DOE appoints seven new members to advisory board

OAK RIDGE, Tenn. – The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) recently appointed seven new members to its Oak Ridge Environmental Management advisory board. The new members fill a number of vacancies on the Oak Ridge Site Specific Advisory Board (ORSSAB), a volunteer citizens’ panel that provides advice and recommendations to DOE on its environmental cleanup operations on the Oak Ridge Reservation.

The new members include Alfreda Cook, Chris Hepler, Bruce Hicks, Jennifer Kasten, Jan Lyons, Donald Mei, and Scott Stout.

“I’m very impressed with the caliber of the new appointees, and I’m confident they will be valuable additions to the current board with their extensive knowledge and experience,” said Susan Cange, the board’s deputy designated federal officer and acting manager of the DOE Oak Ridge Environmental Management Site Office. “We are very appreciative of their willingness to serve and dedicate time on the board.”

Alfreda Cook is retired from URS|CH2M Oak Ridge, where she worked as a waste performance integration manager until January 2012. Over the past 20 years, she has worked with several Oak Ridge companies as a data and systems analyst, computing analyst, and administrative assistant. She received her Bachelor of Science (B.S.) in Organizational Management from Tusculum College. Cook resides in Oak Ridge, and she is a member of CASA of the Tennessee Heartland, a children’s advocacy group.

Chris Hepler is the mayor of Oliver Springs and is employed by Impact Services, Inc., as a radiation safety officer. He also serves on the Oliver Springs City Council, the Oliver Springs Planning Commission, and Roane Alliance, Roane County’s economic development organization. He served on the Oliver Springs Board of Zoning Appeals from 1997 to 2006. Hepler received an Associate of Applied Science in General Technology and an Associate of Applied Science in Land Reclamation from Roane State Community College.

Bruce Hicks is the sole proprietor of MetCorps, Inc., which provides environmental consulting services to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and the Department of Human Services. He retired in 2006 from the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, where he served as director of the Air Resources Laboratory. He also worked for Argonne National Laboratory and the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization in Melbourne, Australia. He received his B.S. in Physics and Mathematics from the University of Tasmania and his Master of Science (M.S.) in Meteorology from the University of Melbourne. Hicks resides in Norris, and he is vice president of the Norris Lions Club and a member of the American Meteorological Society, the American Geophysical Union, and the Norris Conservation/Recycle Commission.

Jennifer Kasten is a retired nuclear/environmental engineer, most recently working at the Tennessee Valley Authority Watts Bar Nuclear Power Plant until 2005. Previously, she worked in the University of Tennessee’s (UT) Nuclear Engineering Department. She also worked for 12 years at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory on gaseous diffusion plant safety issues and radioactive waste research. Kasten received a B.S. in Biology from Valparaiso University, a B.S. in Civil/Environmental Engineering from UT, and an M.S. in Nuclear/Radiological Engineering from UT. Kasten lives in Knoxville, serves as a member of the American Nuclear Society, and supports Random Acts of Flowers.

Jan Lyons is retired from Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas, where she worked as an adjunct professor in the Engineering Management, Information, and Systems Department. Previously, she was employed by Lockheed Martin Energy Systems as a staff systems engineer, cost research manager, training instructor, and information technology manager. Lyons received a Bachelor of Arts (B.A) in Economics from the College of William and Mary, a M.S. in Software Engineering from Clemson University, and a doctorate in Industrial and Systems Engineering and Engineering Management from the University of Alabama. Lyons lives in Oak Ridge and is active in numerous organizations including the Girl Scouts, Tennessee Citizens for Wilderness Planning, and the Cokesbury United Methodist Church Hope Trust.

Donald Mei is a retired engineer who was employed from 1986 to 2007 by Duke Energy in Charlotte, N.C. During that time, he was the supervising engineer and technical manager in the Radiation Dosimetry and Records Department and the senior engineer/nuclear production engineer in the Radiation Protection Section. Before working at Duke, he worked in the Health Physics Division of the Institute of Nuclear Energy Research in Taiwan. Mei received his B.S. in Physics from Cheng-Kung University in Taiwan, his M.S. in Health Physics from UT, and his doctorate in nuclear engineering from Kansas State University. His professional affiliations and activities include diplomate of the American Board of Health Physics (1991-present), Health Physics Society plenary member (1975-2008), Nuclear Energy Institute Task Force on Radiation Protection Recordkeeping and Dosimetry (1994-2007), Taiwan Radiation Protection Association Advisory Committee (1992-present), and American Board of Health Physics (1995-1999). Mei lives in Oak Ridge.

Scott Stout is the assistant director of the Office of Emergency Services for Roane County, Tennessee. He received his B.A. in Liberal Arts from Tennessee Wesleyan College and his Hazmat Specialist Certification from the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency. Stout lives in Rockwood.

ORSSAB meets the second Wednesday of each month at 6 p.m. at the DOE Information Center, 1 Science.gov Way in Oak Ridge. Meetings of the board and its committees are open to the public, and notices are posted on the board’s website: www.oakridge.doe.gov/em/ssab.

-DOE-

Photo available by calling the ORO Public Affairs Office at (865) 576-0885. 

R-12-26