About Our Program
The SUSTAIN program will perform strategic research activities to develop a comprehensive and actionable plan for ensuring a skilled and diverse pool of nuclear power generation workers in the United States. The program’s participants and partners will apply their expertise in nuclear technology, workforce development, and technology transfer to make meaningful strides in this effort.
Understanding the Nuclear Energy Market
History
Since the 1960s, nuclear energy has been a crucial part of the United States' energy generation portfolio, which is primarily driven by large light-water reactors (LLWRs). However, in recent years, there have been significant challenges to the competitiveness of LLWRs in the face of changing market conditions, subsidies, and operating costs. This has resulted in several plant closures, leaving only 93 commercial LWRs in operation as of early 2022.
The Workforce Challenge
Despite these challenges, innovations in reactor technology, manufacturing, and fuels, along with the potential of small modular reactors and microreactors, hold transformative potential for the industry. These advancements can help nuclear power continue to play a vital role in meeting the nation's energy needs while protecting the environment
To capitalize on these opportunities, the nuclear energy sector must maintain a robust, diverse, and skilled workforce. This requires a proactive approach to recruitment, education, training, and retention. This is especially true given the extended time frames required to build a skilled workforce in the nuclear sector is on the same order as construction timelines for new reactors.
The SUSTAIN Project’s Contributions to the Market
The fundamental goal of the SUSTAIN project is to develop a comprehensive and actionable plan to ensure a diverse pool of skilled workers is available to support the continued viability of nuclear power in the U.S. This will be achieved through strategic research activities under the following tasks:
Integrate insights from existing workforce evaluations and develop guidelines to inform subsequent research.
Identify workforce needs and challenges across diverse organizations in the nuclear fuel cycle, understand factors influencing career decisions, and explore the role of educational institutions in bridging workforce gaps.
Perform an integrated assessment of the current state of the nuclear industry and its prospects over the next 20 years, including potential uncertainties. Conduct a gap analysis to understand differences between projected workforce demands and supplies.
Translate insights from the gap analysis into actionable educational content for K-12, community colleges, trade schools, undergraduate, and post-graduate programs. Emphasize training new workers and re-training those displaced by other sectors. Promote community awareness of nuclear power benefits and career opportunities.
This project represents a crucial step towards securing the future of nuclear power in the United States by ensuring a skilled and diverse workforce that can harness the transformative potential of nuclear technology advancements.
Program Participants
The program participants from UNLV provide their expertise in nuclear technology, workforce development, and technology transfer.
Our partners from Morgan State University provide expertise in K-12 and undergraduate STEM education content to support the professional development of teachers and other educators.
- Jonathan Wilson: Biology and director of the NASA Science Engineering Mathematics and Aerospace Academy (SEMAA)
- Antony Kinyua: Physics department
- Richard Damoah: Associate research scientist with the Atmospheric Chemistry and Dynamics Branch at NASAs Goddard Space Flight Center.
Our partners from the University of Maryland provide expertise in nuclear engineering; nuclear power-focused probabilistic hazard and risk assessment; data analytics and algorithm development; nuclear power regulatory frameworks; and radiation facilities.
- Michelle Bensi: Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
- Katrina Growth: Department of Mechanical Engineering
- Mohammad Modarres: Nicole Y. Kim eminent professor of engineering and director for the Center for Risk and Reliability
- Amber Johnson: Director of UMD radiation facilities
Sreven Mirsky has been with NuScale Power for 10 years, including 5 years as the manager of licensing of the Rockville, Maryland office interacting with the USNRC. He is currently a senior technical advisor in the NuScale Power Office of Technology.
Benjamin Reid is the founder and principal consultant of Impact Allies Inc, an independent research and evaluation company focused on advancing STEM programs and higher education.
Kevin Cooper is the principal investigator of Project Vision and RCNET, NSF’s Centers focused on development STEM pipelines. Over the last 10 years, Cooper has been PI on over $20M in funds from NSF, DOE, NRC, EDA, DOL, and a host of non-profit organizations. Cooper is also dean of Indian River State College
SUSTAIN News
Contact
Email sustain@unlv.edu for general inquiries.
Wendee Johns: wendee.johns@unlv.edu
Ken Czerwinski: czerwin2@unlv.nevada.edu
