[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 53 (Tuesday, March 27, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Page S3832]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       RECOGNIZING DR. LEN PETERS

 Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I would like to take this 
opportunity to recognize a great contributor to the State of Washington 
and to the national science and education communities. Dr. Len Peters 
recently stepped down as the Director of the Pacific Northwest National 
Laboratory in Richland, WA. Fortunately, Dr. Peters has agreed to 
remain in Richland, working for Battelle Memorial Institute to help 
promote and build education and community projects.
  PNNL, a DOE national laboratory, experienced tremendous growth during 
Dr. Peters' tenure. The lab added 330 new members to its world-class 
staff, enabling the facility to better serve the Nation in the areas of 
renewable energy, national security, and environmental research. Dr. 
Peters led the staff in enhancing relationships with a number of 
research universities in the region, continuing his commitment to 
quality public-private relationships in the interest of furthering math 
and science education.
  Dr. Peters came to PNNL in 2003, after serving as the vice provost 
for research at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. 
Prior to guiding Virginia Tech's ambitious research portfolio, he 
served as acting vice president for research and graduate studies at 
the University of Kentucky. Dr. Peters spent nearly 20 years in the 
classroom, educating our next generation of scientists. He is a 
distinguished scholar and a leader in the field of atmospheric 
chemistry.
  In his new role at Battelle, Dr. Peters will continue to serve 
Washington State through community outreach programs. His work to 
expand higher education opportunities in the Tri-Cities, as well as his 
leadership on the Hanford Reach Interpretive Center Board are examples 
of his strong commitment to building a better community, region and 
State.
  I thank Dr. Len Peters for his guidance and commitment to PNNL over 
the past 3\1/2\ years. For the people of Washington State and the 
entire Pacific Northwest region, I thank Dr. Peters for his continued 
service to our community and wish him all the best in his future 
endeavors.

                          ____________________