Planning for a Summer of Research

Jesus Coronel already knows what he will be doing this summer. He'll be taking part in a 10-week long internship at the Brookhaven National Laboratory where be will team up with Steven Coleman who is Associate Lab Director in Brookhaven's division of Environment, Safety & Health. "I'll be working with radiological technicians, certified health physicists, and technicians. It will be a good experience," said Coronel.

Brookhaven is a U.S. Department of Energy national laboratory located on Long Island. Its hallmark is discovery science and transformative technology to power and secure the nation's future. During more than 70 years of pioneering research there, Brookhaven has had seven Nobel Prize-winning discoveries.

In January Coronel participated in Brookhaven's virtual week-long mini-semester session. "I saw scientific computing workshops, listened to lectures, and took tours of the facility. We saw a specific part of an accelerator and they explained how it worked. It was really cool."

Coronel is a 2017 graduate of Syracuse's Nottingham High School. He's pursuing an Engineering Science degree and is heavily involved with OCC's opportunity programs. The Educational Opportunity Program (known as EOP), Collegiate Science and Technology and Entry Program (known as CTSEP), and the Louis Stokes Alliances for Minority Participation (known as LSAMP) are all headquartered on the second floor of Coulter Hall.

LSAMP Director Melissa Hicks told Coronal about the mini-semester program at Brookhaven, which he completed successfully and led to his opportunity this summer. He'll go into Brookhaven's summer program with specific goals in mind. "I'm looking forward to collaborating and networking with other interns. I want to have a good work ethic and discipline and gain skills that will transfer to OCC like time management. I'm also hoping to strengthen my skills with CAD (Computer Aided Design) and reading scientific papers."