After more than three decades of service in public affairs and strategic communications across federal agencies, Jeff Carter has joined the Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) as External Communications Lead. He shared the news in a recent LinkedIn post, marking his return to the workforce following his official retirement from government service in March 2025.
In his new role, Carter will lead external communications strategy for SRNL, a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) national laboratory known for its work in nuclear materials management, environmental stewardship, and national security. Based in Aiken, South Carolina, SRNL is one of DOE’s 17 national laboratories.
Carter steps into this position with deep and varied experience in government communications, having most recently served as Chief of Media Operations at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Prior to that, he held multiple senior leadership roles at U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), including Deputy Assistant Commissioner for the Office of Public Affairs, where he managed an extensive team responsible for media relations, digital communications, and strategic engagement.
His federal career also includes leadership stints at the Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS), U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the U.S. Marshals Service, and the U.S. Coast Guard—where he spent more than a decade in a series of public affairs and spokesperson roles, including serving on the front lines of the Hurricane Katrina and Deepwater Horizon oil spill responses.
Carter holds a Master of Mass Communication from the University of Georgia and additional training from the National Security Executive Leadership Seminar.
