Savannah River National Lab, South Carolina State University Appoint Venetia Lyles to Joint Faculty Position

As the current director of the Savannah River Environmental Sciences Field Station (SRESFS) and assistant professor at SCSU, Lyles has worked with the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Environmental Management (EM) Minority Serving Institutions Partnership Program (MSIPP) that SRNL manages. The EM MSIPP funds the SRESFS program, an educational opportunity for students to learn about the science and technology relevant to the DOE EM mission.

The SRESFS offers a variety of environmental sciences courses in its base program and provides students the opportunity to participate in ongoing research projects affiliated with member institutions, the Savannah River Ecology Laboratory, and SRNL. It also offers courses and programs in engineering and cybersecurity. The SRESFS is the only Historically Black College or University undergraduate environmental science field station in the nation.

“Dr. Lyles’ joint appointment will continue to build upon the SRESFS program while also fostering more academic and research collaborations between SCSU and SRNL in efforts to expand SCSU’s research capacity,” said SRNL Deputy Lab Director, Science and Technology, Sue Clark, Ph.D. “It also seeks to broaden the pipeline of new talent at minority serving institutions in science, engineering, cybersecurity and environmental disciplines.”

“I am excited about the opportunity to further fortify the relationship between the Savannah River National Lab and South Carolina State University,” said Lyles. “This joint appointment builds off the great collaborative work relationship between myself and staff in the EM MSIPP division. The work we’ve done together has allowed the Savannah River Environmental Sciences Field Station to reach a greater swath of students than the founder, Dr. Ambrose Anoruo, initially envisioned.”

The Joint Appointment Program at SRNL provides university faculty opportunities to engage in the laboratory’s research and development that address the nation’s challenges in energy, science, national security, and environmental stewardship. Together, SRNL staff and joint appointees help ensure America’s security and prosperity through transformative science and technology solutions. Joint appointees serve as a bridge between their university, SRNL researchers and students.

Savannah River National Laboratory is a United States Department of Energy multi-program research and development center that’s managed and operated by Battelle Savannah River Alliance, LLC (BSRA). SRNL puts science to work to protect the nation by providing practical, cost-effective solutions to the nation’s environmental, nuclear security, nuclear materials management, and energy manufacturing challenges (https://srnl.doe.gov/).