Education & Training Special Section

THE NUCLEAR NEWS INTERVIEW Steven Biegalski: NEDHO’s role in nuclear engineering education

The Nuclear Engineering Department Heads Organization provides a forum for addressing issues affecting nuclear engineering programs at U.S. colleges and universities.

teven Biegalski is the current What is the state of NEDHO today? How many members? Who is eligible to chair of the Nuclear Engineer- join NEDHO? ing Department Heads Organi- Currently, we have 28 full members and S 16 associate members. Full members pay zation (NEDHO), a group formed in dues and have voting privileges. Associ- 1982 to provide a forum for discus- ate members participate in meetings but do not pay dues or have voting privileg- sion, coordination, and collabora- es. It’s an institutional membership, so tion among university nuclear engi- an individual faculty member is not eligi- ble to join. neering department chairs on issues We’re open to any university in North concerning nuclear and radiological America with a nuclear engineering pro- gram. We do have some institutions, par- engineering programs. Among the ticularly the military academies, that ar- issues that NEDHO deals with are en’t allowed to pay dues. They still come and participate in the meetings, which is the accreditation of academic pro- great. It’s just that the caveat is if they’re grams, funding for scholarships and not paying dues, they don’t have voting privileges. Most of the votes are for bud- fellowships, research funding and geting—for example, giving funds to the ANS Young Members Group. So if you’re opportunities, and funding for train- Biegalski: “I am happy to report that the not paying dues into NEDHO, you’re job prospects for our students appear very ing and research reactors. not able to say where the funds can be good and diverse.” Biegalski, chair of the Nuclear and allocated. Radiological Engineering and Medical Physics Program at the Insti- How often does NEDHO meet? tute of Technology, began his one-year term as NEDHO chair in June 2019. We meet at least twice a year, during the ANS Annual and Winter Meetings. He was introduced to NEDHO in 2002, when he became an assistant pro- ANS is kind enough to allow us to use fessor at the University of at Austin, where he served as director of some meeting space. It’s very convenient, as many of us are in town for the ANS the school’s TRIGA research reactor from 2007 to 2017. He holds bachelor’s, meeting anyway. But NEDHO is not part master’s, and doctoral degrees in nuclear engineering from the University of of ANS. That gets confusing, as we meet at ANS meetings. NEDHO is a distinct and , the University of , and the University of , respec- separate organization. tively. He joined the engineering faculty at in 2017. This year, we’ll have an additional meet- ing in March in Washington, D.C., as part An American Nuclear Society member since 1989, Biegalski talked about of the Nuclear Energy Institute’s Nuclear NEDHO’s activities with Nuclear News Staff Writer Paul LaTour. Innovation Week [March 23–26]. Craig

26 • Nuclear News • March 2020 www.ans.org/nn Piercy [ANS executive director and chief initiatives and thrusts. Current highlights that NEDHO often does at ANS meetings? executive officer] and John Starkey [ANS include communications with U.S. gov- I have to credit Harsh Desai [chair of the director of government relations] help co- ernment agencies that interact with the ANS Young Members Group] for reach- ordinate our Capitol Hill Day. Hill Day is university nuclear engineering commu- ing out to NEDHO regarding the Young a time when industry representatives, as nity. We’ve had recent interactions with Professionals Congress at the ANS Winter well as the nuclear university communi- the Office of Nuclear Energy, the NNSA, Meeting. Growing and supporting young ty, go to D.C. to talk to our congressional the Defense Threat representatives—usually their staffers— Reduction Agency, about what’s going on in our universities. and the Nuclear Reg- We spent a lot of time discussing We’ll tell them what programs are really ulatory Commission. how universities can help supportive, what things are going well, We have recently and what things are going badly. been working with advance the state of the nuclear Many times we use it as an opportunity the DOE’s Office of to thank them for their support of our uni- Defense Nuclear Non- industry and how universities can versities. Our senators and representatives proliferation and the adjust to meet the breadth of do significantly support their home insti- FBI on nuclear securi- tutions. So it’s a time for communication, ty and export control needs for the future workforce. and that’s done with universities as well as issues that affect the industries in town as part of Nuclear In- nuclear engineering university commu- professionals within the nuclear engineer- novation Week. That’s a long way of saying nity. We’re also working with the nucle- ing community is important to NEDHO. that we’re having another NEDHO meet- ar industry, including NEI, on workforce Accordingly, NEDHO was excited to sup- ing after we have our day visiting the Hill. development. And we’re working with port this event. So some years we’ll have three meetings. ANS for the professional development This was the first time, to my knowl- and engagement of our nuclear engineer- edge, that we’ve actually supported the What types of items were discussed at the ing students. Young Members Group like this. NEDHO most recent NEDHO meeting? does not have a huge budget, but the meet- The most recent NEDHO meeting was What specific or recent interactions have ings in D.C., in particular, seem to be well held on November 17, 2019, in Washing- you had with any of those organizations? attended, and so we tend to potentially ton, D.C. We were honored to have many Predominantly, our communications have more outreach opportunities at those guest speakers at the meeting, including are related to government programs with meetings than some of the others. Rita Baranwal, the assistant secretary universities. For example, we’ve had re- for the Department of Energy’s Office of cent talks with the NRC over its upcoming What other ways is NEDHO involved with Nuclear Energy; John Kotek, NEI’s vice call for proposals for university programs. ANS or other organizations? president of policy development and pub- And there are going to be some changes in One of NEDHO’s main interactions lic affairs; David Petersen, of the Defense their programs. The good news is that the with ANS is via Craig Piercy. NEDHO is Threat Reduction Agency; Katie Strangis, NRC is adding an additional research pro- indebted to Craig for his facilitating and a senior policy advisor in the National gram for the university community. On coordinating efforts across the nuclear Nuclear Security Administration’s Office the bad side, NRC funding was delayed enterprise. He has been a significant re- of Nonproliferation and Arms Control; this year, so awards may also be delayed source to NEDHO, and I am sure he will Craig Williamson, director and chief op- in comparison to previous years. We’re have a tremendous impact as ANS’s exec- erating officer of the Uni- having discussions with Nancy Hebron-­ utive director. versities Research and Education Founda- Isreal, a program manager at the NRC’s As I mentioned earlier, NEDHO inter- tion; and John Gilligan, integration office Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research, acts with many organizations, including director for the DOE’s Nuclear Energy related to how these funding delays might NEI, the DOE, the Department of De- University Program [NEUP]. have an impact on the university commu- fense, and the NRC. We also work to fa- We spent a lot of time discussing how nity, how we might be able to minimize cilitate relationships between universities universities can help advance the state of those impacts, and also using NEDHO and our national laboratories. the nuclear industry and how universities as a mechanism to communicate to the can adjust to meet the breadth of needs for nuclear engineering community about In a previous Nuclear News interview (NN, the future workforce. what’s coming down the pike so people Jan. 2011, p. 44), former NEDHO chair Au- understand what’s going on. We also talk deen Fentiman mentioned two NEDHO re- Are there any “action items” for the future? to the DOE, especially the Office of Nucle- ports, Nuclear Engineering in Transition Our main action items from that meet- ar Energy, on a regular basis. and Manpower Supply and Demand in the ing include working with the DOE’s Office This is all part of the feedback loop Nuclear Industry. Are there any updates on of Nuclear Energy to align NEUP with so we’re sure that things are going well those? Are there other reports NEDHO has current administrative priorities, working from the university perspective as well as produced in the past few years? with NEI on the coordination of Nuclear the DOE perspective. We are constantly Those reports have had a significant -im Innovation Week, further engaging our looking for ways to improve the process. pact on the growth of nuclear engineering university community on matters related Sometimes NEDHO makes recommen- education. We have not recently updated to export control and nuclear security, dations to the DOE and they say, “Thank those reports, but we continually monitor and promoting the upcoming 2020 ANS you, but that’s not something we can do.” workforce demands and employment op- Student Conference, hosted by North Sometimes they say, “That was a great portunities for our students. I am happy to Carolina State University, within our comment, and we’ll see what we can do to report that the job prospects for our stu- universities. integrate that.” dents appear very good and diverse.

