News and Events

Congratulations to the first graduates of the ATCC-USNCC Partnership! These five graduates each received their Certificate in Nuclear Engineering Fundamentals:

• Ethan Callahan, Fairbanks, AK
• John Libonate, North Charleston, SC
• Zowie Meyer, Charleston, SC
• Cody Tadlock, Denver City, TX
• Dylan Zablow, Fairfield, CA

ATCC-USNCC Commencement Ceremony 2022.  

USNCC Students Complete ATCC Nuclear Engineering Certificate

By Chief Mass Communication Specialist Xander Gamble, US Naval Community College

Five United States Naval Community College students completed the Certificate in Nuclear Engineering Fundamentals through Alexandria Technical and Community College July 29, 2022.

This completes the first pilot program for the USNCC’s nuclear engineering program and lays the foundation for the Associate of Science in Nuclear Engineering Technology, which officially began June 13, 2022.

“These students are pioneers in the naval education community,” said USNCC’s President Randi R. Cosentino, Ed.D. “Their accomplishment will benefit them as deckplate leaders and naval professionals, and the nuclear community will benefit as a whole from their experiences. Further, the work they did here will forge the future of the program that their peers will benefit from, and we are proud to have them as history makers in the USNCC. They proved that the consortium model of naval education works.”

The USNCC’s consortium model of education means that the USNCC teaches the five Naval Studies Certificate courses and the partner institution teaches the other courses that make up the associate degree. Embedded in these associate degrees are milestone certificates, such as the Nuclear Engineering Fundamentals Certificate. This allows the naval services to have a flexible, scalable model of education to meet the needs of the services while providing a quality education to the Sailors, Marines, and Coast Guardsmen who earn their degree through the consortium.

“The Nuclear Engineering Fundamentals undergraduate certificate has prepared naval services students with the necessary foundational knowledge in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math to support academic and career success,” said Tamara Arnott, Ph.D., Dean of Educational Services at Alexandria College. “Students completing this program have demonstrated that they can think critically and apply scientific knowledge to generate solutions to real-world challenges. These sailors have demonstrated problem-solving skills and motivation needed for success in completing the associate degree, when pursuing advanced degrees and when working in the engineering technology career field.”

While the USNCC’s Nuclear Engineering Technology degree is primarily intended for Sailors who are working in the naval nuclear power propulsion field, all active duty enlisted Sailors, Marines, and Coast Guardsmen are eligible to apply for the program. Those interested in earning a degree in Nuclear Engineering Technology can fill out an application at www.usncc.edu.