New state funding could allow Tennessee Tech to expand its nuclear engineering research and workforce development programs.
The Governor’s new budget includes a proposed $25 million state investment in advanced technologies. College of Engineering Dean Joseph Slater said the growth of the nuclear industry has created a tremendous need for a specialized workforce.
“We’re excited and very grateful that the state recognizes our value in leading the nation in these growing areas,” Slater said. “We’ve been a strong supporter of the state in trying to grow workforce in all of these areas, develop the research in these areas that will drive the nation forward, and we’re honored that the state does recognize that we have been doing what they have asked of us and that we are a critical part of Tennessee Tech growing as part of the overall scope of what’s going on in the state and in the nation.”
Slater said companies in Oak Ridge have expressed a desire to hire as many graduates as the university can produce. The university is also focusing on cybersecurity in nuclear operations through a center led by Dr. Ismail Muhammad, Slater said.
“So what we are doing at Tennessee Tech is filling what is becoming a desperate need for those experts in the field of nuclear engineering, but not just nuclear engineering, but adjacent nuclear knowledge and nuclear-friendly occupations,” Slater said. “They need people in all forms of engineering: mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, chemical engineering.”
The state funding will help the university enhance research into fuel reprocessing and the development of small modular reactors. Artificial intelligence is also being integrated into training environments and design oversight, though human observation remains necessary for critical safety decisions.
“We have enough nuclear fuels that is spent fuel stored around the nation that we would never need to mine fuel again,” Slater said. “We could simply reprocess it and use it in reactors that we already understand.”
Governor Bill Lee and the state legislature began investing in nuclear engineering before the current national revival of the industry. Tennessee Tech partnered with the government to introduce its nuclear program early, positioning the state to become a central hub for nuclear technology and economic growth.
“Tennessee is on that cutting edge, and what impressed me the most is how everybody in Tennessee is on board with this and that’s going to be what drives Tennessee to be able to create the center of nuclear technology and economy right here, instead of allowing others to be the center of what’s going to be an extremely great economic growth that we will see over the next few decades,” Slater said.
University graduates and local companies will continue developing new designs for small modular reactors in Tennessee. The university recently established an artificial intelligence center and hosted an Oak Ridge Day to connect students with national companies seeking specialized graduates.