James Turner
A Washington, D.C. native, Dr. James Turner retired from the Federal Senior Executive Service in 2013. He is currently Director of the D.A. Payne CDC’s Percy Julian Institute whose mission is to encourage minority students to pursue Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) careers. He is also a member of the Board of Trustees at the Maryland Science Center where we seek to inspire, empower, and engage. On a personal level, he follows developments in International Affairs, personalized medicine, and climate change.
Prior to retiring, he was Director of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Office of International Affairs and Senior Adviser to the NOAA Administrator. The Office addresses international scientific issues associated with climate, food security, global oceans, atmosphere, and space. He advised the NOAA Administrator on international policy matters and represented NOAA in federal interagency and international meetings.
Dr. Turner came to NOAA from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) where he was Deputy Director and Acting Director. NIST promotes U.S. innovation and industrial competitiveness by advancing measurement science, standards, and technology.
Dr. Turner was Assistant Deputy Administrator for Nuclear Risk Reduction in the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA). He was responsible for major projects in Russia to permanently shut down their remaining nuclear weapons-grade plutonium-production reactors. He worked with foreign governments and international agencies to reduce the risks and consequences of nuclear accidents by strengthening safety protocols and their capability to respond to nuclear emergencies including serving as Chair of the UN/IAEA’s Nuclear Safety in Asia Program. Dr. Turner held senior management posts at DOE concerned with nuclear weapons safety and security both in the U.S. and abroad such as leading DOE assistance to the Former Soviet Union for the safe, secure dismantlement of their nuclear weapons after the Cold War ended. Dr. Turner was in charge of the DOE Operations Office in California for six years. He led DOE teams in special assignments to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (North Korea) and the Former Soviet Republic of Georgia. He has a range of speaking and writing skills in Mandarin Chinese, Japanese, Korean, French, Russian, German, and American Sign Language.
He holds Physics degrees from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) (Ph.D.) and Johns Hopkins University (B.A.). Dr. Turner served five years as Associate Professor of Physics and Engineering at Morehouse College where he did federally funded research. As a NASA Faculty Fellow, he did research at the National Center for Atmospheric Research and Goddard Space Flight Center.
He received the U.S. Government Presidential Rank Award for Meritorious Service, the DOE Exceptional Service Award (three times), the Secretary of Energy Gold Award, the NNSA Administrator’s Gold Medal, and the Edward Bouchet Legacy Award. Dr. Turner is a member of Phi Beta Kappa, Sigma Xi, Council on Foreign Relations, Union of Concerned Scientists, ASALH, NAACP, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., several professional scientific societies, and a Friend of the Capital City Cherokee Community.
Dr. Turner is married (Paulette) with 5 children (Lauren, James IV, Rachelle, Malcolm, and Nathaniel) and 3 grandchildren (Martin, Alexandra, and Christian). He has a sister (Kathleen) and two nieces (Elizabeth & Patricia). He joined Metropolitan AME Church more than 40 years ago serving on the Usher Board and Payne-Tanner Scholarship Endowment Board, as well as conducting the Percy Julian Institute’s Robotics, Girls Who Code, and National Society of Black Engineers, Jr. programs at the Church.
Living with Jim and Milt Cole marked a wonderful senior year at Johns Hopkins University on North Calvert Street in Baltimore. I have to admit I was blissfully ignorant of what he and Milt were cogitating over, as both were physics majors, and I was a political science major and art history minor.
Jim had an uproarious laugh, and there were often peals of laughter and the taking of a particular physics professor’s name in fulmination and objurgation, for the difficultly of his assignments – his obfuscation?
I was particularly proud of Psi Chapter of AEPi that we rushed Jim, and another student as the first African-Americans ever to enter and integrate Hopkins fraternity brotherhoods. Milt,as Chapter Master and I Lt. Master and rush chairman, led the charge. (And who knew that across the street was Kappa Alpha, inspired by Robert E. Lee, with his picture prominently displayed.) In Jim’s senior year he was the Chapter Master. Always an extraordinary leader. Always respected.