Informative video of the flag and its history:

From April 15, 2024 For Your Information email sent to Argonne employees:

TO: All Employees

FROM: Raeanna R. Sharp-Geiger, Deputy Laboratory Director for Operations and Chief Operations Officer

Military Leave Enhancements, Effective March 25, 2024

To better support our colleagues who serve in the U.S. Armed Forces, Argonne has enhanced its military leave policy effective Monday, March 25, 2024. Employees will receive full wages for up to 15 workdays per calendar year for a qualifying military leave. This is an increase from the previous leave of 10 days of full pay in a calendar year.

In addition, for a military leave of more than 30 days, employees may continue to participate in their current health care plan for up to 180 days if they continue to pay applicable premiums. This is an additional 30 days from the previous policy and aligns with the start of Tri-Care benefits — the health care program for active-duty service members and their family members.

For details, including how to request this leave, please see LMS-PROC-131: Military Leave.

I appreciate the Veterans Employee Resource Group, Human Resource Services-Benefits, Financial Management and Procurement Services-Payroll, and the Legal Department for proposing and enacting this change. The enhancements will support recruitment and retention, which will keep us competitive with other national labs. More importantly, it reinforces Argonne as an employer of choice nationwide, especially among veterans.

The military leave enhancement exemplifies our Core Values of respect, integrity, and teamwork, and I look forward to approving other improvements for our world-class community of talent.

Should you have any questions on this new policy, please contact the Benefits Team.

While you are enjoying your weekend, please stop for a moment and remember the men and women of the United States Armed Forces who have given their lives so that you can live yours.  For most Veterans, it is a calling that brought us to the military, and we do not waiver on our decision to join.  We feel strongly about our choice long after wearing the uniform and we embrace the standards we were taught by our time in the military the rest of our lives.  For me, it was in my blood.  Many generations of my family were in the Air Force and I followed suit into a life I was used to living.   I bring the things I have learned while serving into my work every day.  Even though our country is going through a rough time right now, I am proud to be its citizen and wait for it to be great again.

– Diana Schmitt, Veterans ERG Founder

In remembrance of those that gave their life for us: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4VLHEZ6ZUxE

Happy Veterans Day

November 11, 2023

Click here for a message from the VA about Veterans Day.

Memo sent on November 9, 2023 from Laboratory Director, Paul Kearns

Colleagues,

Veterans Day falls on Saturday this year, and I encourage everyone to thank our veterans and find a moment to consider the significance of this holiday. Veterans are our colleagues, collaborators, family members, and friends. Their service and sacrifices parallel our mission’s dedication to American security and prosperity. Our veterans contribute to the diversity of our lab, and we would be a lesser institution without them.

More than 165 of our employees are veterans. Many of them are part of our Argonne Veterans employee resource group (ERG), which enriches our lab community with many outreach activities.

Thanks to their leadership, last month, we hosted a veterans resume-writing workshop, which brought over 30 local veterans to our Lemont campus. The ERG and Human Resource Services staff helped the vets refine their job search strategies, documents, and interviewing skills. Interim Deputy Lab Director for Operations and Chief Operations Officer Karen Hellman addressed our guests and told me that the event was a big success. This community outreach will help us further build our world-class community of talent.

Argonne connects with veterans in many other ways, not all of which are well-known. For several years, the Argonne Leadership Computing Facility has collaborated with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs on MVP-CHAMPION (Million Veteran Program Computational Health Analytics for Medical Precision to Improve Outcomes Now). This program leverages our supercomputers to crunch massive amounts of veteran health care data to improve outcomes and reduce costs.

Other research areas support active-duty members who will one day become veterans. The Nonproliferation Research, Analysis and Engagement group provides technical expertise for nuclear nonproliferation to safeguard materials, equipment, and technology. At the same time, the National and Cyber Security Information Sciences group is advancing cybersecurity to keep infrastructure running smoothly and the military operating effectively. These are only two examples of our various projects for the U.S. Department of Defense and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

Our freedom to experiment as a society and as scientists — to evolve established assumptions, invent novel approaches, and apply cutting-edge ideas — are protected by the U.S. Constitution and the veterans who have sworn to support and defend it. Just recently, our Veterans ERG recorded a reading of the Constitution’s Preamble. It’s an encouraging reminder of the values of the Enlightenment movement that the framers brought to the Constitution and that continue to inspire us to this day.

Please listen to the recording. It prompted this reflection and my great appreciation. I again encourage all of us to thank those who served in our military.