the Eugene Higgins Professor of Mathematics, effective Sept. 1, 2002.
     A faculty member at Princeton since 1991, Sarnak previously taught at Stanford University and New York University. He was appointed the Henry Burchard Fine Professor of Mathematics in 1995-96, and chaired the Department of Mathematics from 1996 to 1999. He also has served as a member of the Institute for Advanced Study.
     Sarnak's contributions to number theory, and to questions of analysis often motivated by number theory, have been influential in the field of mathematics. Early in his career, he received the National Science Foundation's Presidential Young Investigator Award. He shared the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics' Polya Prize in 1998. In 2001, he was named a winner of the Ostrowski Prize, awarded every other year for an outstanding contribution in mathematics. In 2002, he was elected a member of the National Academy of Sciences in the United States and a fellow of the Royal Society in the United Kingdom.
     Sarnak has served on the scientific advisory committees of the Mathe-matical Sciences Research Institute, the Institut des Hautes Etudes Scientifiques and the American Institute of Mathematics. He also is on the editorial boards of several leading research publications, including the Duke Mathematics Journal, Geometric and Functional Analysis and Annals of Mathematics.
     A graduate of the University of Witswatersrand in South Africa, he holds a Ph.D. from Stanford University.

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Hutchings taking leave to head NIC

Princeton NJ -- Robert Hutchings, assistant dean of the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, is taking a public service leave of absence to serve as chair of the U.S. National Intelligence Council.
     Hutchings will report to Director of Central Intelligence George Tenet and coordinate intelligence estimates for President Bush.
     Hutchings, who has been with the Wilson School since 1997, assumed his new role this month and is expected to return to Princeton in early 2005. Before coming to the University, he had served as director of international studies at the Washington-based Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars and as a special adviser, with the rank of ambassador, to former U.S. Secretary of State James Baker III, a member of Princeton's class of 1952. Hutchings also has been director for European affairs at the National Security Council and deputy director of Radio Free Europe.
     The National Intelligence Council represents the entire U.S. intelligence community and acts as a center for mid- and long-term strategic thinking about national security issues. Hutchings has served twice on the council, as director of its analysis group and as deputy national intelligence officer for Europe.

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Shackelton awarded Rhodes Scholarship

Laura Shackelton, a Princeton senior majoring in molecular biology, has been awarded a prestigious Rhodes Scholarship, which provides funding for two or three years of study at the University of Oxford in England.
     Shackelton, who is from Reno, Nev., has done research in neurovirology and plans to pursue a master's degree in genetics and virology at Oxford. In addition to earning a bachelor's degree in biology, she is completing a certificate in the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs.
     "Believing that someday I might have the opportunity to share my knowledge -- to help others understand the dynamic microbial world -- is my inspiration," Shackelton said.
     Shackelton also won a Marshall Scholarship, but turned it down to accept the Rhodes. She was the only winner of either award from Princeton this year.
     "Laura's senior thesis project focuses on uncovering the function of a highly conserved, but poorly characterized herpesvirus gene," said Lynn Enquist, professor of molecular biology and Shackelton's thesis adviser. "This project would challenge most graduate students, but Laura has not been intimidated. Recently, she presented her preliminary findings at our weekly laboratory meeting and handled the probing questions from my graduate students and postdoctoral fellows like a veteran."
     Shackelton is a two-time winner of the University's Shapiro Prize for Academic Excellence. She is a captain of Princeton's varsity cross country team and was a 2001 delegate at the Washington Institute for Health Policy.
     She is a member of the undergraduate molecular biology committee and a student representative to the Council on Science and Technology. Shackelton also writes science articles for various publications and has served as a volunteer in a hospital.
     "In addition to teaching within my own field, I hope to lower barriers between disciplines by creating and conducting molecular biology classes for students in diverse departments -- mathematics, physics and public policy," she said. "By continuing to write articles explaining scientific advances, I hope to develop a more effective dialogue among scientists and policymakers."
     Shackelton is one of 32 American students selected as 2003 Rhodes Scholars from 981 applicants.