What kinds of programs or initiatives does NEDHO sponsored a session during the According to data supplied by the Oak Ridge NEDHO have? What areas does it focus on? Young Professionals Congress at the 2019 Institute for Science and Education, under- NEDHO currently has a wide range of ANS Winter Meeting. Is that something graduate enrollment is up overall since 2001

March 2020 • Nuclear News • 27 Education & Training Special Section but has seen some major swings in the past sector for these graduates. In contrast to applications of nuclear technology. One five years. What is the reason for that? the undergraduate volatility, I believe that additional quarter work in jobs support- Nuclear engineering undergraduate the graduate student enrollment stability ing nuclear medicine. The balance of stu- enrollment has significantly increased is due to undergraduate students being dents find jobs supporting other employ- in the last 20 years. The last decade has able to make knowledgeable decisions ment sectors. seen more volatility than the decade regarding graduate prior. While I am sure there are many education. Increased factors that contribute to the swings in numbers of nuclear The state of university nuclear undergraduate enrollment, the feedback engineering facul- engineering programs is I receive from students indicates that the ty members and the volatility feeds from perceptions regard- availability of funded very strong in comparison ing the future of the nuclear industry. nuclear engineering Nuclear engineering is in competition research opportuni- to 20 years ago. There is with other STEM [science, technology, ties also strongly con- interest and enthusiasm from engineering, and mathematics] academ- tribute to the stability ic programs for students, and the public of this trend. students, and employment messaging for the prospects of nuclear technology is not uniform. Undergrad- Are recent graduates opportunities are very good. uates are making the best decisions they able to find work in can with the information they have. the nuclear field? In which areas are they How much enthusiasm are you seeing for However, this information is inconsistent finding the most success? the overall health and future of nuclear en- and can also be politicized. Recent analysis of student employment gineering programs/degrees? What needs shows that students are definitely find- to be done to either continue or create more On the flip side, graduate level enrollment ing jobs in the nuclear field. While I do enthusiasm? has been on a smoother upward trajecto- not have full data that is representative of The state of university nuclear engineer- ry since 2001. How do the reasons for that all the universities within NEDHO, I do ing programs is very strong in comparison compare with what the undergraduate have data representing the graduates from to 20 years ago. There is interest and en- trend has been? Georgia Tech, which show that about one-­ thusiasm from students, and employment The consistent increase in graduate third of our graduates find employment opportunities are very good. For contin- enrollment over the last two decades has directly within the nuclear power sector. ued success there needs to be growth in been very good for the nuclear engineer- About one-­quarter of the students find the nuclear sector, positive messaging re- ing university community. It is matched by jobs related to radiological engineering, garding this growth, and support within outstanding prospects within the nuclear including nuclear security and industrial the universities. NN

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