spring2006
- 1. American Society of Safety Engineers Northwest Chapter MASTER OF ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH & SAFETY UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA DULUTH Volume 9. No. 2 Spring 2006 ASSE Student Chapter 229 Voss-Kovach Hall University of Minnesota Duluth 1305 Ordean Court Duluth, MN 55812-3042 CHANGE SERVICE REQUESTED Nonprofit Organization U.S.Postage PAID PermitNo.721 Duluth, Minnesota Attention Alumni! Please let us know if you or a MIS/MEHS graduate, or someone you know that should be receiving a newsletter copy has moved and is not getting their copy. Send the address change to: UMD ASSE Student Section University of Minnesota Duluth 1305 Ordean Ct. Duluth, MN 55812-2496 Or E-Mail mehs@d.umn.edu Also view our updated MEHS program website at http://mehs.d.umn.edu where you can learn more about the program, current students, alumni, and much more! For additional copies of this newsletter, See the MEHS website or call (218) 726-8117 Lindsey M. Hanson, Chief Editor Hans2525@d.umn.edu UMD Student Section Editor’s Corner Fresh from break,we’vehittheground running in the MEHS program. Many of ourclassmateswereabletoescapechilly Duluthandwereluckyenoughtoheadto warmerclimates!Ourclassmates’travels tookthemtoLas Vegas, Nevada, Honolulu,Hawaii,Portland,OregonandI wasabletoheadbacktoBiloxi, Mississippi. Thisspring,we’vereallybeenabletosee whatformergraduateshavebeentellingus allalong:“Timemanagementisthekeyto gettingthroughthisprogram!” W ithonlya coupleweeksleft,wefindourselves lookingatouracademicplannerstryingto stayontopofourschedules.Itindeedwill beanexcitingtimeaswelookforwardto enteringtheworkforce,followinginthe footstepsofpastMEHSstudents. Inthisissue,youwillmeetoursecond Featured Speaker of the year, Mark Boben, of ConnocoPhillips. Also,you’ll findarticleshighlightingthebright futureofEHSprofessionalsandlearn aboutourtravelstoDeKalbandChicago. Aspecial“thanksya’ll”goesouttotheco- editorswhoassistedinproducingthe newslettersthisyear! Congratulations Class of 2006,we’re almostthere! UMD W ins ASSE National Outstanding Student Section! Onceagain,theClassof2006ismakinghistory! Afterclassmatessweptthenational SESHAResearchScholarshiptopthreeawardsinSantaClarajustlastmonth, we arethrilledtoannounceourfirstplacefinishforthenational ASSE Outstanding StudentSection Award! ThisisthefirsteverwinforUMD. The ASSE Academic CommitteerevisedawardruleslastyearafterMurrayStatewontwoyearsinarow toallowunregulatedconsecutivewinsbythesamesection. Lastyear’sclasspavedthewaybysubmittingthefirstapplicationandreceivedan impressivethirdplace. Theirapplicationprovidedanoutstandingformatand standardforourofficerstobuildon. Thecriteriafortheapplicationincludedprofessionaldevelopment,research, communityenhancement,recognition,participation,endorsementsandsupport documentation. Severalmembersofthesectionsteppedupwithvariousresearch projectsandcommunityenhancementeventsthatcontributedtoastrongly supported application. Endorsements came from several past MEHS graduates and twoothersafetyprofessionals. ThisawardbringstheMEHSprogram$5,000ofscholarship,researchandtravel assistancetothe ASSEConferenceinSeattle, W A. Severalstudentswilltravelto the W estCoasttoacceptthehonormid-June. Aubrey Gold and Lindsey Hanson
