{{short description|American civil servant}} {{Use mdy dates|date=April 2021}} {{Infobox officeholder | name = Jill Hruby | image = Under Secretary of Energy for Nuclear Security Administrator of the National Nuclear Security Administration Jill M. Hruby.jpg | office = Under Secretary of Energy for Nuclear Security<br>Administrator of the National Nuclear Security Administration | status = | president = Joe Biden | term_start = July 26, 2021 | term_end = January 20, 2025 | predecessor = Lisa Gordon-Hagerty | successor = Brandon Williams | birth_date = | birth_place = | death_date = | death_place = | party = | education = Purdue University (BS)<br>University of California, Berkeley (MS) | module = {{Listen|pos=center|embed=yes|filename=Opening Statement of NNSA Administrator Jill Hruby at a SASC Subcommittee Hearing.ogg|title=Jill Hruby's voice|type=speech|description=Hruby's opening statement at a Senate Armed Services Strategic Forces Subcommittee hearing on the FY2024 National Nuclear Security Administration budget request<br/>Recorded April 18, 2023}} }}
'''Jill M. Hruby''' is an American mechanical engineer and government official. From 2021 to 2025, Hruby served as Under Secretary of Energy for Nuclear Security and Administrator of the National Nuclear Security Administration, a post subject to Senate confirmation. Jill Hruby made history as the first woman to ever head a U.S. nuclear weapons lab, serving as director of Sandia National Laboratories from 2015 to 2017.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=One-on-one with Jill Hruby - Albuquerque Journal |url=https://www.abqjournal.com/720016/one-on-one-with-jill-hruby.html |access-date=December 30, 2022 |website=www.abqjournal.com}}</ref>
== Early life and education ==
Jill M. Hruby was born in 1959 in Defiance, Ohio.<ref name=":0" /> She is a native of Ann Arbor, Michigan.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Alumna Jill Hruby is the first woman to lead a national security lab |url=https://engineering.purdue.edu/Engr/AboutUs/News/Announcements/alumna-jill-hruby-is-the-first-woman-to-lead-a-national-lab |access-date=March 28, 2022 |website=College of Engineering - Purdue University |language=en}}</ref> Hruby earned her bachelor's degree from Purdue University College of Engineering and her master's degree from the UC Berkeley College of Engineering, both in mechanical engineering.<ref name="April14">{{Cite press release |title=President Biden Announces His Intent to Nominate Key Administration Leaders on Climate and Transportation |date=April 14, 2021 |publisher=The White House |location=Washington, D.C. |url=https://bidenwhitehouse.archives.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/04/14/president-biden-announces-his-intent-to-nominate-key-administration-leaders-on-climate-and-transportation/}} {{PD-notice}}</ref>
== Career ==
Hruby joined Sandia National Laboratories as a member of the technical staff in 1983<ref>{{Cite web |title=Jill Hruby |url=https://www.energy.gov/nnsa/contributors/jill-hruby |access-date=April 14, 2021 |website=Energy.gov |language=en}}</ref> and retired as the director in 2017. At Sandia, Hruby held roles of increasing management responsibilities with experiences in nuclear weapons systems and component design, nuclear non-proliferation, defense and homeland security technologies and systems, renewable energy, materials science, engineering sciences, and microsystems technology. She was the first woman to lead a national security lab.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Alumna Jill Hruby is the first woman to lead a national security lab |url=https://engineering.purdue.edu/Engr/AboutUs/News/Announcements/alumna-jill-hruby-is-the-first-woman-to-lead-a-national-lab |access-date=April 14, 2021 |website=College of Engineering - Purdue University |language=en}}</ref> Since her retirement, she served as the inaugural Sam Nunn Distinguished Fellow at the Nuclear Threat Initiative from 2018 to 2019.<ref name="April14"/><ref>{{Cite web |title=Jill Hruby |url=https://www.nti.org/about/leadership-and-staff/jill-hruby/ |access-date=April 14, 2021 |website=www.nti.org}}</ref>
