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Originally appeared in Monday, September 15, 2006 Oak Ridger

Mentors at Oak Ridge National Laboratory honored


Oak Ridge National Laboratory staff members who serve as mentors to students and teachers in the laboratory’s education programs, which are administered by the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education, were honored at a ceremony at ORNL’s Eugene P. Wigner Auditorium recently.

“Mentors are the cornerstone of the laboratory’s undergraduate, graduate student and K-12 programs,” said ORISE Science Education Group Manager Linda Holmes. “It takes a very special person to advise, guide, teach and be a role model to a budding scientist, engineer or teacher of math and science.”

Nominated by the students and teachers they advise, mentors are ORNL employees who guide and teach the participants who come to the laboratory for research experiences. Outstanding mentor awards went to:

Mariappan Paranthaman, ORNL Chemical Sciences Division; Auroop Ganguly, ORNL Computational Sciences and Engineering Division; George Fann, ORNL Computer Science and Mathematics Division; Steve Allison, ORNL Engineering Science and Technology Division; Justin Baba, ORNL Engineering Science and Technology Division; JT Simpson, ORNL Engineering Science and Technology Division; Mark Bevelhimer, ORNL Environmental Sciences Division; TJ Blasing, ORNL Environmental Sciences Division; Kelly Roy, ORNL Environmental Sciences Division; Derek Austin, ORNL Materials Science and Technology Division; Bruce Pint, ORNL Materials Science and Technology Division; Michael Simpson, ORNL Materials Science and Technology Division; Joe Birdwell, ORNL Nuclear Science and Technology Division; Ian Gross, ORNL Nuclear Science and Technology Division; Joanna McFarlane, ORNL Nuclear Science and Technology Division; Sara Pozzi, ORNL Nuclear Science and Technology Division; Brad Weil, ORNL Nuclear Science and Technology Division; Ken Carter, ORAU’s University Radioactive Ion Beam Consortium Program.

Several other ORNL staff members were also recognized for their contributions to the laboratory’s educational and work force development goals. These award winners were:

Nancy Gray of the Human Resources Directorate for her contributions in coordinating activities for the laboratory’s postdoctoral associates and foreign nationals;

Johney Boyd Green Jr. and Saylor Hummel of the Engineering Science and Technology Division for their work to attract minority graduate students to the laboratory through the National Consortium for Graduate Degrees for Minorities in Engineering and Science, Inc., program;

Debbie McCoy of the Computing and Computational Sciences Directorate for her role in coordinating the Research Alliance for Math and Science Program for undergraduate students for the last six years;

Martin Schweitzer for his 13-year role in coordinating a program for Oak Ridge High School students to participate in research at the laboratory through the school’s Southeastern Consortium of Minority Engineers’ organization;

April McMillan for her outstanding contributions to the laboratory’s University Partnerships Office;

Edgar Lara-Curzio and Karen Simonson of the Materials Science and Technology Division for their role in implementing a creative program to develop the laboratory’s work force by training community college students to be technicians;

Elias Greenbaum of the Chemical Sciences Division and Michael Smith of the Physics Division for their roles in mentoring and providing educational seminars for undergraduate students.

In addition to the mentor and educator recognition, two additional awards were presented — one to ORNL’s Nuclear Science and Technology Division, and one individual award presented to ORNL’s Associate Laboratory Director for University Partnerships Lee Riedinger for exceptional contributions to the education and training of tomorrow’s work force.

“Mentoring is one answer the laboratory can provide to the nation’s question — What can we do to improve our emphasis on science and mathematics?” said Riedinger.

Riedinger, who is soon leaving the laboratory to become the vice chancellor for research at the University of Tennessee, delivered the ceremony’s keynote address.

ORISE currently administers 25 different education programs for ORNL and has been the laboratory’s partner for education-related initiatives since 1946.

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