Matt Snider joins Ohio University Chillicothe's Regional Coordinating Council

Centrus Energy plant manager brings nuclear and workforce development experience to community advisory board

Ohio University's Board of Trustees has appointed Matt Snider, a Chillicothe resident who manages uranium enrichment operations for Centrus Energy Corp. in Piketon, to the Ohio University Chillicothe Regional Coordinating Council.

The appointment was approved at the board's June 11 and 12 meetings. Snider joins a council of community members who have guided the campus since its earliest years, at a point when the region's employers are changing what they need from local graduates.

"OHIO Chillicothe has been a pathway to a better career for families in this region for a long time, and the work coming to southern Ohio now in nuclear energy and advanced manufacturing depends on people who are trained and ready to step into it," Snider said. "I am glad to help connect those two things."

As enrichment operations plant manager for Centrus' American Centrifuge Operations, Snider has overseen the construction, testing and startup of the nation's first domestic cascade producing high-assay low-enriched uranium, or HALEU, a fuel central to the next generation of nuclear reactors. He is responsible for the plant's day-to-day operations, regulatory compliance, budget and the development of site personnel.

Snider brings more than 20 years of experience running complex technical systems in highly regulated environments. Before joining Centrus, he managed critical data center infrastructure for Amazon Web Services, where the engineering operations training program he led was later adopted at sites nationwide. He served in the U.S. Navy from 2003 to 2009, rising to nuclear plant operations mechanical supervisor aboard submarines.

He earned a Bachelor of Science in technology-advanced manufacturing from Ohio Northern University. He chairs the Ohio Nuclear Development Authority and serves on the board of the Southern Ohio Diversification Initiative.

OHIO Chillicothe marks its 80th anniversary this year, and the Regional Coordinating Council traces its roots to the citizens who bought the land on Carlisle Hill and raised the money that brought a permanent campus to town. Today the council is the campus's community advisory board. Its members are residents of the region OHIO Chillicothe serves, appointed by the trustees to three-year terms, and they meet three times a year to advise campus leadership and support the campus's mission of providing accessible, high-quality higher education across south-central Ohio.

"Our Regional Coordinating Council members are our closest link to the communities we serve," said Michael Lafreniere, dean of campus and community engagement at OHIO Chillicothe. "Matt understands what it takes to build and sustain a skilled technical workforce in this part of Ohio, and that perspective will help us make sure our students are prepared for the careers being created right here at home."