Welcome to the AIHA Student Local Section Digest! This will be a monthly communication between all AIHA student local sections. Its purpose is to share information that is relevant to all student local sections. If you have anything you’d like to see in the monthly digest, please let the Student Local Section Council know.
The SLSC is passing around a Level A HAZMAT suit to all student local sections. Each student section will decorate the suit with their school's name/logo and take a picture with the suit before passing it on to the next student local section. All student sections that participate will be highlighted on the AIHA Students and Early Career Professionals LinkedIn Page and in this digest when the suit is passed to their section so that we can all follow its progress across the country. The suit will be ending its journey at AIHce 2012 in Indianapolis, Indiana where it will be on display at the Expo.
So far the suit has traveled to:
Check out previous editions of the SLSC digest to learn more about these student local sections!
Seventh Destination: Utah State Student Section
Utah State University is home to one of the five ABET accredited undergraduate programs in Industrial Hygiene. Students graduate with a Bachelors of Public Health (the emphasis being Industrial Hygiene) and typically have at least one minor in Chemistry.
Located in Logan, Utah, USU is nestled between the beautiful Bear River and Wellsville mountain ranges. The current student section of AIHA was first organized in 1993 and the program has experienced considerable growth. Our students become very involved in Industrial hygiene in the classroom, the laboratory, and in the field. Before graduation, each student must complete an internship. These IH work experiences provide valuable professional experience and often act as catalysts which jump start many successful careers for graduates. USU’s student section of AIHA strives to help students by coordinating meetings, field trips, and fundraisers, which establish friendly connections and promote professional development. Weekly presidency meetings serve to organize a meaningful activity for each month of the academic year. Each semester, we also host guest speaker events for health and safety professionals from a wide variety of industries. While most graduates pursue careers and/or masters degrees in IH, many have entered Dental and Medical Schools.
We are proud to be Utah State Aggies, and are honored to be student members of AIHA. USU was awarded the AIHA student section of the year award in 1998 and 2010. Hard working students and faculty have left a legacy, and we intend to build on it. Thanks to this dedicated faculty and an awesome student membership (we currently have 36 registered members), we have had another great year! We encourage others to learn more about our IH program!
Utah State student section members with the HAZMAT suit!
Eighth Destination: The University of California, Los Angeles!
The UCLA Industrial Hygiene Student Association is the AIHA student local section at the University of California, Los Angeles. We are in the department of Environmental Health Sciences in the Fielding School of Public Health. Currently, we have 14 student members pursuing a MS, MPH, PhD, and DrPh in Industrial Hygiene. Current PhD student topics include ergonomics, aerosol science, glove permeation, and heat stress. We’ve had speakers on occupational medicine/nursing, aerosol research, and hazardous waste management. UCLA is the site of the NIOSH Southern California Educational Research Center. Our program also has strong ties to Occupational Medicine and Occupational Nursing students. When we’re not studying we like to be at the beach, biking, hiking or having a BBQ! Masters students get a field trip class where they visit refineries, aircraft manufacturers, smelters and other industries to learn health and safety observation skills. Hope to see everyone at AIHce in Indy!
Some of the UCLA student section members with the HAZMAT suit!
* Still interested in decorating the HAZMAT suit for your student local section, even if your school year is ending soon?
Fear not! The HAZMAT suit will be present at the Student and Early Career Professionals Mixer on Sunday night during AIHce Indianapolis. There will be permanent markers there, ready for any section to decorate the suit. This way all interested student sections can decorate the suit before it goes on display at the Expo. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact Mary Ellen at hicksml@umich.edu
Then apply for the AIHA Best Student Local Section of the Year Award!
The student local section of the year award is an annual award established by AIHA to honor a section that has made a significant contribution towards furthering excellence in industrial hygiene education, research, and community awareness during the academic year.
The winning student local section will receive $1,000 and will be presented the award at the annual Volunteer recognition reception at AIHce in Indianapolis.
Applications for the student local section of the year award are due Friday, May 4th!
Be sure to check out the following website for more information and to download the award application:
If yes, nominate them for the Golden Seed Award!
The Student and Early Career Professionals (SECP) Committee is seeking nominations for the Golden Seed Award. This award is to be given to an individual who has made significant contributions to industrial hygiene, above and beyond their typical job responsibilities. This can include contributions in the area of student development, mentoring, or early career guidance. Nominees must have demonstrated a commitment to promoting the profession of industrial hygiene, advancing the profession among students and early career professionals, and/or providing guidance and mentorship to students or early career professionals. Nominees must also be members of AIHA. The award will be presented at AIHce in Indianapolis, IN.
Golden Seed nomination form
AIHce 2012 will be held June 17-21st in Indianapolis, Indiana and is a great opportunity for students and early career professionals to network and for occupational health and safety professional development. There are events throughout AIHce that are specifically meant for students and young professionals that you won’t want to miss! The first student event is the student mixer that will be held Sunday, June 17th!
The week of the conference is later than it has been in years past so if you plan to have a summer internship, talk to your internship companies now about getting time off to attend the conference. The conference is very well known within the IH field, and many employers would be happy to allow you the time off to attend such a great educational event and networking opportunity!
Then you should think about joining the Student Local Section Council (SLSC)! The council is made up of a Chair, Vice-Chair, and Secretary. Elections will be held Tuesday, June 19th during the AIHA student local sections meeting at AIHce in Indianapolis. Any questions about the SLSC? Then please contact the current Chair, Mary Ellen Hicks at hicksml@umich.edu. All nominations for SLSC positions should be turned into Thursa La at tla@aiha.org.
Check out the TRAINING VIDEO that was made specifically to help transition new AIHA Student Local Section Officers! (Video at bottom of the page)
Mary Ellen Hicks, Chair- hicksml@umich.eduEric Ward, Vice-Chair- ejward@purdue.eduSteve Jeka, Secretary- sjeka88@gmail.com