The Reed Research Reactor (RRR) () is a research nuclear reactor located on-campus at Reed College in Portland, Oregon. It is a pool-type TRIGA Mark I reactor, built by General Atomics in 1968 and operated since then under licence from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Maximum thermal output is 250 kW. The reactor has over 1,000 visitors each year and serves the Reed College departments of Physics and Chemistry, as well as other departments. Operation RRR is the only research reactor in the world that is owned and operated by an undergraduate educational institution. It is operated and maintained by undergraduate college students under the supervision of a director and operations manager who are members of the college staff. The facility provides scientific irradiation services to a broad community outside the college, but its primary mission is for student initiated research, training, and hands-on education. The Reed Research Reactor is intended to produce thermal neutrons. It is used primarily for neutron activation to produce radioisotopes or analyze composition of material samples. Undergraduate leadership The RRR distinguishes itself from other university research reactors by the fact that it is the only reactor run completely by undergraduate students and serves undergraduate degree programs almost exclusively. In fact, Reed College does not have any nuclear engineering or even any engineering program. The facility is used in research projects, often conducted by the campus itself. As of November 2018, there are approximately 40 students licensed to operate the reactor. In order to obtain such a license, students must attend a year of seminars on nuclear safety followed by an exam administered by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. When the facilities were visited by ABC's "Radioactive Roadtrip" Primetime special, the fact that the school had no engineering program was purported as evidence that university reactors are sometimes kept as more of a status symbol than as a valid research tool. This is a quote from the ABC website: University Reaction: The reactor is a "zero-risk facility," and there is no plausible way it is a threat, said Edward Hershey, director of public affairs at Reed College. Although the school has no nuclear engineering department – or any engineering department for that matter – chemistry and physics students use it as a resource. Hershey said the reactor is a "bragging point" for Reed. "It's just a neat facility," he said. The "zero-risk facility" comment reflects the reactor design