Black History Month 2020: Celebrating Leadership Diversity

Each February, the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy honors Black History Month and the tremendous positive impact of diversity on our mission, vision, accomplishments, and goals. For Black History Month 2020, EERE is focusing on diversity in senior leadership by honoring African Americans across our offices and National Laboratories for their important contributions to the EERE mission of creating and sustaining American leadership in the transition to a global clean energy economy.

Diverse leadership is driving EERE through the knowledge and passion of individuals in many locations, with each of these leaders raising the bar and taking our office to new heights. The honorees are also inspiring the next generation of students toward careers in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, which will further benefit DOE for decades to come.

“Try to be kind because you never know what’s occurring in someone’s life.”

Sabrina draws upon a wealth of energy experience in her critical role of budget planning, development, and execution for EERE. In a distinguished career, she has worked in the public sector at the Federal Energy Regulatory Committee and Department of Energy, and also in private industry. Among her roles in the private sector was serving as an interface with Congress and federal agencies on various energy-related issues. For Sabrina, the bottom line is, well, the bottom line. She’s a CPA and says, “I love working with numbers. Numbers always tell a story and help you to identify trends and patterns.”

Sabrina likens the work of her office to maintaining a household budget—except hers is directed by Congress and the Office of Management of Budget, amounts to $700 million, and spans multiple years for energy research and development. She leads by example and is proud of her team and their role, as she describes it, “using appropriate information and data to assist our leadership in making good decisions.”

We salute Sabrina Campbell for an outstanding career in energy, and for serving as an inspiration to the next generation of leaders.

“You always want to pay it forward. It was Dr. King’s way. I don’t think anyone is 100% self-made or self-taught or pulls themselves up by their bootstraps.”

At the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Johney oversees a $100 million portfolio spanning several research programs and 300 NREL employees. He’s an energy researcher of vast experience that began with an undergraduate degree from the University of Memphis and a master’s and doctorate from Georgia Tech. He started his career at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, where he held several leadership positions and worked on notable projects related to fuels, engines, and emissions research.

Johney has lent his expertise to a number of organizations, including the National Academy of Engineering, SAE International, and university advisory boards. He holds two combustion science patents and has been a lead author or co-author of several pieces for technical journals. The son of a barrier-breaking Memphis police officer during the era of segregation, Johney cites both his parents and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. for inspiration to achieve great things.

We salute Johney Green, Jr. for an outstanding career in energy, and for serving as an inspiration to the next generation of leaders.

“The first step to actualizing any goal is to have a vision—some people call it dreaming.  It’s knowing where you want to go, and then writing a plan to close the gap to get there.”

Tanisha Parker has known where she wanted to go since age 17 when she began her federal career as a summer trainee at the State Department’s United States Information Agency. Since that time, she had held a number of important positions within the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). During her eight years as chief of staff in the Chief Financial Officer’s Budget Office, she assisted the director in efforts to formulate, analyze, and execute DOE’s budget portfolio of over $30 billion for national energy, science, environmental, and nuclear programs. She also oversaw operations, including managing its $10 million budget. Other DOE roles included serving in the Office of Congressional and Intergovernmental Affairs as liaison to the Executive Office of the President’s Office of Management and Budget for energy-related congressional activities.

In her current role as deputy director of the Workforce Management Office in the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), she works with the director to oversee the staff that manages Human Resources and Operations for EERE’s nearly 600 employees.

Social issues have always been part of Tanisha’s vision. At the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, she worked to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act and to establish a Medicare/Medicaid part C program before spending five years away from the federal government. During those years, she advocated for global infectious disease prevention and research policies, programs, and funding before members of Congress, appropriation committees, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institutes of Health, and other global, national, and local stakeholders.

Tanisha received a Women’s Leadership Certification from Cornell University and Executive Leadership Certification from the United States Graduate School. She studied Biblical Theology at the Lancaster Bible College and is an author, speaker, certified life coach, and community advocate for the Elimination of Poverty. But of all her accomplishments, she says raising two successful young adults is her greatest achievement.

"What you do now is critical. Set your educational goals and pursue them with single focus, avoiding distractions. Choose your degree so that it will allow you the flexibility to work anywhere in the world."

Peter took his father’s advice to heart and crafted a career in education, science, and research that has benefited his students and the nation. A native of Jamaica, he earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in physics, and a master’s and doctorate in materials science and engineering. This educational foundation landed him at Sandia National Laboratories for an 11-year career that culminated with his position as manager of the Glass and Ceramics Research department. From there he moved to the University of Texas, and then the University of Michigan, where he held endowed chair professorships.

In his current role as deputy laboratory director, Peter is responsible for NREL’s science and research goals. He applies his experience to strengthening the laboratory’s core capabilities and enhancing NREL’s research portfolio. He also oversees the postdoctoral program and the laboratory-directed research and development program at NREL.

Peter is a past president of the Materials Research Society (MRS). He has served on advisory boards for the National Academies and National Laboratories, and for universities. He is formerly an editor-in-chief and member of the editorial boards for scientific journals in the fields of physics, chemistry, and materials. He was elected to the status of fellow by his peers in a number of societies: the American Physical Society, the Royal Society of Chemistry (UK), the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and the MRS.