A joint letter to Congress from AIHA, the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE), and the National Safety Council (NSC) supports stable funding for OSHA and NIOSH in fiscal year (FY) 2016. The letter urges congressional appropriators to, at a minimum, fund OSHA at the level included in the president’s FY 2016 budget ($592.1 million), and fund NIOSH at its FY 2015 omnibus funding level of $334.863 million. The letter also highlights the importance of NIOSH’s Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing (AgFF) sector program and Education and Research Centers (ERCs)—two programs that continue to face targeted reductions in funding in the proposed budget. 

 

The letter, which is addressed to Senators Roy Blunt and Patty Murray, was also sent to appropriations leadership in the House on March 26. Read the letter on AIHA’s website.

 

AIHA Presents the IH Fundance Film Festival Help raise the profile of the industrial/occupational hygiene profession by entering the IH Fundance Film Festival video contest. The winners will be announced by a representative of AIHA at AIHce 2015 in Salt Lake City, and will be presented with a cash prize. Each cash-prize winner will have a chance to win the grand prize: a free conference registration for AIHce 2016. 

 

To enter, create a short video (two minutes or less) to help raise awareness about the field, upload it to YouTube, and promote your entry on Twitter. Industrial/occupational hygiene is a broad area, and your video does not necessarily need to involve all aspects of the profession. You may focus on a single element and examine its impact on businesses around the world, or describe what the job of an industrial/occupational hygienist entails.

 

Applications close May 29, 2015. Full contest rules are available on the AIHce 2015 website.

 

Volunteer Opportunity: IH/OH Business Case AIHA is seeking volunteer subject matter experts (SMEs) to participate in a project to better address the education needs for persons who develop and present business case arguments in support of an IH/OH intervention (program, activity, or project) through the development of a Body of Knowledge. The effort will bring together stakeholders and SMEs to develop a framework for development of future education, supporting tools, and other materials. Volunteer SMEs may participate as a content development team member or as a stakeholder.

 

Applications are due no later than May 15, 2015. Learn more on the AIHA website.

 

AIHA member Lewis Barbe, CSP, CHMM, PE, CHCM, was appointed chairman of ASTM Committee E34 on Occupational Health and Safety. According to ASTM, the standards over which Committee E34 has jurisdiction address the identification, exposure, symptomatology, treatment, control, and administrative aspects of diverse occupational safety and health issues such as silica, metalworking fluids, and ergonomics.

 

AIHA member Garrett Brown, MPH, CIH, is the recipient of the United Steelworkers’ (USW) 2015 J. William Lloyd Award, which is given annually to an individual or organization from outside the union for outstanding contributions to health, safety, or the environment. Brown was recognized at USW’s annual conference in Pittsburgh, Pa., in March.

 

If you or a member you know has a professional success to share, please e-mail the editors.

Twelve individuals have been designated as AIHA Fellows this year. The Fellows will be honored at the Mark of Excellence Awards Breakfast at AIHce 2015 on Wednesday, June 3. The awards event is a celebration to recognize the extraordinary contributions made by dedicated members and volunteers to the industrial hygiene profession. 

 

The list of new Fellows is available on the AIHA website. The Fellow designation was established to recognize members who have been full members in good standing for a minimum of 15 years and have made recognized contributions to industrial hygiene or related disciplines, either through research, leadership, publications, education, or service to AIHA.

 

Winner's Circle Elizabeth Regan of Hopkinton, Mass., and David Spellman of Kodiak, Alaska, are the first-quarter 2015 winners of The Synergist online survey drawing. Both are lucky recipients of $200 American Express gift cards. The survey appears each Wednesday in the Synergist Weekly (formerly E-ssential Connection) e-newsletter. Remember to take the survey for your chance to win! 

 

In Memorium Adam McLeland, MS, CIH, passed away at home in Lake Jackon, Texas, on April 6. He was 35. McLeland was a 2014 graduate of AIHA’s Future Leaders Institute, and worked as an associate industrial hygiene manager for The Dow Chemical Company. He is survived by his wife and three children. Dates and Deadlines May 30-June 4

Fundamentals of Industrial Hygiene course in Westerville, Ohio.October 26–27 AIHA Fall Conference in Orlando, Fla.

AIHA’s new board members will be inducted at AIHA’s annual business meeting on Thursday, June 4, at AIHce 2015 in Salt Lake City, Utah.

 

AIHA’s Board of Directors for 2015–2016 includes the following officers: • President: Daniel H. Anna, PhD, CIH, CSP • President-elect: Steven E. Lacey, PhD, CIH, CSP • Vice President: Deborah Imel Nelson, PhD, CIH • Past President: Christine A.D. Lorenzo, CIH • Secretary: Kathleen S. Murphy, CIH • Treasurer: Cynthia A. Ostrowski, CIH • Treasurer-elect: Lindsay Cook, CIH, CSP • Executive Director: Peter J. O’Neil, CAE The following members will serve as AIHA Directors for 2015–2016: • Donna S. Heidel, CIH • Chris L. Laszcz-Davis, MS, CIH • Nancy M. McClellan, MPH, CIH, CHMM • Michael S. Rosenow, CIH, CSP, MPH • Jennifer Sahmel, MPH, CIH, CSP • Dina M. Siegel, CIH, CSP, CBSP

DIRECTOR