Roger Cloutier was born in North Attleborough, Massachusetts in 1930. After serving in the U.S. Navy during the Korean War, he pursued a career in health physics at the University of Massachusetts and University of Rochester. In 1959, he moved to Oak Ridge, TN to work for ORINS, the Oak Ridge Institute of Nuclear Studies (now Oak Ridge Associated Universities, or ORAU) to improve the institution’s program for radiation safety.
Cloutier became involved with the Medical Division and Special Training Division in their efforts to develop national and international training programs. He helped create a series of exhibits to teach about the proper handling of radioactive materials. During the 1960s, Cloutier traveled to Central and South America with the exhibit “Atoms in Action” as part of this program.
Cloutier was involved in the creation of many medical advancements during the course of his career, including the use of radioisotopes and body irradiation to treat disease. Upon retiring from ORAU in 1992, Cloutier organized the Retirees Group for ORAU.