Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management contractor UCOR added 39 students from 13 schools across the nation to its workforce for the summer through its internship program.
OAK RIDGE, Tenn. — Planning ahead to bridge an expected experience gap as many members of the workforce reach retirement age, Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management (OREM) contractor UCOR began expanding its internship program in recent years. This summer, the company added 39 students from 13 schools across the nation to its team.
The intern program provides unique opportunities for students like Jessica Ariks.
After 15 years serving as the nurse for a local elementary school, Ariks was looking for a fresh start in a new career. A newly single mom, she sought the schedule stability of her former career but with an income to better provide for her three kids.
After exploring options that could complement her nursing education, Ariks decided on the UCOR-sponsored Environmental Health Technology program at Roane State Community College in Harriman, Tennessee. Excited to be among the first safety and industrial hygiene interns from that program, Ariks said this has been her dream job since she first enrolled.
“This internship is the realization that I can set goals and put in the work to achieve them,” Ariks said. “It’s the discovery that my efforts are worth the sacrifices I’ve made. It’s the example I’ll use years from now with my three daughters when they go through hard things and doubt themselves.”
University partnerships have enabled UCOR to more easily recruit military veterans. The summer intern program hosts a record three veterans in this year’s class, including Kaitlyn Raven.
After finding nursing school wasn’t for her, Raven joined the U.S. Army. After her medical retirement, she took part in the Army’s Chapter 31 aptitude testing for the exit to civilian life, which led her to choose civil engineering at Tennessee State University.
“I chose UCOR for my first internship at the recommendation of my professor,” said Raven, one of UCOR’s first interns from Tennessee State University in Nashville.
An engineer supporting work at the Molten Salt Reactor Experiment at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Raven is leaning on her Army experience.
This year, UCOR expanded intern opportunities into new areas, including Raven’s assignment. Nyree Macklin, also from Tennessee State University, is the first intern assigned to support the company’s human resources department. Other new areas for interns in 2024 include project controls and work coordination for the nuclear operations team.
From left, interns Cari Estrada Cardona, John Woods, Josh Vejda and Shawn Cameron dress for a demonstration at the Oak Ridge Research Reactor. UCOR is deactivating that facility for near-term demolition, continuing to transform Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s central campus.
The company continues its partnership with Florida International University, where Shawn Cameron graduated in May with a master’s degree in mechanical engineering.
Cameron completed research and internships with the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Legacy Management through a DOE fellowship. Now, he’s excited to support the DOE Office of Environmental Management (EM) by working in UCOR’s Technology Development group. Drawing on experience from a previous internship studying sink holes at EM's Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, Cameron produced a design in his first three weeks of his current UCOR internship.
UCOR’s summer internship program pairs college students with mentors in their respective departments. Nearly half of the interns have pursued careers at UCOR after completing their internships. Ten students from the 2023 class returned for the 2024 internship program, while 11 students joined UCOR as full-time employees upon graduation.
This year’s class includes a student from the DOE Mentorship for Environmental Scholars Program, which focuses on recruiting underrepresented students from historically Black colleges and universities, tribal colleges and universities, Hispanic-serving institutions and other minority serving institutions.
-Contributor: Shannon Potter
-Source: EM Update Newsletter