Oak Ridge Today

Nuclear Engineering Science Laboratory Synthesis program accepting apps for 2016

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Opportunity provides students with research experience at Oak Ridge National Laboratory

The Nuclear Engineering Science Laboratory Synthesis, or NESLS, program is accepting applications for spring and summer 2016.

NESLS is a cooperative research initiative at Oak Ridge National Laboratory administered through the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education and geared toward students working in nuclear engineering and science. NESLS offers students on-the-job educational and research opportunities at a multidisciplinary national laboratory.

Research areas of interest may include nuclear security technologies; nuclear systems analysis, design, and safety; and fuels, isotopes, and nuclear materials. Other features of the internship include: [Read more…]

ORAU employees prove it only takes a little to change a lot

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Haiti-Romulus-Family-ORAU

The Romulus family had a message in Haitian Creole for their friends at ORAU: Mèsi Anpil…“Thank You very much,” which they even painted on the side of their home. (Photo courtesy ORAU)

Haiti-Romulus-Family-Message-ORAU

Photo courtesy ORAU


Grassroots efforts, contributions from ORAU staff help build house for family in Haiti

When Chad Becker mentioned he was trying to get the funds together to go back to Haiti to build another home for a family devastated by the earthquake of 2010, it made a few of his ORAU coworkers stop and think.

“I’m sure people here would pay for a good spaghetti lunch,” said Frances Slater and Julie Humidan. “I could also make and sell some jewelry,” said Humidan. “And, I could help Chad sell his grandmother’s collection of beanie babies dolls that she gave him to help Haiti in some way,” said Deborah Wells.

Slater, Humidan, and Wells—all ORAU custodians—knew their coworkers at ORAU (Oak Ridge Associated Universities) would pitch in once they heard about the need. Becker, ORAU’s director of facilities and transportation, had been involved in recent years with Medic Samaritan to help provide aid to the Haitian people following the earthquake. He and his family even adopted a now 10-year-old girl from Haiti in 2012. [Read more…]

Homeland Security seeking faculty, grads, undergrads for summer 2015 research

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The U.S. Department of Homeland Security is seeking faculty, undergraduate, and graduate students interested in participating in one of its 10-week programs in summer 2016, including its Summer Research Team Program for Minority Serving Institutions and its Homeland Security—Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (HS-STEM) Summer Internship Program. The deadlines for applying for both programs occur in December 2015.

Summer Research Team Program for Minority Serving Institutions

The Summer Research Team Program provides faculty and student teams from Minority Serving Institutions (MSI) with opportunities to conduct research at the university-based DHS Centers of Excellence.

Faculty members and students currently teaching or enrolled at an MSI in a discipline, major, or concentration directly related to a homeland security STEM research area are encouraged to apply. All applicants must be U.S. citizens, and each team must be comprised of one faculty member and up to two students (undergraduate and/or graduate level).

Applications and supporting materials must be submitted via the online application system by December 20 at https://www.zintellect.com/Posting/Details/1503. [Read more…]

ORAU to honor veterans with event, open to community

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Oak Ridge Associated Universities will honor veterans in a Veterans Day event that is open to the community on Tuesday morning.

Lieutenant Colonel Martin Hartley, 151st Air Refueling Squadron commander, Tennessee Air National Guard, is scheduled to be the keynote speaker.

Entertainment will be provided by The Southern Brass along with a presentation of colors by the Anderson County High School ROTC.

The ceremony starts at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, November 10, at Pollard Technology Conference Center at 100 ORAU Way in Oak Ridge. [Read more…]

ORAU’s Phil Andrews named CFO of Year by Greater Knoxville Business Journal

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Phil Andrews

Phil Andrews

The Greater Knoxville Business Journal named ORAU Vice President and CFO Phil Andrews as 2015 CFO of the Year in its nonprofit/government category.

According to the Greater Knoxville Business Journal website, this designation, presented by the Knoxville Chapter of the Financial Executives International, recognizes chief financial officers from companies in the Greater Knoxville area who have made significant contributions to company growth, leadership and community involvement.

Since joining ORAU in 2007 as vice president of business operations and CFO, Andrews has managed the financial aspects of the organization’s dramatic revenue growth from $230 million in 2007 to nearly $360 million in 2014, representing unprecedented company growth of almost 60 percent, a press release said. The revenue projection for 2015 is $400 million, which will be ORAU’s best year ever. [Read more…]

Former nuclear physics teacher in OR to be inducted into TN Women’s Hall of Fame

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Elizabeth Rona

Elizabeth Rona

Elizabeth Rona, a former nuclear physics teacher at the Oak Ridge Institute of Nuclear Studies, will be inducted into the Tennessee Women’s Hall of Fame on Monday, October 26.

Before she immigrated to the United States, Rona was the first woman to teach chemistry in any university in Hungary.

Once in the U.S., she was on the frontlines of the discoveries of isotopes and fission, and later contributed to work in the Manhattan project. She later taught on theory and methods of nuclear physics at the Oak Ridge Institute of Nuclear Studies.

