Other News - June 2025

Joanna Gillespie, the philanthropic outreach specialist with the Laboratory’s Community Partnerships Office (CPO), retired on May 1. “I will miss working with nonprofits across the region, and thank you for letting me share in your mission to make the world a better place and to care for the needs of others through your programs,” says Gillespie. The Los Alamos Daily Post outlined her impact while at the Laboratory and before.

Kayla Norris, Tina Moore and Damian Roybal at the CPO will be taking on Gillespie’s former responsibilities. You can reach them at (505) 989-6908.

Student teams showcase yearlong projects at Supercomputing Challenge Expo

Students across the state explored topics including astrophysics, additive manufacturing, food insecurity and environmental issues as part of the 34th Supercomputing Challenge. The expo took place on April 25 at Santa Fe Community College and featured student final presentations, judging and an award ceremony. In the yearlong program (supported by Los Alamos National Laboratory and Laboratory operator Triad National Security), 20 teams of middle school and high school students chose a topic to model computationally. They were mentored by a community of volunteer scientists, computer programmers and professors. Tate Plohr from Los Alamos High School (pictured) won first place for his project, “Constraining the Neutron Star Equation of State with Observation Data.” Additional prizes were distributed for categories such as teamwork, technical writing, programming prowess and community impact.

Matchmaking event connects Laboratory scientists with small businesses

The New Mexico Small Business Assistance (NMSBA) Program hosted a networking event May 20 where researchers from three Laboratory organizations spent an afternoon talking with representatives from a variety of local businesses to understand how to best tackle business challenges. The NMSBA program helps match Lab researchers with local businesses that are facing technical issues. The businesses have the opportunity for a Lab scientist to help provide solutions at no cost to the business. Over 50 researchers and business representatives attended, with business participants encouraged to complete proposals immediately following the event.