The Department of Energy’s Office of Environmental Management officially said in a Thursday press release it is expanding its Minority Serving Institutions Partnership Program thanks to increased funding for the program in the agency’s fiscal 2022 budget, which started Oct. 1.
In March, DOE’s Savannah River National Laboratory in South Carolina said Minority Serving Institutions had until April 8 to respond to a request for information to work with the lab on research for the Environmental Management office.
The DOE received $56 million for the Minority Serving Institutions Partnership Program (MSIPP) in fiscal 2022, up from $6 million in fiscal 2021, according to the release.
The DOE Office of Environmental Management is adding a graduate fellowship program as well as a technology curriculum and professional development program. This is all part of the nuclear cleanup office’s ongoing effort to diversify its 33,000-person federal and contractor workforce, many of whom are rapidly approaching retirement age.
The nuclear office “is significantly ramping up recruitment efforts and the MSIPP plays a key role,” said William (Ike) White, the Environmental Management office’s senior adviser. “The tools and programs we are putting in place today will set the stage for developing the next generation workforce needed tomorrow.”
