PECASE are intended to recognize some of the finest scientists and engineers who, while early in their research careers, show exceptional potential for leadership at the frontiers of scientific knowledge during the twenty-first century.  The PECASE is the highest honor bestowed by the U.S. government on outstanding scientists and engineers beginning their independent careers.  

Sandia’s parent agency is the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) of DOE.  NNSA, through its Office of Defense Programs (DP), identifies nominees for PECASE from the most meritorious recipients of the DOE/NNSA-DP Early Career Scientist and Engineer Award.  Individuals are nominated by directors of DP laboratories (Sandia, Los Alamos, or Lawrence Livermore National Laboratories) based on the candidate’s contribution to the DP mission.  Candidates for this award must be researchers employed as full-time faculty by academic institutions who are in the first five years of their independent research careers, whose research is funded directly by a DP laboratory, and a U.S. citizen or permanent resident.  Individuals can receive only one PECASE award in their careers.

Up to six winners are selected annually by the Office of Defense Programs from the nominations provided by the laboratory directors.  Up to three of the winners of the DP Early Career Scientist and Engineer Award may also be designated annually by the laboratory directors as DP nominees for the PECASE.

The awards are conferred annually at the White House.  Each PECASE winner receives $250,000 over five years, given to the awardee through a $50,000 per year research contract. This provides the awardee an opportunity to continue research in the area for which he/she was nominated and for the Laboratories to benefit from the results of the development.

Sandia National Laboratories’ Nominees Winning PECASE
(past five years)

2006	Winners not yet announced	--
2005	Christopher J. Roy	Aerospace Engineering, Auburn University
2004	William P. King	Mechanical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology (moved to UIUC, 1/07)
	Yunfeng Lu	Chemical Engineering, Tulane University (moved to UCLA, 8/06)
2003	Donald Visco, Jr.	Chemical Engineering, Tennessee Technological University
2002	Krisha Garikipati	Mechanical Engineering, University of Michigan