I would just like to say thanks for making opportunity to come to the ANS winter meeting available to me.  I have found the meeting to be most outstanding.  Whether I have sought out assistance from a mentor, or just sat and spoke to someone at my table at the expo, the experience has been great.  Everyone has been really helpful in pointing me in the right direction.  Everyone seems so passionate about whatever it is that they do and if it is not related to what I am interested in they can lead me to someone who knows something about what I am interested in.  Just want to say thanks for letting me be a student assistant and thanks for helping me with my flight up here.

Thanks again,

Jess AtkinsNuclear Engineering UndergraduateUniversity of Florida

I attend ANS national meetings to keep up with the latest in both research and policy related to nuclear science and technology. I find that I get invaluable insight and perspective when I discuss these topics with my colleagues also attending the meetings. I think it is incredibly productive to chat, and sometimes even argue, about the nuances of science and policy from diverse points of view. We have such a diverse, brilliant and multi-talented membership at ANS that I always leave ANS meetings enriched and enlightened.

I also attend ANS national meetings to participate in ANS governance. Although in recent years ANS committees and divisions have learnt to be very effective through virtual collaboration by video conference, phone and email, I think it is incredibly beneficial to come together face to face once or twice a year. I have personally experienced that what I get from my ANS membership grows proportionally to what I contribute to the Society.

Dr. Sama Bilbao y LeonAssociate Professor, Director of Nuclear Engineering ProgramsVirginia Commonwealth University

I am a long-time active member of several engineering professional societies, including ASME and NSPE. I choose to be an engineer as my vocation, and become a licensed member of a profession, which as other professions, holds a public trust. I believe professional societies are essential organizational vehicles by which the profession's self-regulation, in the name of the public good, is accomplished.

Because of this, I think ANS has a legitimate claim on my active support. A sense of obligation, as well as an expectation of benefits, are what motivate me to write the dues check each year and actually donate precious time and energy to the Society's governance.

I also think that one's work matters to God. For some members, such as me, faith-based reasons are valid in their decision to write the check. These members consider ANS to be an organizational vehicle to facilitate their efforts to uplift their profession and its service to society and to better discharge their public trust, consistent with their faith-based worldviews.

Mr. Joseph P. Carson, P.E.Safety EngineerU.S. Department of Energy

I attend ANS meetings to reconnect with past coworkers, professors, and friends, and to make new contacts. I enjoy the division and committee meetings where dedicated members work diligently to keep ANS vital.

Virginia Cleary-IvanoffConstruction and Environmental Quality Team LeaderLos Alamos National Laboratory

The American Nuclear Society has been my "home society" from my entry into the civilian work world. Other societies, such as the American Society for Quality (ASQ), the Society for Risk Analysis (SRA), and others have served special needs, but my core professional connectedness needs are best served by ANS.

I find that by giving one receives. Participation in ANS committees is easy to achieve and is richly rewarding in terms of networking and professional growth.

I recommend not only joining, but becoming engaged in the society's work that most appeals to you.

Bill CorcoranPresidentNuclear Safety Review Concepts Windsor, CT

Some believe that we are on this earth to make a difference with our lives - to give more than we get. I believe the remarkable technology we share is making a difference in so many areas: energy, health, technology, productivity. But there is much more to do. The American Nuclear Society gives each of us an outlet and an organizational structure to help make a difference.

Dr. Larry R. Foulke, P.E.University of PittsburghPittsburgh, PA

From people doing the "Pick & Shovel" work to those making high risk decisions at the top that can touch our lives, the ANS has been the fabric of the U.S. Nuclear Industry. As the industry continues to re-emerge in the U.S., I believe the role of the ANS will increase in its significance.

Thank you to all the women & men who give of their time, talents, and commitment to provide such a great source of opportunity and information - - hopefully for the "Next Generation of Nuclear Quality Professionals."

Paul W. GladieuxCEOGlobal Quality Management Associates, Inc. Lake Oswego, OR

My ANS membership provides me with many important opportunities to work and interact with the world-wide leaders in nuclear science and technology. It also allows me to stay up to date with the many exciting new developments in the different areas that are encompassed by this technology area.

Dr. Andrew C. KleinProfessorOregon State University Corvallis, OR

For me, ANS has always been my main communication link to the profession. The meetings allow me to make on-going contacts with colleagues, to maintain and renew friendships, and to discuss common issues and try to find solutions. ANS News is a constant source of valuable information and ideas about what is current and what issues are making a difference in our profession. Both the meetings and ANS News help to broaden my outlook about our field. Without ANS, which I joined some 31 years ago, I would never have maintained my strong interest in and commitment to nuclear engineering.

Dr. Edward H. KlevansEdtech Associates and Professor EmeritusPenn State University

As we progress and grow in our careers as nuclear professionals, we all find increasing needs for leadership skills. Whether we find ourselves leading teams of our peers, or moving into a supervisory or management position, experience with motivating and leading colleagues and peers is an essential element of our career success. In my own career in industry and now at a research and development laboratory, I've found that ANS provided me with invaluable leadership experience, through my local section, in ANS' technical divisions and committees, and in society governance. This leadership experience in an all-volunteer environment like ANS, where there is an abundance of opportunity and responsibility but no real direct authority over people, has been particularly relevant in my professional career at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory, first in leading teams and now in leading departments of scientists, engineers and technical specialists to accomplish innovative and occasionally extraordinary things. I hope you will find that the experience gained in ANS leadership activities will be equally valuable to your career.

