Sylena Smith did a “Day in the Life” takeover of the U.S. WIN Twitter account on December 15, 2022. These were her tweets!
Good morning World! This is @nucleargrrl, engineer & all-around great person, coming at ya from the U. S. WIN acct! I’ve commandeered this channel to share w/you what my days working in the #nuclear industry are like. So sit back, relax and enjoy the COFFEE. Ask any Qs you like! pic.twitter.com/7XGSVQuc9W
— U.S. WIN (@WomenInNuclear) December 15, 2022
My morning started out last night, when my school district announced a 2 hr delay. That's just part of life in #Pittsburgh. I'm privileged to have a flexible working environment. It's hot brekkie and cartoons for the mini me this morning. https://t.co/5aJDTuLX3n
— U.S. WIN (@WomenInNuclear) December 15, 2022
Luckily, I have cute office mates to supervise my home ofc work. Design verification is an integral part of Westinghouse's quality assurance program. As I often say, I am not a perfect person. A peer often catches small errors that you wouldn't notice on your own. ~@nucleargrrl pic.twitter.com/p00hru5OhB
— U.S. WIN (@WomenInNuclear) December 15, 2022
Speaking of calcs… I should tell you abt myself!
My name is Sylena Smith. I'm a #nuclear engineer by trade & education. I earned a B.S. Chemical Eng & a M.S. Nuclear Eng at The @OhioState University. (Go @Buckeyes!)— U.S. WIN (@WomenInNuclear) December 15, 2022
I've worked at @WECNuclear for 13 years. I started out in Licensing Engineering working on the AP1000 plant project. Three years ago I moved to Radiation Engineering & Analysis – back to my technical roots doing shielding, fluence and source term analysis.
— U.S. WIN (@WomenInNuclear) December 15, 2022
An interesting part of my day is a technical seminar I'm listening to. Our global engineering organization fosters a culture of knowledge sharing, synergy & continuous improvement by holding these seminars where we share experience. We have these abt weekly. ~@nucleargrrl pic.twitter.com/JoKyLhFj7W
— U.S. WIN (@WomenInNuclear) December 15, 2022
The #momming is done. Time to head into the office! pic.twitter.com/OqZilVTRSw
— U.S. WIN (@WomenInNuclear) December 15, 2022
Welcome to HQ! I'd excuse the weather but this is pretty standard for this time of yr. I'm hoping I'll catch the tail end of a product demo I'm providing SME on. I'm not a programmer, per se. But my rad protection perspective helps us make our products better. ~@nucleargrrl pic.twitter.com/XbrPewy4id
— U.S. WIN (@WomenInNuclear) December 15, 2022
I just wrapped up a mentoring conversation w/my mentee. I joined WIN's GROW Mentoring Program. My friend @pennagrits convinced me I had a lot to offer as a mentor & SHE WAS RIGHT! I've been impressed w/my ability to help in this way. ~@nucleargrrlhttps://t.co/ZGOHyFhZVc
— U.S. WIN (@WomenInNuclear) December 15, 2022
Time for lunch! This is when one of my most difficult daily decisions is made. Deciding what's safe or conservative is easy. Deciding what's best to eat is hard! ~@nucleargrrl pic.twitter.com/G045VkKMHa
— U.S. WIN (@WomenInNuclear) December 15, 2022
Meet my "name" doppelganger, Selena Willoughby! I joined WIN right out of college, before I came to @WECNuclear . In fact, a contact I made at a WIN regional workshop was the key that opened the door to where I work now! Just shows it's all in who you GET to know. ~@nucleargrrl pic.twitter.com/7mnszQaXSR
— U.S. WIN (@WomenInNuclear) December 15, 2022
I'm very proud of my public outreach work. Under my leadership, my chapter has won the national Large Chapter Excellence Award for Public Outreach 2 years in a row! As chair, I doubled the number of students we reach with our core programs because, darn it, we can do big things!
— U.S. WIN (@WomenInNuclear) December 15, 2022
Outreach events like this have a tangible return on investment for our company. We have 2 engineers working for @WECNuclear who attended Introduce a Girl to Engineering and another who decided to study engineering because of a program similar to ours.
— U.S. WIN (@WomenInNuclear) December 15, 2022
If your organization and/or company is not planning public outreach events, challenge your colleagues and your company to walk the walk! Even small events can make a difference in a young person's life. A convo w/a #nuclear industry professional can create public allies too!
— U.S. WIN (@WomenInNuclear) December 15, 2022
My passion for outreach is rooted in my own experience of being passed over for opportunities because of my gender and heritage. I'm insistent that kids see me leading as an engineer, because 'if you can see it, you can be it.' We must be role models for the next generation.
— U.S. WIN (@WomenInNuclear) December 15, 2022
Diversity and inclusion are core values for many great companies. But the actions required to drive DEI are not possible unless people like me and you are ready to roll up our sleeves and DO the work. So I'll be spending my vacation thinking about how to run a grant program! HA!
— U.S. WIN (@WomenInNuclear) December 15, 2022
I'm still working on the fluence calculation I mentioned this morning. I'm almost done! Analyses are run. I'm copying in results. I've got to pay attention though bc it's easy to get complacent & make a mistake. My verifier will review again before we approve. ~@nucleargrrl
— U.S. WIN (@WomenInNuclear) December 15, 2022
Alright y'all. I'm ready to duck on outta here. After I finished up my calc, I sent a few emails connecting WIN members for job shadow requests & to price a new GM detector for our outreach events. Now I've got to turn my #momming face on & go grocery shopping. ~@nucleargrrl pic.twitter.com/djl5oa01JZ
— U.S. WIN (@WomenInNuclear) December 15, 2022
Home sweet home and time to call it a day. I'm going to unwind with some grub, water my orchids, pet my cats and stare at my fish. I hope you enjoyed this day in the life of @nucleargrrl. (I sure did.) 😂
— U.S. WIN (@WomenInNuclear) December 16, 2022
And do check out WIN Pittsburgh on Instagram (@westinghousewin_pgh) or Facebook (@ pghwin).
Bye y'all!!! See ya at the next WIN conference! pic.twitter.com/6UtH9x0TYD— U.S. WIN (@WomenInNuclear) December 16, 2022