Sarah J Higgins

Sarah Higgins is chief of staff at Argonne National Laboratory.

An advisor to Laboratory Director Paul Kearns, she helps drive forward the laboratory’s mission of advancing national security and prosperity through scientific innovation. She coordinates with leaders across the laboratory to advance strategic stakeholder relationships and collaborations in the public and private sectors that enable Argonne to continue increasing the scope and impact of its world-class research.

From 2022 to 2025, Sarah was Argonne’s director of government relations. She led efforts to enhance growth opportunities for the lab and sustain existing programs through interactions with federal, regional, state and local governments; industry and academia; and nonprofit organizations. In this position, she provided guidance to laboratory leadership and developed and executed strategies to best position the laboratory, increase the visibility of Argonne’s capabilities and resources and foster key public and private partnerships.

Before she stepped into the director role, she served for five years as deputy director of government relations, based in Argonne’s Washington, D.C. office. During this time, she attended the University of Chicago’s Strategic Laboratory Leadership Program and graduated in 2019.

Prior to joining Argonne, Sarah worked on Capitol Hill for 8 years in both the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate. As senior policy advisor for appropriations and director of special projects, she gained hands-on experience in public policy and the federal budget process, coalition building, and coordination across government.

She holds a bachelor’s degree in political science and international studies from Loyola University Chicago.