Frances E. Sharples, Ph.D., Inducted into Worldwide Who's Who for Excellence in Life Sciences

    SILVER SPRING, MD, October 1, 2013 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Frances Sharples, Director of Board on Life Sciences of the National Academy of Sciences, has been recognized by Worldwide Who's Who for showing dedication, leadership and excellence in life sciences.

Dr. Sharples has 35 years of professional experience, with 13 years as a director of the Board on Life Sciences for the National Academy of Sciences. In this capacity, she has accumulated substantial experience with cutting-edge life science research, with particular emphasis on genomics, stem cells, and biosecurity. She is responsible for managing 11 individuals and a budget of up to $3 million in contracts and grants. She writes grants, hires new employees, and trains and supervises her staff in carrying out academy policies and procedures. Since the spring of 2010, Dr. Sharples has also served as the Acting Director of the Institute for Laboratory Animal Research (ILAR) pending a future decision to hire a replacement director. Dr. Sharples is responsible for the management of all BLS and ILAR projects, maintaining their quality, tracking their budgets and deliverable milestones, and making decisions relevant to staffing of projects.

The Board on Life Sciences serves as the National Academies' focal point for a wide range of technical and policy topics in the life sciences. In 2003, Dr. Sharples directed a study on the organizational structure of the National Institutes of Health that led to the publication of the report, "Enhancing the Vitality of the National Institutes of Health: Organizational Change to Meet New Challenges," which resulted in major management and budgetary changes at NIH. In 2005, Dr. Sharples served as the study director for the preparation of the National Academies' report, "Guidelines for Human Embryonic Stem Cell Research," which had a major impact on the oversight of stem cell research in the United States. Most recently, she served as co-study director on the report, "Review of the Scientific Approaches Used During the FBI's Investigation of the 2001 Anthrax Letters."

Immediately prior to coming to the National Academies, Dr. Sharples was a Senior Policy Analyst for the Environment Division of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) from October 1996 to October 2000. Dr. Sharples came to OSTP from the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, where she served in various positions in research and management in the Environmental Services Division between 1978 and 1996. Dr. Sharples attributes her success to her talent, luck, hard work, intelligence and flexibility. She became involved in her profession because of her passion for the field. She is trained as a scientist and wants to be able to bring her knowledge to the world at large.

Dr. Sharples received a Ph.D. in 1978 and a Master of Arts in 1974 in zoology from the University of California, Davis. She also earned a Bachelor of Arts in biology from Barnard College in 1972. She was elected a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) in 1992. In 1984, she served as an AAAS Congressional Science and Engineering Fellow in the Office of Senator Al Gore. She also served as an AAAS Environmental Science and Engineering Fellow at the Environmental Protection Agency in the summer of 1981. She was a member of the Recombinant DNA Advisory Committee of the National Institutes of Health from 1984 to 1987. In her spare time, she enjoys reading, classical music, and playing with her dog. Dr. Sharples is currently working hard to help the National Academies units she manages survive the current federal budget crisis.

The National Academy of Sciences is a public policy organization that provides scientific and engineering advice to the federal government and others. For more information about the Board on Life Sciences, visit http://www.dels.nas.edu/bls.

About Worldwide Who's Who
With over 500,000 members representing every major industry, Worldwide Who's Who is a powerful networking resource that enables professionals to outshine their competition, in part through effective branding and marketing. Worldwide Who's Who employs similar public relations techniques to those utilized by Fortune 500 companies, making them cost-effective for members who seek to take advantage of its career enhancement and business advancement services.

Worldwide Who's Who membership provides individuals with a valuable third-party endorsement of their accomplishments, and gives them the tools needed to brand themselves and their businesses effectively. In addition to publishing biographies in print and electronic form, it offers an online networking platform where members can establish new professional relationships.

For more information, please visit http://www.worldwidewhoswho.com.

Contact:
Ellen Campbell
Director, Media Relations
[email protected]

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