Community Programs Office
Connections Newsletter
The Lab's Connection to the Northern New Mexico Community!
February 2011

According to the latest Community Leaders Survey, 78 percent of community leaders have a favorable opinion of Los Alamos National Laboratory. Of those, 40 percent said they have a very favorable opinion of the Lab. Read more

Embracing Volunteerism and Cultural Heritage

Adobe construction (sun-dried bricks made of varying amounts clay, sand, water, and organic material) has been used for buildings since antiquity on almost every continent. In the United States, this is particularly evident in the Southwest. A new nonprofit organization is leveraging this technique to build homes for those in New Mexico with limited financial means. Read more

New Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) Employees' Scholarship

The LANL Foundation, through the Los Alamos Employees' Scholarship Fund (LAESF), will seek applicants for a new Regional College/Returning Student Scholarship fund this year. Read more

Students and Teachers Get Involved in Alternative Fuels Challenge

In preparation for the upcoming 5th Annual Alternative Fuels Challenge, teachers can attend a workshop on hydrogen fuels on February 12 at Albuquerque Public Schools' administrative offices. Read more

Lab Student Internships Available Soon

Students working on associate and undergraduate degrees in science could qualify for paid Lab internships through U.S. Department of Energy programs. Read more

National Science Foundation Day on March 17

New Mexico’s Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (NM EPSCoR) and the National Science Foundation (NSF) will host a workshop on March 17 from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Embassy Suites Hotel in Albuquerque. Read more

Nominate an Outstanding Teacher for a National Award

The deadline to nominate teachers for the Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST) is April 1 for teachers in grades seven through 12. Read more

Education Programs Survey Results

The Community Programs Office last year hired Albuquerque’s Research & Polling, Inc. to conduct an initial survey of regional educational representatives to determine their satisfaction level and awareness of the Lab’s education programs. Read more

A New and Exciting Year for the Bradbury Science Museum

Beginning on the first work day of the new year, Bradbury Science Museum educators hosted students from Tesuque Oweenge Elementary School for the program, “It’s not Magic, It’s Science.” Read more

Science Education Community Service Time

During LANL's 2010 fiscal year, Lab employees provided more than 3,000 hours to support Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) activities in Northern New Mexico. Read more

Science Inquiry Assists Teacher Development and Student Learning

Last year, the Los Alamos National Laboratory Foundation, using funding from Los Alamos National Security, LLC and the U.S. Department of Education, invested in a nationally tested "Science Inquiry" program to advance students' science understanding. The initial results of the students' before-and-after scores are encouraging. Read more

2010 Northern New Mexico Connect Annual Report Available

Results from the latest 2010 Northern New Mexico Connect (NNMConnect) survey report show that the program has helped to create and retain 168 jobs as well as attract $7 million in new funding since its inception in 2006. Read more

Lab Wins Prestigious Technology Transfer Awards

LANL projects have received two 2011 Federal Laboratory Consortium (FLC) awards for excellence in Technology Transfer. Read more

SimTable Credits Success to Venture Acceleration Fund

SimTable, a Santa Fe business, recently completed its final milestone for the Venture Acceleration Fund (VAF). VAF is a program of Northern New Mexico Connect, the principal economic development investment of Los Alamos National Security, LLC. Read more

New Mexico Small Business Assistance Program Boosts Businesses

The New Mexico Small Business Assistance Program (NMSBA) is becoming well known for providing New Mexico small businesses with technical assistance from Los Alamos and Sandia national laboratories. Read more

Portage, Inc. Provides Technical Services to Community

Not only does LANL use its resources to provide community support in many forms, but companies that have contracts with the Lab worth $5 million or more are required to submit and implement a community support plan as part of a successful bid. As a result, Portage, Inc. is using its expertise to support a much-needed water diversion project that will help 60 regional landowners. Read more

Leveraging American Recovery and Reinvestment Act Funds

The Laboratory received $212 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds for environmental remediation work that included a TA-21 building demolition project, excavation of Material Disposal Area B, and the installation of 16 groundwater-monitoring wells. The funding created or saved more than 400 jobs.Read more

Nuclear Test Site Inspection Simulation

Looking for hidden nuclear weapons test sites for future treaty verification is a complicated and politically sensitive undertaking. Is that sinkhole in an otherwise barren landscape naturally occurring, or the sign of a clandestine nuclear test? Read more

New Environmental Surveillance Report and Summary Available

The new Environmental Surveillance Report for 2009, and its accompanying summary, is available for review online. Read more

Current Connections Calendar