AIKEN, S.C. - Craig Newman became a Savannah River Site (SRS) contractor employee thanks to a DOE and National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) Workforce Opportunities in Regional Careers (WORC) grant.
A graduate of the University of South Carolina (USC) with a degree in English, Newman had struggled to find a career using his skillset in technical writing and publishing. That changed when he joined the WORC grant program at Aiken Technical College (ATC) and landed a job with the SRS liquid waste contractor Savannah River Remediation (SRR).
“My journey to attending the Nuclear Fundamentals program at Aiken Tech began after I had difficulty breaking into the nuclear industry," Newman said. “I dubbed it a risky move quitting my job at the time to start the program, but a necessary decision to finally make it to the Savannah River Site. Little did I know at the time that the WORC grant would ease the financial strain of being out of work."
The Savannah River Site Community Reuse Organization awarded the $5 million WORC grant to colleges and universities in the region in 2016. The grant connects residents with educational opportunities to obtain skills needed by DOE and NNSA in the SRS nuclear missions.
The WORC grant program benefits SRR, the schools, and the students looking for SRS careers, according to SRR President and Project Manager Tom Foster.
“The WORC grant program will help SRR maintain a high level of performance by supplying a pipeline of workers from local programs that train workers in the skillsets we need," Foster said. “We will continue looking for opportunities to leverage our customer’s support in preparing students for careers in the nuclear industry."
Newman is training to be a tank operator at the two tank farms containing 43 operational underground high-level radioactive waste tanks.
“The program courses at Aiken Tech allowed me to bypass the fundamental training so I was able to quickly gain field experience at SRS alongside my coworkers," Newman said. “Now I am in systems training, learning the inner workings of the liquid waste process in the classroom, while also gaining practical experience in the field."
Newman said he feels fortunate for the opportunity at SRS.
“I have a new sense of purpose in my new career with SRR, whose mission is to protect the surrounding public and environment from by-products of the past," he said.
Source: U.S. Dept. of Energy, Office of Environmental Management
