Mathematician at Nevada National Security Site in Nye earns presidential award

A team member at the Nevada National Security Site was the recipient of the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE).

Marylesa Howard, a supervisor, scientist and mathematician at the national security site, was named a recipient of the Presidential Early Career Awards in early July by President Donald Trump.

Howard was the only Nevada recipient of the award announced by Trump.

“Marylesa’s technical contributions are vital to the security of our country,” said Mark Martinez, president of Mission Support and Test Services, the management and operating contractor for the Nevada National Security Site, in a news release from the national security site, which is in Nye County.

“Her work is integral to our mission, and I’m very proud to have her as part of the NNSS (security site) team.”

According to a news release from the White House, “the PECASE (Presidential Early Career Awards for Scientists and Engineers) is the highest honor bestowed by the United States Government to outstanding scientists and engineers who are beginning their independent research careers and who show exceptional promise for leadership in science and technology.”

The early career awards were established in 1996 and are coordinated by the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy with participating departments and agencies, according to information in the White House’s release.

The early career award “acknowledges the contributions scientists and engineers have made to the advancement of science, technology, education, and mathematics (STEM) education and to community service as demonstrated through scientific leadership, public education, and community outreach,” the release from the White House stated.

According to the news release from the national security site, “Howard has established herself as an influential leader” in the scientific community in the state, at the U.S. National Laboratories and at universities across the nation.

Howard is a published researcher; her work has been highlighted in the Society of Industrial and Applied Mathematics and the American Institute of Physics, according to the site’s release.

Howard has also helped women further their scientific careers by “helping to direct the graduate research and guide the careers of women around the country,” the release stated.

She also is a partner in scientific and educational outreach; she has worked with the U.S. Department of Energy and the National Science Foundation “to bring real-world scientific problems to students” in higher education across the nation, according to information in the security site’s release.

“I see this as being much bigger than me,” Howard said in the security site’s release.

“This is also about the NNSS (security site) being recognized for the powerful research enabled here. I came to the NNSS (security site) for a job, but what I’ve found here is much more than a job. It is a mission I’m proud to serve, groundbreaking research to which I can contribute and a sense of belonging among the people with whom I work. This is an absolute honor, one of which I would have never dreamed.”

Howard earned her bachelor’s in mathematics with a minor in chemistry from George Fox University in 2007. She earned a master’s degree from the University of Montana in 2009 in mathematics and later gained her Ph.D. in 2013 from the university, also in mathematics.

Howard was hired as a senior scientist for the security site’s Signal Processing and Applied Mathematics team immediately following her graduation in 2013.

She now supervises a team of 11 staff researchers and two graduate students, according to the security site’s release.

Contact reporter Jeffrey Meehan at jmeehan@pvtimes.com. On Twitter: @MeehanLv