The Association for Computing Machinery's (ACM) Special Interest Group on High Performance Computing (SIGHPC) on Sept. 3 announced it has awarded Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory's (LLNL) Kathryn Mohror with its prestigious Emerging Woman Leader in Technical Computing (EWLTC) Award.
Mohror, a Distinguished Member of Technical Staff at LLNL and deputy director of the Laboratory Directed Research and Development program, is a leading HPC researcher with a focus on input/output (I/O) and programming models and tools designed for exascale computing. The award recognizes her remarkable achievements in high-performance computing (HPC) and her dedication to advancing the HPC community through her leadership, service and mentorship, according to SIGHPC.
"I am truly honored and excited to receive the Emerging Woman Leader in Technical Computing Award from SIGHPC," Mohror said. "This recognition by my peers and the broader HPC community is incredibly meaningful to me. The award reflects the importance of collaboration, mentorship and innovation in driving our field forward. I am deeply grateful to be part of a community that values not just technical excellence, but also service, leadership and the positive impact we can have together. I am inspired to continue pushing the boundaries of what's possible in HPC and to support the next generation of leaders in our field."
The EWLTC Award honors mid-career women in the technical and HPC sectors who have made significant technical contributions and demonstrated outstanding impact on the growth and development of the HPC community. The recognition is presented annually at the International Conference for High Performance Computing, Networking, Storage and Analysis (SC), the most prestigious event in the HPC field, where it celebrates the achievements of women who are pushing the boundaries of what is possible in HPC and technical computing, according to SIGHPC.
A computer scientist in the Parallel Systems Group within the Center for Applied Scientific Computing (CASC) at LLNL, Mohror is widely recognized for her work on HPC input/output (I/O) performance and parallel programming. Her research focuses on developing scalable solutions for extreme-scale computing systems, enhancing their performance, reliability and usability.
"We are incredibly proud of Kathryn and excited that she has received this well-deserved recognition," said CASC Director Jeffrey Hittinger. "This award is a testament to her exceptional technical expertise, innovative research, and commitment to advancing the field of high performance computing. Kathryn's work on scalable I/O systems and checkpointing libraries has greatly enhanced our ability to leverage HPC resources for critical national security missions and scientific discoveries. Beyond her technical achievements, Kathryn has been a remarkable leader and mentor both within the Lab and the broader HPC community. Her dedication to excellence, collaboration and service has had a profound impact, and we are fortunate to have her as a member of CASC."
Since joining LLNL in 2010, Mohror has led numerous groundbreaking projects that have significantly advanced the state of HPC, including the Unify project, which developed the R&D100 Award-winning UnifyFS, a scalable file system designed for in-system storage on HPC systems. UnifyFS was developed as part of her extensive work for the Department of Energy's (DOE) Exascale Computing Project (ECP).
Mohror also spearheaded the Scalable Checkpoint/Restart (SCR) Library project, an R&D 100 Award-winning multilevel check-pointing library that substantially reduces I/O overhead, thus enhancing computational efficiency and resilience for large-scale simulations. She also leads the IOPP project, funded by the DOE's Advanced Scientific Computing Research (ASCR) Early Career Research Program, which aims to understand the needs of emerging HPC I/O workloads and develop support solutions.
Beyond her technical contributions, Mohror is a dedicated leader and advocate within the HPC community. She has served on more than 60 review panels for top-tier HPC conferences, workshops and journals. Additionally, she has held more than 25 leadership roles for highly visible HPC technical activities, including serving as program co-chair for the 2022/2023 ECP Annual Meetings and Technical Program Co-Chair for SC23.
Mohror also has contributed significantly to LLNL's research and development initiatives, leading the National Nuclear Security Administration Software Technologies Portfolio for ECP from 2019 to 2023. She has held various leadership roles within the MPI Forum's Tools Working Group, guiding the development of tools and standards that are critical for future exascale computing systems. She also served as the scientific editor for LLNL's Science & Technology Review in 2018, where she played a key role in disseminating cutting-edge scientific research.
Cristina Beldica, chair of the EWLTC Committee, praised Mohror's many achievements and contributions to the HPC community, calling her a "superb leader with a clear vision for HPC and the demonstrated ability to bring this vision to life through her technical work, skillful and strategic handling of complex situations, perseverance and collaboration."
Mohror earned her Ph.D. in computer science in 2010, her master's degree in computer science in 2004, and her bachelor's degree in chemistry in 1999, all from Portland State University. Her innovative research has earned her several honors, including the 2022 Oppenheimer Science and Energy Leadership Program Fellowship and the 2019 DOE Early Career Research Award.
