Alyssa Hayes, a PhD student in the Department of Nuclear Engineering, has been selected by the American Nuclear Society (ANS) as the recipient of its 2025 Social Responsibility in the Nuclear Community Award.
The award recognizes an individual, group, or organization for outstanding efforts in social responsibility expanding workforce and professional development access or community-building in the nuclear community.
Hayes was cited for her nationwide initiatives to boost representation within the STEM and nuclear fields, and to strengthen nuclear outreach to underrepresented communities. Her leadership highlights include work with the Computational Research Access NEtwork (CRANE) Foundation, the ANS Unchartered Waters programming series, and the 2023 ANS Student Conference.
“Alyssa is extremely deserving of this honor,” said NE Professor and Associate Department Head Jamie Coble. “She balances her research with her passion for engaging everyone in the nuclear community and her purposeful servant leadership. She is an outstanding ambassador for the care and compassion that members of the nuclear community feel and serves as a role model for so many.”
Hayes, who is pursuing her doctoral degree in the area of computational plasma physics, is a founding member of CRANE, which is a volunteer organization that provides scientific computing workshops for students of all skill levels to demystify scientific research, largely in plasma physics and other fundamental tools involved in nuclear engineering.
Hayes has also been the driving force behind the Uncharted Waters training series, hosted by ANS. She identified a need to engage newcomers in the nuclear community and worked with members of ANS CARES and others to develop the curriculum to guide a three-session workshop to bring knowledge and training to the ANS membership.
“With the nuclear renaissance just around the corner, the benefits of the expanding job market and nuclear science literacy should be accessible by all communities,” Hayes said. “However, forming relationships between a nuclear organization and an under resourced community historically neglected by our industry has inherent challenges. The Uncharted Waters series seeks to help ANS Sections break communication barriers rooted in understandable distrust, tailor content to specific community needs, and sustain long-lasting relationships.”
Hayes will be presented with her award during the Opening Plenary of the 2025 ANS Winter Conference and Expo, which will be held at the Washington Hilton in Washington, D.C. on November 10.
Early this year, Hayes was one of only two students selected to receive the ANS’ Glenn T. Seaborn Congressional Science and Engineering Fellowship for the 2026 term. Hayes has been placed with the United States Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works.
Contact
Rhiannon Potkey (rpotkey@utk.edu)