TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Three University of Alabama College of Engineering students received National Academy for Nuclear Training Scholarships for the upcoming academic year.

John Crawford of Montgomery, Mathew Fitzgerald of Bay Minette, and Josiah Joiner of Jacksonville, all juniors in mechanical engineering at UA, received the $2,500 scholarships, which are awarded to college students who demonstrate outstanding academic achievement and who are interested in pursuing careers in the nuclear power industry.

The National Academy for Nuclear Training was established with funding provided by the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations member utilities. It is part of a nationwide effort to encourage students to consider careers in the nuclear power industry. Since the program's inception in 1980, the nuclear power industry has provided more than $19 million to support some 3,400 students.

In 1837, UA became the first university in the state to offer engineering classes and was one of the first five in the nation to do so. Today, the College of Engineering, with about 1,900 students and more than 90 faculty, is one of the three oldest continuously operating engineering programs in the country and has been fully accredited since accreditation standards were implemented in the 1930s.