The Commerce Department’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) announced today that John (Jack) R. Hayes Jr. has been appointed Director of the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program (NEHRP) effective Feb. 5, 2006. NEHRP is the federal government’s program to reduce the risks to life and property from earthquakes. NEHRP consists of four federal agencies: the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the National Science Foundation (NSF), the United States Geological Survey (USGS) and NIST. Congress designated NIST as the lead agency for NEHRP in 2004. As director, Hayes will provide overall program management, coordination and technical leadership for NEHRP, strengthen program effectiveness by facilitating implementation of earthquake risk mitigation measures, and build and maintain effective partnerships with NEHRP program agencies and stakeholders in industry, academia and government. His duties will include: - strategic and management plan development and implementation; - program evaluation and performance measurement; - budget review, guidance and coordination; - preparation and submission of coordinated annual program budgets; - submission of an annual report to Congress on consolidated program priorities, budget and results, including an assessment of program effectiveness; - information dissemination on earthquake hazards and loss-reduction measures; and - related interagency programs and policies. Hayes joins NIST after serving since 1988 as leader of seismic and structural engineering research at the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s (ERDC) Construction Engineering Research Laboratory (CERL) in Champaign, Ill. At CERL, Hayes was actively involved in earthquake engineering research for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. He also collaborated extensively with the earthquake engineering program at NSF, including work within the Mid-America Earthquake Center, and has been directly involved with a number of significant earthquake mitigation projects for FEMA. Working with key personnel at USGS, Hayes helped develop the seismic provisions for the American Society of Civil Engineers’ ASCE 7-05 standard and a new Department of Defense tri-services seismic design manual. Hayes holds a bachelor of science degree from the Virginia Military Institute, a masters of engineering degree form the University of Virginia, and a Ph.D. from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, all in civil engineering. He is a registered professional engineer in the State of Florida and the Commonwealth of Virginia. For further information on the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program see: its Web site. As a non-regulatory agency of the Commerce Department’s Technology Administration, NIST promotes U.S. innovation and industrial competitiveness by advancing measurement science, standards and technology in ways that enhance economic security and improve our quality of life.