NIOSH Training Program Grant (TPG) Final Report: Occupational Safety & Environmental Health Program (OSEH)

Details

• Personal Author:
  Ogutu J
• Description:
  Millersville University (MU) offers an undergraduate degree program in Occupational Safety & Environmental Health (OSEH). The OSEH program is one of only six schools in the nation that offers a degree that is accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) under the Environmental, Health, and Safety (EHS) Criteria. Historically, the OSEH program at Millersville University has provided a strong educational experience that prepares graduates for entry-level positions in safety and health or to pursue graduate degrees in specialized areas within Safety and Environmental Health. Goals: The main goals of the Training Program Grant (TPG) were to (1) provide financial assistance to students in the OSEH program. This being a key factor in attracting outstanding academic candidates, (2) Help in retaining those students through completion of the program, (3) attract and retain qualified minority and female students, (4) permit expansion of the undergraduate program course offerings and Continuing Education Courses and Programs, and (5) supplement student and faculty travel to professional conferences identified by NIOSH as essential to program objectives. Accomplishments: Over the past 5 years the TPG has been used to provide tuition and fees assistance to 53 students working towards a B.S. degree in OSEH. In each and every case, MU students have found employment in the safety & health profession, clearly fulfilling the intent of the Occupational Safety & Health Act, which created NIOSH. Several of the TPG recipients enrolled in graduate school to continue their education in safety and health over the time of this grant. About 50 % of the recipients of tuition and fee assistance have either been female or underrepresented minority (URM) students. Over the past 5 years the TPG has been used to supplement student and staff travel to professional development conferences and to also support continuing education of full-time OSEH faculty. Continuing education opportunities are an important part of remaining up to date with current trends in safety and health, maintaining and improving current skills, and continuing to develop the professionalism necessary to properly train future safety and health professionals. The program was able to increase its visibility by providing financial support to students working towards the B.S. degree in OSEH. Over the past 5 years, the OSEH program has maintained steady or slight increase in enrollment (Approximately 10% growth in enrollment). Supporting tuition and fees increased the opportunities for students to elect cooperative education experiences, where they gained practical field experience under the supervision of an experienced EHS professional. In addition to the undergraduate course offerings, a number of Continuing Education Courses and programs have been offered. Examples for these courses and programs are the OSHA 10-hour for General Industry and Construction Industry, HAZWOPER Training, and a Confined Space Entry Training Course among others. Offerings in these areas have had a positive influence on safety and health throughout the region. In summary, The NIOSH TPG has been very instrumental over the past 5 years in making the OSEH program at MU a clear leader in undergraduate safety and health programs in the country. The graduates of the OSEH are well regarded by employers not just in the region, but across the country. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Education Occupational Health Safety Staff Development
• Keywords:
  Environmental Health Information Dissemination Occupational Health Occupational Safety Training
• Series:
  Grant Final Reports
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Final Grant Report
• Place as Subject:
  OSHA Region 3 ; Pennsylvania
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  OEP - Office of Extramural Programs
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1-11
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20063653
• Citation:
  Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, T03-OH-008622, 2020 Oct; :1-11
• Contact Point Address:
  Jack Ogutu, Ph.D., CSP, Department of Applied Engineering, Safety & Technology, P.O Box 1002, Millersville, PA 17551-0302
• Email:
  jack.ogutu@millersville.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2021
• Performing Organization:
  Millersville University, Pennsylvania
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• End Date:
  20250630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:2b41b2c5baaedaa346b4515081fe730aa672e5271a6d16c42013f601b9f72b8ae1bd1ba6f8fc8b148e3ef2a0d62ecc82f4a7d22ae564cd9990da9280453ffcf9
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/219079/cdc_219079_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 217.67 KB ]