Jordan Evans, a materials science engineering doctoral student at Texas A&M University, was named a recipient of the Roy G. Post Foundation Scholarship and will be receiving the award, valued at $5,000, at the annual Waste Management Conference in Phoenix on March 8. Recipients of the scholarship are full-time students enrolled in a post-secondary educational program in either technical or policy fields that are seeking to contribute to the safe management of nuclear materials.
The scholarship is funded by the Roy G. Post Foundation, a non-profit organization that provides scholarships to students who want to develop careers within nuclear materials management fields. The foundation’s namesake, Roy G. Post, was the founding chief executive of WM Symposia and is the sponsor of the international Waste Management Conference. This year’s conference will address policy and technical developments in the global radioactive waste community, include over 175 companies, 130 technical sessions and over 500 paper presentations covering a variety of radioactive waste management issues.
Evans is a native of Houston and earned both his bachelor’s and master’s of science in nuclear engineering at Texas A&M. Evan’s current research focuses on the development of advanced nuclear materials, including both reactor structural materials and nuclear fuel. Evans has completed several recent projects, including the development of a uranium mononitride or sesquisilicide ceamic fuel composite in collaboration with Westinghouse Electric. Evans is also working with Lockheed Martin on developing nuclear reactor structural material that is produced by laser-based additive manufacturing. Evans is currently pursuing a doctorate in materials and science engineering with a focus on nuclear nanomaterials under Dr. Sean McDeavitt, the director and principal investigator of the Fuel Cycle and Materials Laboratory under the Department of Nuclear Engineering at Texas A&M. Evans is planning on using the conference as an exploratory experience to consider options and needs within the industry to find the best role he can fill.
“The plan at the moment is to see what’s out there,” Evans said. “I still have more than a year to go so it doesn’t make sense to make any plans right now, but one of the things I am really looking forward to is the opportunity to see what’s out there at this conference.”
While the conference offers attendees a look at national and international opportunities within the environmental and radioactive waste management fields, Evans believes the real reward will be the ability to meet with professionals in his field and network with future employees and colleagues.
“It’s certainly an honor and it’s never a bad thing to experience different things and see what other folks are doing in the field,” Evans said. “The conference is definitely something I am looking forward to.”