- 2. 7 Class of 2006 ASSE Officers ASSE Elected Officers2005–2006(fromlefttoright):President Aubrey Gold,ChiefEditorLindseyHanson, Treasurer JerryUlleberg,SecretaryJill Ellestad, and VicePresidentMatt VanWatermulen. UMD MEHS Class of 2006 2 Faculty & Staff: Director, Hamid Fonooni Exec. Admin. Assistant, Pat W ollack Dale Krageschmidt Harvey Burski Ritter Humphery Jim Stauber Norbert Norman Nancy Tario Chuck Bailey Chris Tschida President: Aubrey Gold VicePresident: Matt VanWatermulen Secretary: JillEllestad Treasurer: JerryUlleberg Chief Editor: Lindsey Hanson Co-Editors: Paul Beck DianeCurelli BenDrilling JillEllestad Alissa Johnson Cody Marks Mitchell Sharpe Aaron Shifsky Class: Paul Beck DianeCurelli Mike Dickenson BenDrilling JillEllestad Aubrey Gold Lindsey Hanson Alissa Johnson Cody Marks Ben Sand Aaron Schifsky Mitchell Sharpe Kristy Smith Adam Tripp JerryUlleberg Matt VanWatermulen ASSE National Conference and Exhibits Seattle, W A June 10th –15th MEHS Class of 2006 Commencement May 11,2006 Thank You Visitors! Upcoming Events As always, a huge thank you goes out to all those who dedicated their time to the Class of 2006 this spring! Glenn VanHeel & StaffatM. A. Mortenson Company Mark Boben, ConocoPhillips Jesse Michaletz, M. A. Mortenson Company Dan Murphy, Zurich Marni Hogan, Seagate Technology Chuck Bailey,Baileyand Assoicated Andrea Hayden, Hibbing Taconite Company Andrea Perrizo, Hibbing Taconite Company Jeff Johnson, Hibbing Taconite Company Steve Rogers, Hibbing Taconite Company Mike Smart, Sappi Paper Mill Doug Swenson, AGC of Minnesota Lindsey Hanson When you hear of Chicago, what instantly comes to your mind? It’sthefood,artandjazz,right? W ell, the MEHS Class of ’06 had all that and more when we attended the 16th Annual Construction Safety Conference and Exposition on April4-6,2006. Each year, UMD students travel to Chicago to assist in running the conference. In addition to helping, students were able to attend sessions including: Pentagon Construction – Post 9/11,EffectiveSafetyStrategiesforMulti-Story Construction, Could this Day Get Any W orse?, Construction Boot Camp, Response to Construction Emergencies other interesting and stimulating seminars. The night before the conference started, after a long day of setting up exhibits and other logistics for the conference, students were ready for a nice break. Zurich Insurance, Bovis Lend Lease and Construction Safety Council sponsored a “Student Appreciation Party” to network with construction industry insiders and enjoy great food and tasty beverages. Students interested in persuing the construction safety field, found it incredibly useful to speak with people who have been active in construction. Even students who have already taken a position with other industries or those students not interested in construction had a great opportunity to work with EHS professionals. In addition to attending and working at the conference, students were given a day to explore the city. Some chose to shop on Michigan Avenue, visit Navy Pier on Lake Michigan and see the Museum of Science and Industry.The last night of our Chicago trip, MEHS Program Director Hamid Fonooni took the class to Kingston Mines Blues Club where students were treated to authentic Chicago Blues nightlife. Overall, students found the Chicago trip a great way to wrap up the year. Many gained new friends within the industry. Many thanks to Mr. Tom Broderick and his staff at the Construction Safety Council and Chicagoland Construction for sponsoring the students’ spacious accommodations. Also, special thanks to Gayla Bockrath, Gray Coleman and Beverly Jerrick for their nonstop hard work to make things run smoothly. In addition, Zurich Insurance hospitality and Dan Murphy’s assistance and support of students was much appreciated. Another Successful and Fun Chicago Pilgrimage for the MEHS in 2006 Scholarship Awards went to the following UMD MEHS Students 1. Matt VanWatermulen,“A Risk Assessment of Bulk VersusSmall Chemical Quantity Transfer During the Manufacture of Semiconductors: A Review ArticleofSilaneDelivery” 2. Paul Beck, “Nanotechnology; CanWeGet As Safe As W eAre Small?” 