Rona is one of two inductees to be honored posthumously. The ceremony will honor a total of eight women from all three grand divisions of the state (East, Middle, and West), including an astronaut, judge, and civil rights pioneer. [Read more…]

ORAU exceeds $100,000 in annual giving campaign for eighth year in a row

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ORAU 2015 Annual Giving Campaign

The 2015 ORAU Annual Giving Campaign Chair Arlene Garrison, pictured right, Co-Chair Don Hanlon, pictured left, and ORAU President and CEO Andy Page reveal ORAU’s combined giving total of $127,404.42. (Photo courtesy ORAU)

 

For the eighth year in a row, ORAU has broken the $100,000 mark in donations as part of the annual giving campaign for the United Way and Community Shares.

During a concluding ceremony on September 29 in the ORAU Pollard Technology Conference Center, ORAU President and Chief Executive Officer Andy Page announced the 2015 ORAU Annual Giving Campaign total donation amount: $127,404.42.

As part of the total donation, ORAU and its employees pledged $97,835.18 to the United Way and $29,569.24 to Community Shares.

Copyright 2015 Oak Ridge Today. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

ORAU awards $32,000 in education grants to area schools

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Clinton City Schools and ORAU Education Grants 2015

Clinton City Schools education grant winners are pictured above. (Photo courtesy ORAU)

 

ORAU awarded 28 teachers from nine East Tennessee schools more than $32,000 in grant money during the 14th annual ORAU Education Grants ceremony.

The grant money will be used to purchase educational materials and equipment—such as Chromebooks, microscopes, meteorology kits, and more—to help teachers continue to meet rigorous, state-wide curriculum standards, and enhance the learning experience of their students, a press release said.

Since beginning this program in 2002, ORAU has provided more than $410,000 to area schools for projects that complement its mission of enriching science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, or STEM, programs.

“ORAU is honored to support our community by helping our schools secure the tools they need to capture and maintain students’ attention on these critical subjects,” ORAU President and Chief Executive Officer Andy Page said. “These educators continue to show an impressive dedication to teaching, and we welcome the opportunity to show them how much we appreciate their dedication and hard work.” [Read more…]

Researcher honored for helping advance Latinas in tech field

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Andrea Rocha

Andrea Rocha

A researcher whose worked is carried out at the University of Tennessee, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and Oak Ridge Associated Universities has been named one of the top researchers in her field by Hispanic Engineer and Information Technology magazine.

Postdoctoral fellow Andrea Rocha is a member of a UT research team. She works on Governor’s Chair for Environmental Biotechnology Terry Hazen’s joint UT-ORNL team, and she was chosen as one of 32 women worldwide to be profiled in the magazine’s “Latinas at Tech Giants” edition, a press release said.

“I wasn’t even aware I was being considered,” Rocha said. “I didn’t know anything about it until I received a letter from the Women of Color STEM Conference that contained a congratulations note, press release on the article, and copy of the magazine which contained my profile.”

Almost as noteworthy, Rocha found out that Astrid Terry—a project manager at the Berkeley Lab at the University of California—had nominated her. [Read more…]

ORAU seeks applicants for the 2016 Extreme Classroom Makeover

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Oak Ridge Associated Universities Building MC-100

The Oak Ridge Associated Universities Building MC-100 is pictured above.

Oak Ridge Associated Universities is accepting applications for its $25,000 Extreme Classroom Makeover competition.

Now in its eighth year, the competition provides the latest educational technologies to update one teacher’s classroom, a press release said. Interested teachers must file their intent to apply no later than October 14.

The contest is open to public school math and science teachers who teach grades from third to 10th and are located within a 50-mile radius of Oak Ridge. Entrants must have the written consent of their principals and, if chosen, be willing to have their 2016-2017 classroom experience highlighted on the Internet and in various media outlets. Teachers, students, and even parents whose children are benefiting from this initiative will be invited to blog about this year-long experience on the Extreme Classroom website. [Read more…]

ORAU recognized as top diversity employer

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Black EOE Journal Best of the Best 2015 Winner

Black Equal Opportunity Employment Journal has recognized ORAU as one of its top diversity employers for 2015.

The magazine is a compendium of career and employment opportunity information for African-Americans, other minority groups, and women, a press release said.

As part of the magazine’s “Best of the Best 2015” series, Black EOE Journal annually polls hundreds of companies to assess and disclose the companies who show excellence in diversity in areas such as: government and law enforcement agencies; insurance, finance and banking companies; utilities, energy, gas, and oil companies; STEM employers; and healthcare, pharmaceutical, and biotech companies. [Read more…]

More than 200 students participate in ORAU’s graduate student recruitment fair

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ORAU Graduate Student Recruitment Fair

ORNL summer research interns present research findings and explore additional academic opportunities with some of the nation’s top research graduate programs. (Submitted photo)

 

More than 200 student researchers from Oak Ridge National Laboratory recently had the opportunity to both showcase their research and market themselves to 26 universities attending the 16th annual ORAU Graduate Student Recruitment Fair.

Each year, the recruitment fair corresponds with the 2015 Summer Research Participant Poster Session to leverage the students’ excitement over their summer research achievements and to encourage enthusiasm for further expanding their education. Universities invited to the fair are members of ORAU’s consortium of 115 Ph.D.-granting universities from across the United States, the United Kingdom, and Puerto Rico.

With representatives of 26 universities from across the U.S. available in one room, the fair allowed students to explore possible future educational opportunities, as well as compare and contrast graduate programs. [Read more…]