On April 14, 2021, President Joe Biden nominated Hruby to be the Under Secretary of Energy for Nuclear Security and Administrator of the National Nuclear Security Administration. The nomination has been endorsed by Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm.<ref>{{Cite press release |title=Statement by Secretary Granholm on President Biden's Nomination of Jill Hruby as NNSA Administrator |date=April 14, 2021 |publisher=United States Department of Energy |location=Washington, D.C. |url=https://www.energy.gov/articles/statement-secretary-granholm-president-bidens-nomination-jill-hruby-nnsa-administrator |access-date=April 14, 2021}}</ref> On April 22, 2021, her nomination was sent to the Senate.<ref>[https://bidenwhitehouse.archives.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/04/22/nominations-sent-to-the-senate-12/ "Nominations Sent to the Senate", White House, April 22, 2021]</ref> On June 16, 2021, a hearing on her nomination was held before the Senate Armed Services Committee.<ref>[https://www.armed-services.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/21-52_06-16-2021.pdf "Nominations", United States Senate Committee on Armed Affairs, June 16, 2021]</ref> On June 10, 2021, her nomination was reported out of committee.<ref>[https://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/executive_calendar/2021/06_14_2021.pdf "Senate Executive Calendar", June 14, 2021]</ref> On July 22, 2021, her nomination was confirmed by a vote of 79–16.<ref>{{Cite web |date=July 21, 2021 |title=PN401 - Nomination of Jill Hruby for Department of Energy, 117th Congress (2021-2022) |url=https://www.congress.gov/nomination/117th-congress/401 |access-date=July 22, 2021 |website=www.congress.gov}}</ref> She was sworn in on July 26, 2021.<ref name="Jill Hruby">{{Cite web|url=https://www.energy.gov/nnsa/person/jill-hruby|title=Jill Hruby}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Twitter announcement of swearing in on Jill Hruby's NNSA Twitter account|url=https://twitter.com/nnsahruby/status/1419750557032583172|access-date=July 26, 2021|website=Twitter|language=en}}</ref>
== Professional memberships and awards ==
Hruby has been a member of the Defense Science Board, the National Nuclear Security Administration Defense Programs Advisory Committee, and the National Academy of Science Committee for International Security and Arms Control.<ref name="April14"/>
In 2016, she received the Suzanne Jenniches Upward Mobility Award from the Society of Women Engineers. In 2017, ''Business Insider'' named her the second most powerful female engineer. She has received the Department of Energy Secretary's Exceptional Service Award, the National Nuclear Security Administrator's Distinguished Service Gold Award, and Office of the Secretary of Defense Medal for Exceptional Public Service.<ref name="April14"/>
On May 13, 2022, Hruby was awarded an honorary doctorate of engineering by her undergraduate alma mater, Purdue University.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Engineering alumni Schweitzer, Hruby to receive honorary doctorates at spring commencement|url=https://engineering.purdue.edu/Engr/AboutUs/News/Spotlights/2022/2022-0513-schweitzer-hruby-honorarydoctorates}}</ref>
Hruby was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 2022.
On May 5, 2023, Hruby was awarded an honorary Doctor of Science by Michigan State University for her notable career in engineering and science, leadership in nuclear security and dedication to the development and enhancement of national security.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Current, past high-ranking federal officials to usher in spring commencements|url=https://msutoday.msu.edu/news/2023/current-and-past-federal-officials-to-usher-in-spring-commencements}}</ref>
== References == {{Reflist|30em}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Hruby, Jill}} Category:Place of birth missing (living people) Category:Year of birth missing (living people) Category:Living people Category:21st-century American engineers Category:21st-century American women civil servants Category:American mechanical engineers Category:21st-century American women engineers Category:Biden administration personnel Category:Purdue University College of Engineering alumni Category:UC Berkeley College of Engineering alumni Category:United States Department of Energy officials