Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education

🤝Meet Josh Cunningham, Ph.D., a former intern at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), who is now chief operating officer for the Quantum Science Center, headquartered at ORNL. While pursuing a degree in communications at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Josh Cunningham, Ph.D., didn’t envision a career in .

That changed with a science writing internship at ORNL, administered through the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE).

As an intern at the ORNL-operated Oak Ridge Leadership Computing Facility, Cunningham translated complex research — on topics like high-performance computing (HPC), quantum science and cybersecurity – into clear, engaging stories for the public. LEARN MORE: https://bit.ly/3QDwjrQ

Recently, the Radiation Emergency Assistance Center/Training Site (REAC/TS) provided training for staff at both the Savannah River Site (SRS), located outside of Aiken, SC, and Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) in Upton, NY.

For SRS, the team conducted two separate courses in Augusta, GA, and in Aiken, SC, on May 13, 2026 and May 14, 2026, respectively. These courses, which were executed in conjunction with SRS and the local hospital systems, had a combined total of 43 participants.

The two-day course for BNL was May 19-20, 2026, and had a total of 23 participants.

Both courses addressed the medical care and management of exposed or contaminated individuals, radiation physics, and radiation detection and equipment. LEARN MORE: https://bit.ly/4e1ceov

Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education The Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education, an official U.S. Department of Energy asset

🎙️AI's role inside and outside the classroom: An Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellowship conversation: Artificial Intelligence (AI) is something most people interact with every day, even if they don’t realize it. Maps apps, the predictive text you see when you’re writing an email or document, or the ad you get served on social media because you searched the web for something. While useful in our daily lives, AI is also beneficial in the classroom. As this episode is posted, students and educators from around the country are about to compete in the finals of the Presidential AI Challenge in Washington, D.C. In this episode of the ORISE Featurecast, Michael Holtz is joined by guest co-host Natasja Brown. Together they have a great conversation with Dr. Ann Schwartz, an Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellowship alum, and Kyle Kuhlers, a current AEF Fellow. Join them for an interesting and inspiring conversation. LEARN MORE: https://bit.ly/3iCFId5

Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education The Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education, an official U.S. Department of Energy asset

➡️ORISE Published and Reports: ORISE authors technical reports, peer-reviewed journal articles and reports prepared by the ORISE Center for Epidemiologic Research. LEARN MORE ABOUT THIS RESEARCH: https://orise.orau.gov/health-surveillance/research/published-research.html

Published Research and Reports - ORISE Worker health studies resources produced by the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE) include technical reports, peer-reviewed journal articles, and reports prepared by the ORISE Center for Epidemiologic Research.

Download the ORISE GO app for internships, fellowships or research opportunities! The ORISE GO app helps you stay engaged, connected and informed during your ORISE experience - from application, to offer, through your appointment and even as an ORISE alum! LEARN MORE and DOWNLOAD THE APP: https://orise.orau.gov/orisego/
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ORISE GO App This is "ORISE GO App" by ORAU on Vimeo, the home for high quality videos and the people who love them.

🍎ATTENTION TEACHERS: Register today for FREE virtual or in-person teacher professional development opportunities this month in June! Some programs will be in person in Oak Ridge; many will be virtual over Zoom. 🆓All programs are free, but registration is required. LEARN MORE or REGISTER TODAY: https://bit.ly/3YbVAtI

Professional Development for K-12 Teachers - ORISE Professional development opportunities for K-12 teachers enable educators to collaborate with our nation’s leading scientists, explore STEM curriculum resources, and engage in learning with fellow educators.

➡️ Why is epidemiologic important? Epidemiologic research provides valuable insight into health trends and risks for workers and the public at large. ORISE researchers have kept in step as DOE operations and worker health assessment needs have evolved over time. Since the early 1990s, ORISE epidemiologists have concentrated on building and maintaining worker health registries to support medical surveillance, health risk assessments, and morbidity studies.

Epidemiology, a core capability of ORISE, continues to evolve and diversify as priorities and needs change. Early in its history, ORISE engaged in epidemiologic research of mortality among U.S. Department of Energy nuclear workers. Epidemiologists developed robust expertise in occupational health studies and DOE worker populations. In the early 1980s, the Center for Epidemiologic Research became the operating unit for this important research.

ORISE retains the expertise and capabilities needed to perform epidemiologic research and studies of exposure to radiation, chemicals, and other hazards. LEARN MORE: https://orise.orau.gov/health-surveillance/research/index.html

Epidemiologic Research - ORISE ORISE retains the expertise and capabilities needed to perform epidemiologic research of exposure to radiation, chemicals and other hazards for the U.S. Department of Energy and other government agencies.

🍎ATTENTION K-12 TEACHERS: Who or what inspired you to become a educator? We want to hear from you! ORISE is giving away THREE Yeti M20 Backpack Soft Coolers!
Here’s how to enter to win:
1. Follow ORISE on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram
2. Fill out this short survey (https://bit.ly/3RXezbc)
3. Comment your answer below⬇️⬇️⬇️ Who or what inspired you to become a educator?

From the list of all teachers who participate, three winners will be chosen at random. The three winners will be announced on social media and via email mid-July! The deadline to enter the contest is June 30, 2026, at 11:59 P.M. EDT. LEARN MORE: https://bit.ly/3A0h0Rl

STEM Competitions for K-12 Teachers - ORISE The Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE) offers a variety of K-12 STEM competitions for educators to increase students’ interest and excitement for science.

To support regulatory agencies, ORISE performs verification surveys of cleanup activities to ensure facilities and land can be safely released for government, commercial, or public use. Through the use of specialized equipment, ORISE health physicists and field survey technicians conduct environmental assessments to provide an accurate evaluation of a site’s radiological conditions. LEARN MORE: https://bit.ly/2Xmo7Lh

Environmental Assessments - ORISE The Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE) performs environmental assessments and verification surveys, which are essential to building public trust and confidence in radiological cleanup.

ORISE facilitates end-to-end management and coordination of peer/merit reviews, award nomination reviews, project/program reviews, site reviews, as well as scientific and technical meetings where new research ideas are formulated or how funded research is progressing.

ORISE manages scientific peer reviews for the U.S. Department of Energy as well as many other government agencies. Peer reviews provide critical, independent assessment of research proposals and program performance to help sponsors determine the quality of research proposals and the accuracy of the scientific information they contain. LEARN MORE: https://bit.ly/2SwBjMF

Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE) The Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE) is a world-class DOE asset designed to strengthen a scientific workforce; promote the integrity of scientific research through peer review; provide 24/7 medical response to radiation accidents; evaluate human health data to protect workers fr...