Computer Science Department Alumni
Kim Mousseau
Program Manager
Nuclear Programs
Idaho National Laboratory
Idaho Falls, ID
Web site:
http://www.inl.gov/
Professional Profile: In 1989 Kim earned her Bachelor
of Science in Mathematics from the University of Utah followed by a Master of
Science in Computer Science from the University of Idaho in 1994.
Kim has always been interested in the sciences, which is what led her to
declare a major in mathematics at the University of Utah. “At the time
I graduated, there were very few females in the program. The general perception
was that women had a more difficult time understanding mathematics than their
male counterparts. We of course proved them wrong.” And today, more and
more women are not only succeeding in scientific fields, they hold high level
leadership positions.
We find computers in almost every facet of modern
living. Computer scientists are at the forefront of turning ideas into reality.
After graduating from the University of Utah, Kim began her career at the
Idaho National Lab (INL) as an entry level software engineer. “It immediately
became clear that computer science is at the heart of almost everything we do
in business and in science. I realized that I needed to strengthen my
computer science skills.” It was then that she began her graduate studies
in Computer Science at the University of Idaho Idaho Falls Center. Over
the next several years and while still specializing in software development,
Kim advanced to the position of Engineering Specialist before pursuing other
opportunities in private industry. After completing her graduate degree
Kim found time to serve as an Adjunct Computer Science Faculty member at our
Idaho Falls campus where she taught computer programming languages.
Next, Kim took on the challenges of a position as Program Manager at ICF
Information Technologies in Fairfax, Virginia. "I was responsible for leading
and participating in the design, development, and implementation of two new
24 x 7 service organizations: Veeder-Root’s Fuel Monitor Reporting and Communication,
and Florida Power and Light’s Bill Handling Bureau service centers. In
both cases, I led the project from conception through implementation. Tasks
included designing and implementing the infrastructure, communications, records
management, and information technology resources that facilitated the transformation
of data into reporting information. Both service centers were completed in less
than one year.”
From 2003-2006, Kim was the Division Leader for the Information Management
(IM) Division at the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL). The IM Division’s
threefold mission of communications, information technology (IT), and records
management included a $60 million annual operating budget with approximately
360 employees. She managed the budget and financial allocations of the Division
and was responsible for defining and implementing the organization’s strategic
direction. She worked with the Enterprise Project Director to transfer production
of an Oracle enterprise solution ($160M project) into the IM Division. As the
Division Leader, she served on several oversight committees and councils including
the IT Center of Excellence, Division Leader Council, Enterprise Project Steering
Committee, Senior Manager IT Oversight Committee, Responsible Line Manager Board,
and Resumption Review Board.
Kim currently serves as Program Manager for information science and technology
within the Nuclear Energy Programs at the Idaho National Laboratory. As Program
Manager, she is responsible for defining and implementing the strategic direction
for the management of nuclear energy information in support of the Global Nuclear
Energy Partnership (GNEP) and other nuclear energy programs. The goal
is to provide solutions to:
- Collect, format, store, track, mine, and disseminate large data sets,
documents, and engineering drawings accumulated from observations, lab experiments,
predictions from theory, and computational simulations.
- Implement a software repository for libraries, tools, and commercial
codes.
- Adopt, develop, and maintain the standardization of critical data and
metadata formats and verify and validate data accuracy, consistency, and
accessibility so that the lifetime of the data will extend far beyond the
careers of those who currently know the data best.
- Implement a collaborative architecture for sharing data that exists
distributed throughout the Department of Energy (DOE) and other partners,
according to the local expertise and information within the GNEP community
through the adoption and support of open protocols, tools, services, and
distributed data resources.
- Identify and resolve access control issues including those arising from
export controlled and proprietary information.
“At the highest level I am responsible for establishing a program that makes
accessible the information required for nuclear engineers to assess and analyze
the accuracy of advanced nuclear energy systems and associated future capabilities.
With the renaissance of nuclear energy in this country, this is an exciting time
to become involved in computer applications for nuclear energy and management of
nuclear knowledge in collaborative environments.”
It's clear to Kim how involvement in graduate education at the University of
Idaho has impacted her career. “Throughout my career it has been necessary to demonstrate
strong leadership, project management, and employee management skills. These are
skills that I first acquired as a graduate student. The CS program was aggressive
and required me to work both independently and within teams to obtain the results
that I needed to successfully complete my course work and thesis." But her relationship
with the CS Department extended beyond receiving an excellent education. She now
serves as the Vice Chair on the CS Department’s Advisory Board and she recently
contributed in a major way to the Department’s strategic planning efforts. "This
experience further strengthened my ability to plan, develop, and manage the capabilities
and resources associated with information sciences and technology at the INL."
Summing up her career to date Kim remarks, "I’ve been very happy with my professional
career in computer science. The opportunities I have been awarded are far more than
I ever expected."
