Chancellor Jimmy G. Cheek and Darrel Kohlhorst, B&W Y-12 president and general manager, signed a memorandum of understanding in September 2011, allowing for joint appointments of key researchers, engineers, executives, and staff between UT and Y-12. The agreement was the first for a National Nuclear Security Administration production site. The memorandum followed one signed in April with the goal of pushing more technologies into the private sector and expanding collaborations. In 2007 the organizations started the Y-12/UT Career Advantage Program with the College of Business’s MBA program, through which selected students worked at Y-12 in addition to receiving a tuition waiver and stipend. In fall 2011 the first class of nineteen Y-12 employees entered a special two-year accelerated program leading to a master’s degree in industrial engineering with a concentration in management designed solely for Y-12 employees.
Following the change in leadership in July 2014 to Consolidated Nuclear Security (a corporate partnership headed by Bechtel), the two institutions renewed their agreement with a new memorandum of understanding.