3. Aubrey Gold, “Emergency Preparedness: Best Practices” Congratulations! UMD Students Sweep SESHA! Diane Curelli & Alissa Johnson The University of Minnesota Duluth Campus Safety Health & EmergencyPreparedness Advisory Committee (CSHEPAC) has receivedsomereportsandcomplaintsregardingpotentialpublicsafetyissuessurroundingunsafedrivingoncampus. The CSHEPACcontactedthe ASSE StudentSectiontoaskforsomeassistancedevelopingastudytoidentifyandassessthe potentialrisks.DianeCurelliand Alissa Johnson, UMD ASSE student members, developed a comprehensive driver safety study duringthespringsemestertohelptheCSHEPACintheirefforts.Aspartofthisstudytheyputtogetherashort“DriverHabit Survey”tobedistributedamongthestudentsacrosstheUMDcampus.Thesurveycontentcoveredavarietyoftopicssuchascell phone,seatbeltusageandspeedingoncampus.InconjunctionwiththissurveyBenSandledagroupeffort toobserve behavior ofdriverswhilepedestriansareinthecrosswalksontheUMDcampus.Finalanalysisreportsincludesthedatacollectedfrom boththedriverssurveyandthecrosswalkstudy.The reports were submitted to the UMD Campus Safety Health & Emergency Preparedness AdvisoryCommitteeforfurtheractioninmid-April. The ASSE StudentSectionalsohadaninformationalboothabouttheInCaseofEmergency (ICE) program. ICE is a program developedforassistingemergencyworkersinalertingacontactincaseofanemergencysituationwhenthevictimcannot communicatewhoshouldbenotified.MoreinformationonICEisavailableatwww.asse.org. “ Wehopetousetheseprogramstohelpraisesafetyawarenessamongthestudents,faculty,andstaff on UMD campus”, said Johnson. Diane Curelli, Alissa Johnson and Jill Ellestad discuss ICE to a passing student. Campus Driver SafetyStudy
- 3. A Report of Christmas Break Activities Mark Boben: Safety Professional in Action 6 3 Diane Curelli Overwinterbreak,manystudentsintheprogramtooktheopportunitytojobshadowatvariouscompaniesthroughtthecountry. Lindsey Hanson returnedto W .G.Yates and Sons Construction,inBiloxi,Mississippi,foranupcloselookatthedamage fromHurricaneKatrina.Shelearnedaboutproperdemolitionandrecyclingofdebris,howthecommunityofBiloxiisrecovering andhowacompanycanassistemployeesingettingbackontheirfeetaftersufferingsuchadevestating tragedy.Thehighlightof hertrip wasgettingtoseetheprocessofdemolishingacasinobarge.Shestatedthatshewasveryimpressedwithhow Yates aidedtheiremployeesintheweeksfollowingthestorm. Mitch Sharpe workedwith Ryan Vieau (2005)of APi Group,Inc. inthe TwinCitiesoverbreak.Hewasabletoperforma couplesafetyauditsatdifferentfacilitiesaroundthearea. Aubrey Gold spenthertimeinHillsboro,Oregontouring Intel’sRonler Acres campus and Sun Microsystems.Hermain contactwas Andy Karsnia with E O R M,whosetupthetoursandgaveheranopportunitytospeakwithsomeoftheir consultants. Aubreyfeltthatitwasnotonlyagreatopportunity,butthatitalsohelpedtogiveherabetterideaofwhatshemay pursuepostgraduation. Alissa Johnson stayedinDuluthandjobshadowedwithlocal Lloyd Vienneau whoisasafetyconsultantforbusinesses aroundthearea.Shehadtheopportunitytodosafetyaudits,attendsafetymeetingsandtotoursomeofthecompaniesLloyd worksfor.AlissawillbeworkingwithLloydwhenshehastimeovertherestofthesemester. Kristy Smith alsostayedinthearea,jobshadowingat Hibbing Taconite upontheIronRange. Finally,JillEllestad metwith JimLeste and Kristi Adams-HaglundatChildren’sHospitals andClinicsinMinneapolis.She wasabletotourthehospitalandgainedinsightabouthowdifferentahospitalsettingisfromotherindustries. Allofthestudentsfeltthattheseopportunitieswereworthwhileandthattheygainedalotofhandsonknowledgebygettingout intothefield. A