Dr. James A. LakePresidentJames Lake & Associates, Inc. Sun Valley, ID

I have found that there are countless benefits of attending and participating in the ANS National Meetings. These meetings provide a forum for the dissemination of research progress and activities; they create a biannual opportunity to meet with colleagues to develop collaborative future plans; and educate on the position of the Society regarding present policy issues as they develop.

Dr. Wade MarcumAssistant ProfessorOregon State University

Although my father always told me that in the Army he learned never to volunteer, my experience in ANS has been the opposite. Early in my career, my ANS volunteer activities gave me a start in developing a personal network of contacts much broader than my job alone would have permitted, and gave me a "safe" environment to learn organization and management skills which stood me in good stead as I moved into management. As my career developed, I have found that my ANS network has grown even more important in keeping me up to date on what is going on throughout the industry, and has become invaluable as a resource to turn to in the course of my daily work.

Dr. Gail H. MarcusPast President

Membership in the American Nuclear Society (ANS) is important to me, as an educator, for many reasons. Through ANS, I have the opportunity to interface with professionals in the field and to more completely understand the issues facing the nuclear industry. I can use this information to determine the skills that students will need to face these challenges. The ANS provides a forum for nuclear professionals in the educational community to contribute to the national debate on the future of nuclear power, to include the education of the American public on the safety and reliability of our industry. Finally, the ANS is an example to my students of how an organization can contribute to the establishment and maintenance of professional standards of practicing engineers to include their ethical responsibilities.

Dr. Brian E. MorettiAssistant ProfessorU.S. Military Academy

For me a significant personal investment was made in becoming a nuclear professional, both in time and capital. Additionally, for me, ANS membership is and has been a natural complement and extension of that investment on a continuing basis. ANS membership has provided a forum for further personal professional development and interaction with fellow nuclear professionals. Finally, ANS membership affords me the opportunity to interact and work with colleagues in the nuclear science and technology profession for the overall benefit of our society.

Dr. William F. NaughtonDirector, Research & DevelopmentExelon Chicago, IL

ANS has been the best forum for me to keep current on the issues that challenge nuclear science and technology. In addition, the recent Strategic Planning efforts have focused ANS priorities on the most critical issues and every ANS member has a role to play in responding. Finally, the career opportunities provided thru ANS contacts and interactions have been the most beneficial of my life and the reason I stay in this field.

Edward (Ted) L. QuinnConsultantTechnology Resources Dana Point, CA

I have been attending American Nuclear Society (ANS) meetings for most of the past decade and owe much of my current level of professional success to the society and the many people that make up and support the society.  ANS represents the best and brightest of my chosen industry and field, and national meetings are the best opportunity for someone like myself to rub elbows with the pillars of my community.  By being an active member of the ANS, I have had the opportunity to collaborate with giants in our industry, such as Ted Rockwell (before his death), and without ANS, such opportunities would never have been available to me.  By continuing to be active in the ANS, I know that I will forever be at the tip of the spear in our industry and have the best possible opportunity for success and to advance the nuclear industry.

Brett RampalNuclear EngineerNuScale Power, LLC

Each year, the world becomes "smaller," or more "closely coupled" to tie in a nuclear reactor term. What one country does in the nuclear field impacts all countries. While most of my career has been working in the United States, I have from a personal as well as professional motivation, become engaged in a significant amount of international interface with the nuclear community. In almost all interfaces, my ANS background has been of significant value.

My first involvement with ANS came in about 1978. Since then I allowed myself to become involved in progressively more responsible ANS activities. I have thoroughly enjoyed and benefited from my ANS activities. Sincerely, in the nuclear community, an investment in ANS is a valuable asset over the years.

A suggestion to recent graduates and young professionals: you may maintain your membership at a reduced fee. Why not give it a chance for a few years in the post-education, working environment, get involved, and see if you benefit?

F. Mark ReinhartExecutive DirectorInternational Internationale Vienna, Austria

I joined the ANS as a student member in 1964 and have gotten benefit from my membership every year since then. The public information on nuclear energy that the ANS makes available has been invaluable to me in explaining the benefits of the atom to family, friends and the general public. My attendance at the bi-annual ANS Fusion Technology topical meetings and my subscription to the ANS journal Fusion Technology are my primary sources of technical information about what others are doing in my field, information I rely on for my job. I believe every professional involved with applications of nuclear energy, and especially every professional involved with research, development and design in the field of nuclear science and technology owes it to themselves to be a member of the American Nuclear Society.

Dr. Kenneth R. Schultz, P.E.Director of Inertial Fusion Technology (Retired)General Atomics

The American Nuclear Society has been a key factor in developing my career in the nuclear field.  People I have been fortunate to meet with and build a relationship with have been very key to my progress in the nuclear field.  The American Nuclear Society has provided a basis for me to both learn and inform others of the continual operational and safety developments taking place in the nuclear field.  If you are a professional in the nuclear field you must be an active member of the American Nuclear Society in order to full develop your career in the nuclear field.

Mr. James S. TulenkoEmeritus Professor & Director, University of Florida