News & Events

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.

Reference: https://psycharmor.org/militaryculture

In a look borrowed from vintage newsreels, this four-part series on The Basics of Military Culture, powered by PsychArmor in partnership with Comcast NBC Universal, covers stories from six American service members about their experiences serving our country.

This series provides an in-depth exploration of military service and culture, covering topics such as the commitment required to serve, the values that guide military culture, the diversity and inclusivity within the military, and the challenges service members and their families face during and after their service. This series features personal stories and interviews with service members, as well as insights into the benefits of military service and the invaluable soft skills that it provides.

Happy Flag Day!

Wednesday, June 14, 2023 is Flag Day.

For fun facts on the U.S. Flag, here is a YouTube video: Flag Day and Flag Etiquette (Original Version)

Britannica defines Flag Day as follows:

Flag Day, also called National Flag Day, in the United States, a day honouring the national flag, observed on June 14. The holiday commemorates the date in 1777 when the United States approved the design for its first national flag.

The idea to set aside a day to honour the national flag came from several sources. Bernard J. Cigrand, a Wisconsin schoolteacher, in 1885 urged his students to observe June 14 as “Flag Birthday.” He later wrote an essay published in a Chicago newspaper that urged Americans to proclaim this date as the day to celebrate the flag. In 1888 William T. Kerr of Pennsylvania founded the American Flag Day Association of Western Pennsylvania, an organization to which he dedicated his life. A lesser-known claim is that of George Morris of Connecticut, who is said to have organized the first formal celebration of the day in Hartford in 1861.

In 1916 Pres. Woodrow Wilson proclaimed June 14 as the official date for Flag Day, and in 1949 the U.S. Congress permanently established the date as National Flag Day. Although Flag Day is not an official federal holiday, Pennsylvania celebrates the day as a state holiday. Each year the U.S. president delivers an address that proclaims the week of June 14 as National Flag Week, and all Americans are encouraged to fly U.S. flags during that week.

Reference: https://www.britannica.com/topic/Flag-Day