Core Curriculum

Powering the Future

Chloe Grigsby and her colleagues look out across a vast, open field, just a stone’s throw from the banks of the Clinch River.

On this morning, the site is quiet. It’s early fall, and the wind blows cool across the river.

This small peninsula of east Tennessee land, located in the historic footprint of nuclear projects from decades past, is hemmed in by the Clinch River arm of the Watts Bar Reservoir.

These 1,200 acres make up the Clinch River Nuclear property, which includes 935 acres designated as the Clinch River Nuclear Site. It’s slated to serve as a home for advanced nuclear technology – specifically, a small modular reactor (SMR).

In May 2025, TVA became the first utility in the U.S. to submit a construction permit application for SMR technology to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, to be located at its Clinch River Nuclear Site in Oak Ridge, Tennessee.

But it's not just Clinch River at the center of a nuclear renaissance. The surrounding area is quickly becoming a new kind of nuclear innovation corridor, geared toward an energy source that will better the lives of people throughout the Valley region.

Malinda Hunter, TVA Senior Nuclear Communications Consultant, talks to a group at the Clinch River Nuclear Site.

Grigsby, a TVA project manager working on Nuclear Asset Sustainability Projects (NASP), is in the early stages of her career. A second-generation TVA employee, she carries with her an innate love for the region.

“TVA is at the core of the lives we’ve built here,” she said. “And now I get to be involved – be part of making everything come together. I like meeting people, seeing the construction and just being the person who sees something come to life.”

At age 24, Grisby’s college career is in the rearview mirror. With an engineering management degree, she knows how important it is to explore different career paths – especially unexpected ones. She dabbled in journalism, hydro and metrology, but landed in nuclear project management. Now, she wants to be part of mentoring others.

“You can do anything you put your mind to,” Grigsby said. “I like to encourage people to go outside their comfort zone and put their mind into things they never thought of."

After touring the proposed Clinch River Nuclear Site, Grigsby and the group made their way down the road to Roane State Community College, where a career fair was underway.

“I like meeting people, seeing the construction and just being the person who sees something come to life,” said Chloe Grigsby, TVA Project Manager with Nuclear Asset Sustainability Projects (NASP).

After setting up a table to celebrate Nuclear Science Week and Women in Nuclear (WIN), the group chatted with students to share their spark for the future of nuclear energy. Grigsby, TVA’s WIN Chair for the Chattanooga office, was eager to meet passersby.

One of those people, Hannah Phillips, a chemical engineering student, stopped by the booth to learn about careers in the nuclear field.

“I got to watch my dad start out in the industry,” Phillips said. “I saw how he grew alongside it, how his knowledge evolved and how he used his professional experience to protect others. That’s powerful.

“I want to do the same, for him and for others. It’s about continuing that family legacy of care and protection."

Safety and reliability are hallmarks of nuclear energy. With the rise of new technologies, advanced systems continue to strengthen safety.

New nuclear technologies use passive safety systems to keep the units running smoothly. Relying on natural forces like gravity, airflow and water circulation, new technologies such as SMRs are designed to provide a simple and dependable energy source that supports operators and gives the units an additional layer of security.

Just like Grigsby, Phillips is following in her father's footsteps – and the opportunities seem endless.

Much like the field at Clinch River, the nuclear field is wide open and brimming with potential, particularly in east Tennessee.

 U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright toured the region earlier this year, and his visit included a stop at the Clinch River Nuclear Site.

TVA is a leader in helping to establish the Oak Ridge area as a hub for next-generation nuclear innovation through partnerships with companies like Kairos Power, ENTRA1 Energy and Oklo Inc. These collaborations support the deployment of advanced reactors and SMRs while also enabling energy solutions for regional data centers and exploring fuel recycling technologies.

“We already have so much local interest and support,” said Malinda Hunter, senior Nuclear communications consultant at TVA. “It’s not so much, ‘What’s going on out there,’ but, ‘We are excited for this – when are you going to build it?’”

The future of nuclear energy is bright, not only because of the technology on the horizon, but because the next generation of students is ready to take the reins.

"It feels like I was meant for this," Phillips said. “Like everything has prepared me to step into this role and carry it forward. The more knowledge you have, the more powerful you become – and the more capable you are of creating real change.”

Everyone should be part of that change, she said.

“That’s how we make a bigger impact – by making people safer, creating better environments and, ultimately, building a better world."

Photo Gallery

Lucia Harvey, Advisor, Senior II Chief Nuclear Office. 

Beverly Duckett, NASP Program Manager, and Heidi Cook, NASP Senior Manager, talk to visitors at the Roane State Community College job fair.

At the Clinch River Nuclear Site visit, left to right: Malinda Hunter; Elizabeth Belland, Instructor, Operations Lead; Heidi Cook; Lucia Harvey; Beverly Duckett; Chloe Grigsby; and Judith O’Dell, Instructor, Non-accredited Training.

PHOTO AT TOP OF PAGE: Grigsby chats with a student at the Roane State Community College job fair.