“Jobs IRL: Looking at Jobs on a More Atomic Level,” a new radio series on National Public Radio’s (NPR) “Marketplace Morning Report,” recently highlighted unique career opportunities and job training offered at Savannah River Site (SRS).
Office of Environmental Management
July 2, 2024
minute read time
Savannah River Site (SRS) Apprenticeship Program graduates Terrence Tillman, far right, and Shanterra Hughes share their recent apprenticeship experience with National Public Radio (NPR) Host David Brancaccio, center, and NPR Sound Engineer Rebekah Wineman.
National Public Radio’s ‘Marketplace Morning Report’ features Savannah River Site in new series
AIKEN, S.C. — “Jobs IRL: Looking at Jobs on a More Atomic Level,” a new radio series on National Public Radio’s (NPR) “Marketplace Morning Report,” recently highlighted unique career opportunities and job training offered at Savannah River Site (SRS).
“Marketplace Morning Report” is a daily business-news program that airs six times a day as part of NPR’s Morning Edition. With over 14 million weekly listeners across 800 local public radio stations and a significant digital audience, it is one of the most popular business and economic news programs in the country.
Rick Sprague, Savannah River Nuclear Solutions (SRNS) senior vice president, Environment, Safety, Health and Quality, expressed excitement about the exposure, saying, “This was a terrific opportunity to showcase our apprenticeship opportunities and recruitment efforts on a national platform.”
Savannah River Nuclear Solutions Senior Vice President Rick Sprague, right, discusses Savannah River Site missions and workforce recruitment efforts with National Public Radio’s Rebekah Wineman, far left, and David Brancaccio.
The series focuses on organizations that create physical, well-paid jobs during a digital age.
“We aim to hire over 9,000 new employees in the next five years,” continued Sprague. “This program is essential in securing full-time employees with the critical skills needed at the Savannah River Site.”
The SRS Apprenticeship School has formed successful partnerships with the Aiken Technical, Augusta Technical and Denmark Technical colleges. The program offers 27 registered occupations that include paid on-the-job training and networking opportunities.
“Apprenticeships are an effective way for our organization to address the nation’s workforce shortages and support our future missions,” SRS Site Training Director Dorian Newton said. “These are valuable and competitive career opportunities in science, technology, engineering and math.”
On May 29, NPR’s broadcast team — which included David Brancaccio as host, Nic Perez as director and producer and Rebekah Wineman as sound engineer — visited SRS for field reporting. The team conducted interviews with current apprentices, program graduates, the SRS Apprenticeship School team, Augusta Technical College personnel and more.
To listen to the radio segment covering the SRS Apprenticeship School, click here.
-Contributor: Mackenzie McNabb
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