1984-1996: Years of Renewal

In the early 1980s, Argonne's fate was very much in doubt. Devastating declines in funding, morale and staff had left the laboratory vulnerable and directionless. A special person was needed to reverse Argonne's fortunes -- someone with the management skills to arrest the declines, with the vision to propel Argonne forward and the credibility needed to be heard and believed. Just when the gloom hung thickest, such a person emerged. Not only did he come to Argonne, he stayed -- becoming the longest-serving director in the laboratory's history, retiring July 1, 1996.

With the demise of the Clinch River Breeder Reactor program and cutbacks resulting from policy changes that occurred as a result of Ronald Reagan's election, morale at Argonne plummeted. The lab had just lost the competition for an electron accelerator. The laboratory was believed to be in imminent danger of closure. The need to refocus the lab's mission and to develop a new portfolio of initiatives was essential.

Argonne Director Alan Schriesheim with Illinois Governor Jim Thompson at the 1990 groundbreaking for the Advanced Photon Source. (Click the image to see a larger photo.)

Alan Schriesheim, a research chemist and top executive at Exxon Research and Engineering Co., became the first industry executive to head a national laboratory. His appointment to direct Argonne signaled a new emphasis on strategic initiatives. Schriesheim was faced with three significant challenges: restructure the laboratory and undertake a campaign of fresh initiatives; increase funding and rebuild relations with Congress; and repair morale among a highly talented staff. He took a strategic approach, reorganizing the laboratory into "thematic" areas that brought projects together in more logical, interlocking groupings. He identified talented managers and established assistant directorships to run strategic divisions. He streamlined government relations and used his political savvy and Washington contacts to forge a strong relationship with Congress.

At Argonne's Child Development Center in 1992, Anibal Taboas, DOE's Argonne Area Office manager, and Beatrice Schriesheim help Charles Earl (left) and Michael Haggerty with building blocks. (Click the image to see a larger photo.)

And he enlisted his wife, Beatrice, to help him with the critical morale-building effort. Schriesheim recalled the Argonne campus as "a grungy place " when he arrived in 1983. He asked his wife to get involved in the upgrade of the physical plant, believing it important for staff to take pride in their working environment. During the past decade, renovation projects have included the Freund Lodge, cafeteria and main auditorium. as well as numerous meeting rooms. The site was landscaped, and new signs ordered. The Visitors' Reception Center was erected. A much-needed child development center and program was put in place. Also, in order to enhance the sense of community, an Arts at Argonne program was initiated consisting of two elements: a chamber music series and a jazz and blues concert series.

Argonne's first four directors (from left), Walter Zinn (1945-1956), Norman Hilberry (1957-1961), Albert V. Crewe (1961-1967) and Robert Duffield (1967-1973), photographed at a 1967 American Nuclear Society meeting. (Click the image to see a larger photo.)

Meanwhile, Schriesheim worked to increase funding for key programs: the Integral Fast Reactor, superconductivity, biology and biostructural science, environmental science and technology, and advanced computing among others. The lab's budget doubled and staff grew substantially as a result of the initiatives.

Robert G. Sachs, Argonne director from 1973 to 1979, with Dixy Lee Ray, Atomic Energy Commission chairman. (Click the image to see a larger photo.)

Another goal, to couple basic research with commercial development, was accomplished through various initiatives including (with Walter Massey, the previous lab director) the establishment of ARCH Development Corp. -- a joint venture with the University of Chicago. Most importantly, the strategic initiative thrust was rewarded when Argonne was chosen as the site of the Advanced Photon Source, a major national user facility involving industry, academia and the government. As Schriesheim later reflected, Argonne had become "a corporate laboratory for the nation." As befits a major national institution, Schriesheim fostered strong ties between the lab and the educational community. This effort was highlighted by an innovative Chicago Science Explorers program developed with PBS newsman Bill Kurtis. Schriesheim also concerned himself with the role of women and minorities and fostered the development of a women-in-science program which has been replicated in other labs.

Walter E. Massey, Argonne director from 1979 to 1984, with President Jimmy Carter. (Click the image to see a larger photo.)

He also rebuilt the lab's fragile infrastructure, which was not geared up to support major new projects. And he delegated. Once the lab's divisions were reorganized, talented managers were made responsible for their areas and were given the resources to run them. His intent was to make each thematic area "a tub on its own bottom." This was especially true of the Advanced Photon Source -- a lab within a lab -- that Schriesheim believes "will span several generations of directors and changes of Washington administrations." The project's expected longevity looms even more critical in light of the 1994 Congressional decision to halt the lab's inherently safe, efficient, waste-recycling Integral Fast Reactor program just as it was on the verge of proving its capabilities. Nevertheless, Schriesheim believes, Argonne must continue to generate initiatives -- more, even, than can possibly be funded -- if it hopes to celebrate the anniversary of its second 50 years. As Schriesheim puts it, the laboratory "must undertake prime responsibility for its own survival." With its long history of winning important programs and adjusting to change, there is every reason to believe that Argonne will continue to be an essential element of the U.S. science and technology resource base for many years to come.