Check out the Office of the Assistant Director’s blog here or in full below:

BIO is pleased to welcome Dr. Bernice L. Smith as the new Deputy Division Director for the Division of Environmental Biology (DEB). Dr. Smith was most recently a Senior Science and Policy Advisor, Planning and Performance Lead, and Justice40 Lead in the Office of Wetlands, Oceans and Watersheds at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), where she previously held other positions. She also served as a program manager for global climate change research at EPA’s National Center for Environmental Research.  

Dr. Smith is not new to NSF, she previously served on a detail as Acting Deputy Division Director in the Division of Social and Economic Sciences within the Foundation’s Directorate for Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences (SBE). During that detail, she co-led the Strategic Review Team that helped modernize NSF’s Merit Review Report.  

She holds a PhD in Environmental Design and Planning from Virginia Tech and a Master of Science degree from Johns Hopkins University. Dr. Smith earned her Bachelor of Science from Hampton University. 

BIO wants to thank Dr. Matt Kane and Dr. Katharina Dittmar for their time as Acting Deputy Division Director over the past year. 

Please join us in welcoming Dr. Smith.