ORNL engineer Clarice Phelps. Image credit: Carlos Jones, ORNL
If East Tennessee’s nuclear industry is to grow, it needs a robust local workforce.
To prepare students to enter that workforce, local community colleges are offering nuclear-focused classes under their associate degree programs. Students who enroll in the courses will learn fundamentals of the nuclear industry — such as equipment usage and waste management — and gain hands-on experience that is usually only acquired on the job.
Pellissippi State Community College signed an agreement with ORNL in June 2023 to offer a chemical radiation technology pathway. Core classes in this program include analytical chemistry, radiochemistry and hazardous waste control. Two of these classes — radiochemistry and hazardous waste control — are taught by ORNL staff members.
The chemical radiation technology pathway connects students to ORNL facility tours, internship programs and potential employment opportunities. Students who complete a two-year degree and a summer internship will be well-positioned to enter the workforce at ORNL or another national lab or through industry-adjacent careers.
ORNL engineer Clarice Phelps developed this pathway to offer underrepresented communities an accessible entry point to careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, specifically careers in the nuclear field. She serves as an adjunct professor teaching Pellissippi State’s radiochemistry class.
“I wanted to focus on getting people the background knowledge, so they could apply for those entry-level technician positions,” Phelps said. “I was a former technician, so I know the importance of technicians to the ORNL workforce. They are a huge part of researchers and principal investigators being able to get their work done.”
Phelps said education provides numerous opportunities for students to flourish. She hopes eventually to create similar community college programs that cover other important areas in STEM.
“We’re helping to advance the general education of the area, creating new jobs and contributing to building generational wealth for these families,” she said.
technology program lead Joe Stainback IV
Roane State Community College is responding to the nuclear workforce need with a nuclear technology program led by the college’s Joe Stainback IV. The curriculum combines existing chemical engineering and environmental health classes with three new nuclear-focused classes: nuclear science and radiochemistry, nuclear systems and operations, and radiation detection measurements. Additionally, Stainback is working with industry to bring on course instructors and secure internships for students in the program.
Students enrolled in the program will be able to earn either a two-year degree or a certificate through a condensed course. Stainback said the certificate track would be beneficial to engineers who are not in the nuclear field but wish to learn about the basics of nuclear history and safety.
“The industry has a need, and the students have a want. You want to match those two,” Stainback said. “The aperture of nuclear technologies is quite large, so it depends on what the student’s goals are and spending time with them to help match that up.”
In 2023, Roane State received $100,000 from ORNL’s managing contractor, UT-Battelle, and a $1.4 million grant from the Department of Labor to help launch the program. In 2024, the college has received three grants supporting the program, including $546,000 from the National Science Foundation, $462,000 from the Tennessee Nuclear Energy Fund and $450,000 from the Governor’s Investment in Vocational Education grant program.
The first cohort of the nuclear technology program has enrolled, with its nuclear-focused classes beginning in 2025.