What's it like Being an ORISE STEM Researcher?

The Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education administers science education programs on behalf of the U.S. Department of Energy and other federal agencies. The diversity of these programs enables individuals—whether undergraduate, graduate, postdoctoral or faculty—to conduct collaborative research with national laboratories and partners of federal agencies.

From robotics research to improving the national wastewater infrastructure, ORISE researchers apply their talents and interests to advance research of national interest. Through ORISE internships, fellowships, and research appointments, participants get one step closer to reaching their STEM career goals.

Below are just a few of our interns, fellows, and former researchers, and these are their stories.

  • Izak Hill

    Izak Hill

    EPA Research Participation Program

    Izak Hill is an ORISE fellow with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Atlantic Coastal Environmental Sciences Division (ACESD). His fellowship focuses on the growing environmental concern of PFAS and their accumulation in wildlife fish species.

  • FDA fellow contributes to gene therapy research

    Susana Najera

    Research Participation Program at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)

    Susana Najera is an ORISE fellow at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research. Her research aims to develop safer and more efficacious therapies for patients.

  • Matt Comins

    Matt Comins

    DOE Scholars Program

    Matt Comins, Ph.D., turned his aspirations to collaborate with the Actinide Chemistry and Repository Science Program into an achievement by securing an appointment with the Department of Energy in 2021.

  • ORISE fellow alum recounts her life-changing opportunity with the USDA-ARS

    Indrani Kakati Baruah

    USDA ARS Research Participation Program

    Indrani Kakati Baruah, Ph.D., is an alumni ORISE fellow with the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Research Service (ARS) who researched various fungal pathogens that were responsible for various devastating diseases on cacao trees, commonly known as the chocolate plant.

  • ORISE fellow at U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Chemical Defense shares her journey to success

    Zoe Vaughn

    ORISE Research Participation Program at the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD)

    Zoe Vaughn, Ph.D., is an ORISE fellow with The U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Chemical Defense (USAMRICD) researching organophosphate (OP) nerve agents to find a reactivation of the acetylcholinesterase that could help farmers, average Americans and the military.

  • CDC Bioinformatics fellow bridging gaps between laboratory research and public health implementation

    Grace Nabakooza

    CDC Research Participation Program

    Grace Nabakooza, Ph.D., is an alumni ORISE fellow with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) with a background in medical research in infectious diseases, immunology, molecular biology and bioinformatics in Africa and the United Kingdom.

  • CDC fellowship lets Christie Kim explore new disciplines

    Christie Kim

    CDC Research Participation Program

    Christie Kim, MPH, stepped outside of her comfort zone to learn a new discipline of data analytics and data science at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

  • Luis Caicedo Torres

    Luis Caicedo Torres

    NNSA Minority Serving Institutions Internship Program

    Luis Caicedo Torres, Ph.D., is an ORISE National Nuclear Security Administration Minority Serving Institutions Internship Program (NNSA-MSIIP) fellow with the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) Nuclear Energy and Fuel Cycle Division. Through his research, Caicedo Torres hopes to leverage tools from mathematics to create a world with sustainable energy for everyday uses.

  • Robby Phillips

    Robby Phillips

    U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Science, Technology and Policy (STP) Program

    Robby Phillips is an ORISE participant with the Department of Energy (DOE) Science, Technology and Policy (STP) Program. With a passion for addressing climate change, Phillips’ research is used to uplift communities left behind by the energy transition through streamlining information and navigating challenges.

  • NIH fellow gains experience in policy analysis, international health issues

    Maggie Gearhart

    NIH Research Participation Programs

    Maggie Gearhart, MPH, used her curriculum from concurrently attending graduate school to aide in her duties as an Acting Regional Officer with the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Office of Global Research.

  • Public Health professional looks back on her experience as a CDC fellow

    Dionne Mitcham

    CDC Research Participation Program

    Dionne Mitcham, MPH, let her passion for public health and emergency management lead her to a fellowship with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention leaving her with an invaluable experience and connections.

  • U.S. Forest Service intern develops genetic tests to detect invasive species

    John Kronenberger

    USDA Forest Service Research Participation Program

    John Kronenberger is an ORISE intern alum who participated in the USDA-USFS Research Participation Program monitoring wildlife using environmental DNA.

  • Food and Drug Administration researcher conducts drug safety studies for public health

    Zakaridja Guiriansoro

    Research Participation Program at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)

    Zakaridja Guiriansoro, M.D, is an ORISE fellow alum who participated in research with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) at the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER). With his mentor Tatiana Oussova, M.D., Guiriansoro conducted a comprehensive analysis of 26 safety studies for drugs that treat inflammatory or autoimmune conditions.

  • USDA-ARS Research Microbiologist looks back on her ORISE fellowship experience

    Holly Bartholomew

    USDA ARS Research Participation Program

    Holly Bartholomew, Ph.D., is an ORISE fellow alum who participated in research with the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Research Service (ARS). Bartholomew and her team conducted research on Penicillium expansum, the cause for blue mold decay in pome fruit, with the aim to combat the fungus, avoid fungicide resistance and reduce the economic losses of food waste.

  • Amalia Parra

    Amalia Parra

    IC Postdoc

    As a participant in the Intelligence Community (IC) Postdoctoral Program, Amalia Parra investigates gene networks in Drosophila melanogaster to enhance U.S. national security through improved threat detection and mitigation.

  • Molly Simonis

    Molly Simonis

    IC Postdoc

    As a current participant in the Intelligence Community (IC) Postdoctoral Fellowship, Molly Simonis researches the mechanisms of pathogen spillover from bats to humans, focusing on the influences of phylogenetic relatedness and social contact patterns on disease transmission.

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MentorIMPACT

ORISE recognizes the crucial role that mentors play in the personal and professional development of the next generation of STEM. These videos feature a few of our mentors across the federal departments and agencies that offer internships and fellowships through ORISE who were gracious enough to talk about their experiences and expertise. The stories they tell offer a glimpse of the inspiration they instill, their commitment to life-long learning, and their passion for “shaping the future of science.”

Watch the series

ORISE Featurecast logo

ORISE Featurecast spotlights all things ORISE

The ORISE Featurecast is a podcast about all things ORISE. Hear from ORISE research program participants and their mentors about their experiences and how they are helping shape the future of science.

Listen to the ORISE Featurecast