Nuclear Education Hub (NEH)

Overview

NEH was established in 2018 by Prof. Andrei Afanasev (George Washington University) and Prof. Alireza Haghighat (Virginia Tech) through a grant from the Office of International Nuclear Policy and Cooperation, US Department of Energy, for the purpose of education of Ukrainian citizens in Nuclear Science and Nuclear Engineering.

Thus far, NEH has developed curricula tailored for the Ukrainian citizens, identified and established dialogue with key stakeholders in the US and Ukraine, and identified the needs and interests of the stakeholders through a workshop which was held on Aug. 8-9, 2019. The main outcome of this workshop is as follows:

>>More students are needed in the areas of physics, engineering and nuclear sciences. A theme throughout the two-day meeting was the decline of students entering these critical fields and the need for recruiting the next generation of nuclear scientists.
>>The Nuclear Education Hub provides an opportunity to strengthen the existing education and research programs in nuclear sciences and engineering, as well as adding the study of safety, security, regulations and policy.
Further detail about the workshop is given below.

Because of the pandemic the follow-up trip to Ukraine had to be postponed. However, considering the new Biden administration’s goals for resetting the US international role, the recent agreements on nuclear energy between several Eastern European countries, and the end of pandemic in sight, NEH has expanded its mission by including other new nuclear countries.

With its new mission, NEH not only would engage in and facilitate education of cadre of nuclear experts, but also will directly contribute to the export and deployment of the US nuclear technology and reactor systems, and therefore effective participation in setting safety and security standards for the next generation nuclear reactor designs.

To address the global needs, the NEH co-directors have decided to establish the NEH nonprofit organization (see a white paper on NEH's mission), which seeks partners from the US educational institution, industry, and national laboratories. If interested in this opportunity, please contact either Prof. Afanasev (afanas@gwu.edu) or Prof. Haghighat (haghighat@vt.edu).

Workshop (August 8-9, 2019)