Rachel Hill, Ph.D., calls them angels: pastors, teachers, extended Family members, neighbors who encourage us and cheer us on. The quiet encouragers who aren’t given and probably wouldn’t take credit for our successes. In honor of Black History Month, Further Together, the ORAU Podcast is featuring a two-part series of conversations with individuals making Black history at ORAU. For this episode, host Michael Holtz and special co-host Jill Latchana talk to Hill, an associate manager in STEM Workforce Development for ORISE, which is managed by ORAU for the U.S. Department of Energy. She discusses shift from academia to better focus on things she cherished. Hill shared her role in Black history, what it means to stand on the shoulders of her ancestors and what she hopes people will see in the story of her life. 

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Michael Holtz Host, Further Together: The ORAU Podcast

Michael Holtz, APR, MPRCA, is a senior communications and marketing specialist for ORAU, a government contractor based in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. In his role he serves as the host of Further Together: The ORAU Podcast. He is also a content creator for orau.org and ORAU Story, the company's annual report. He also manages media relations activities for the organization. Outside of work, Michael is a cancer activist, leaning into his experience as a 12-year survivor of Stage 3B rectal cancer. Michael is a volunteer for Man Up to Cancer, the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, Fight Colorectal Cancer and the National Coalition for Cancer Survivorship. Michael lives in Knoxville, Tennessee, with his lovely wife, Sarah, and their rescue dog, a golden bassett named Marley.