REFORM, Mo. - New Bloomfield High School students were in agreement about their tour of the Callaway Energy Center: it was pretty rad.
"The sheer power and amount of electricity that's in there without the place exploding - that's blowing my mind a little," said Chris Stone, a junior and vice president of New Bloomfield's STEM Club.
New Bloomfield teacher Jacob White revived the school's STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) Club in August. On Thursday, the club had its first outing. It's fair to say they went big.
"About 1,200 students come for a tour each year, primarily juniors and seniors," said Anne Roselius, communications executive at the Callaway Energy Center. "This is about the third STEM club that's reached out to us each year."
Touring students through a nuclear power plant isn't like taking a walk in the park. For security purposes, visitors must provide their Social Security numbers and photo ID to plant security. The group of about 23 students were divided into multiple small groups and had to stay within eyesight of their guides at all times. Everyone wore long pants, close-toed shoes, a hard hat and ear protection.
While the tour avoided the most hazardous areas of the plant - including areas with the potential for radiation exposure - students were under strict instruction to watch where they're walking and touch nothing.
"If you bump anything, please let your tour guide know," said Mark McLachlan, senior director of plant support. "We've managed to never have anyone bump a switch or a valve yet, but if you do, the worst thing you could do is just reach out and switch it back."
The tour passed without incident. Students even ventured into the control room: a dial and switch-filled space crammed with consoles and panels that evoke science fiction.
Some students said they came away feeling more secure about the power plant looming on the horizon.
"I feel safer after taking this tour," senior John Baxter said. "There are so many safety precautions and steps they have to go through to do anything."
While taking student groups on tours undeniably creates more work for Callaway Energy Center employees, it's considered worthwhile.
"Over the next five years, we have a lot of folks who are close to retirement," McLachlan said.
Tim Herrmann, site vice president, agreed.
"If you think about our future, ensuring students are going into STEM areas is the way we make sure we have (employees) through 2044," he said. "We hire about 50 people per year due to retirements and so on."
He said about 80 percent of recruits come from Missouri. Many are hired out of college or even high school and trained into their jobs.
With about 700-800 people working at Callaway Energy Center at any given time, there are a huge variety of potential career paths available, McLachlan said. He's been with the plant since 1986 and has worked his way up from being a design engineer.
There are options for those not in STEM, too. Karina Amsden, a recent hire in the communications department, said her degree was in graphic design.
"There are many fields in science, and many kids aren't aware of those fields," Stone said. "We want to make sure they know there are options beyond physical therapy or whatever."
At least one student's interest was piqued.
"Engineering's something I've been thinking about doing," said Baxter, whose father is an electrician. "I had no idea how much electricity is created by this plant."