specialthankyougoesouttoallthosewhoallowedcurrentstudentstojobshadow. Alissa Johnson M. E. (Mark) Boben is Manager, Upstream HSE and EmergencyResponse,forConocoPhillips. Bobenassumedhiscurrent positioninJanuary2005andisresponsibleforsupportinghealth,safety, environment, (HSE) and emergencyresponsefor ConocoPhillipsglobaloperations. BobenwasborninDuluth,Minnesota.Heearnedabachelor’sdegreeinsocialsciencesfromGustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter,MinnesotaandaMaster’sDegreeInindustrialSafetyfromtheUniversityofMinnesotainDuluthin1977and1978 respectively. HejoinedPhillipsPetroleumCompanyin1978. WhileinStavanger, Norway,from1980to1986,heworkedinEkofisk operationsinavarietyofsafetypositionsbothonandoffshore.InCasper,W yoming., and Oklahoma City he served the North AmericaexplorationandproductiongroupinsafetyandequipmentinspectionpositionsbeforemovingtoBartlesville,Okla.,in 1990 to become a member of the research and development safety and health group. In 1991, he provided HSE support to internationalethanolandpetroleum(E&P),andinearly1992wasnamedHSEdirectorofinternationalE&P.Laterthatyearhe transferred to Shekou, China, to serve as HSE manager of E&P Eurasia.HeservedasReviewsand Assessments Coordinator at Bartlesvillebeginningin1998.Hewasnamed VicePresident,LossPrevention,China,in2000wherehewasresponsiblefor health,safety,environment,HSE,permitting,QAQCandtraininglocatedinBeijing. 1. What did you find most challenging professionally when you first left UMD? “Upon graduation from Gustavus Adolphus College, I went directly into the Masters of Industrial Safety program. My work experience consisted of working construction and manufacturing during the summers and part time during school. Upon entering the safety profession, I quickly found out that I had a lot to learn; theory and reality don’t necessarily go hand in hand. My focus was to learn as much as I could about the company and the operations being performed” 2. What advice would you give the current class as they go through the MEHS program? “Learn as much as you can, develop relationships with your classmates and have some fun. Your working life is going to be exciting and challenging. It will also consume most of you life. You will have a short time in the program, enjoy it.” 3. What advice would you give the current class once we start looking for jobs? “Do your research on the industry or company you want to work with. If you can go into an interview with a basic understanding of the company and the challenges being faced you will be better prepared for the interview process. First impressions make a difference, make yours count.” 4. What did you find most helpful when you left the program? “I worked hard to develop relationships throughout my career with people from top to bottom of the organization. Additionally, I have been active in seeking out mentors throughout my career to provide guidance on how to improve myself and increase my value to the company.” 5. What is the best part of your job with ConocoPhillips? “I joined the oil industry to have the opportunity to work internationally. The company has provided me with the opportunity to spend more that 15 years abroad working on multi-billion dollar projects around the world. This not only provided the opportunity for challenging and exciting professional growth but also personal growth for myself and my family living in developing a more open view of the world. I’ve had a great career!” W .G.Yates and Sons Construction Company’s Main office in Biloxi, Mississippi after Hurricane Katrina hit. The entire first floor was completely destroyed. Regardless, they were among the first business in the area to reopen.
- 4. 4 5 MEHS Graduates Return, W earing Different Hats Chris Tschida, Class of 1999 Nancy Tario, Class of 2003 Paul Beck It’s second semester and two former MEHS graduates have found themselves back in school. Only this time they are not taking classes, they’re teaching them. MEHS Graduates Chris Tschida (‘99) and Nancy Tario (‘03) have joined the faculty as adjunct professors for this year’s spring semester classes. Chris, who is presently a Safety Director at M. A. Mortenson Company is teaching Construction Safety Management, while Nancy is teaching Leadership, Teamwork and Behavior in EHS. Nancy works for Louisiana Pacific and is a Lean Six Sigma Black Belt (Project Manager). Both Chris and Nancy are excited to be back and look forward to passing their real world knowledge down to students, especially since they remember being in that position not too long ago. Both graduates bring unique and effective teaching styles to the program and incorporate experiences and exercises that complement the class materials and topics. For the MEHS program to continue to flourish it is important not only to learn the bread and butter of safety,buttoalso be able to tie that information in with what is presently experienced in the profession. By having Nancy and Chris back to contribute their working knowledge of safety and integrating that into a classroom setting, it helps to ensure another strong and well rounded group of students enterthejobmarketfullyprepared. The MEHS Class of 2006 attended the NIU-ASSE Student Safety Conference in DeKalb, IL onMarch31-April1,2006. Afteraneighthour drive from Duluth, they attended a student presentation session. Students from Iowa State University presented two topics: Nanotechnology in Safety and EH&S Tower Demolition. Paul Beck, UMD-MEHS student also presented his nanotechnology research presentation “Nanotechnology: Can we Get as Safe as W eAre Small? Once the student presentations were completed, a dinner and social hour was held at O’Leary’s Restaurant. Students were able to socialize withotherstudents, theirinstructors,local ASSE members and alumin. The conference on Saturday was opened with a warm greeting from the NIU Dean of the College of Engineering and Engineering Technology. The day was filled with topics that included; Disaster / Crisis Management, Surviving 9/11: What I Learned, Developing Your Safety Career and Risk Management in the Health Care Industry. Speakers were from distinguished companies such as 3M, NIU, Hilb Rogal & Hobbs, OSF Health Care and Diamler Chrysler. NIU has been hosting the Region V Student Safety Conference over the past six years. UMD Students found the conference to be highly informative and rewarding. Many thanks go to the NIU-ASSE StudentChapterfortheirorganized and educational conference. Also, thanks toDr. Earl Hansen and Dr. Cesarotti for their demonstrated leadership and passion for student learning opportunities. Northern Illinois University-ASSE Student Safety Conference Lindsey Hanson MEHS Class of 2006 with fellow students from NIU’sASSE Student Section Chapter The question for incoming Environmental Health and Safety students is: “What is the job market like today?” The response is “the EH&S career fieldisrisingfast.” According to an article in Professional Safety (February 2006) ” there are opportunities in the field that have not been seen since OSHA was created in the 1970’s.Thisarticlealsopointedoutthattherearethreefactorsthatcontributetothisclimatewhichinclude: 1. A large number of employees have retired or are about to. 2. The layoffs and downsizing within companies is being reversed. 3. SH&E professionals, in their first 3-5 years, have a broad skill base which can be used across many industries. Since these factors are converging, with the right moves, professionals who have recently entered the workplace can advance up the ranks very quickly. For new professionals in the field, there seems to be a set of “key skills” that should be groomed to achieve a long-term career.The following list of “key skills” is from the “Professional Safety” magazine: technical knowledge, business savvy, communication skills, get along & work well withothers,buildvisibility, time management, be a follower as well as being able to lead and know when to move on. This is reassuring news for past MEHS and the Class of 2006 Graduates! Aaron Schifsky Bright Future for Health and Safety Professionals FourmembersoftheClassof2006presentedtheirresearchpapersthis April at the SESHA High-TechSafetyConferencein SantaClara,California. And the top three papers…a first ever sweep by UMD! Matt VanWatermulenplacedfirstfollowedby PaulBeckand AubreyGold. AllthreepaperswillbepublishedinSESHA’sonlinejournal. JerryUllebergalsopresentedhis paperalongwithfiveotherstudentsfromCalPoly,MurrayState and UWStout. Fourotherclassmatesattendedtheconference toparticipateinnetworkingevents,semiconductorindustrysafetysessionsandenjoyallthatthebeautifulBay Areahadtooffer. Aubrey Gold SESHA Research Scholarship Awards Swept by UMD! Matt VanWatermulen, Aubrey Gold and Paul Beck