Pittsburgh AIHA Secretary Frank Pokrywka, Director Laura Hallett, and Past-President Tak Pajak volunteered to be judges on behalf of the Pittsburgh AIHA for the annual Pittsburgh Regional Science and Engineering Fair held as a virtual event on March 24, 2021.

Our judges reviewed hundreds of science abstracts to find those relevant to Industrial Hygiene.  They each chose 5 or 6 favorites and proceeded to narrow their choices down to six projects for further review during the Fair on March 24.  The choices were submitted to Nicole Wood, Science Fair Director, who scheduled each student for a 20 minute virtual interview.  Project write-ups for Pgh. AIHA selected students were available for review online prior to the virtual interview.  In addition, a rubric was included for each project category to enable the judges to rate various characteristics of the project and develop a score for the students experimental design, work product, and presentation skills.  The student projects selected included one from the junior division (grade 6), three from the intermediate division (grades 7 and 8),  and two from the senior division (grades 9-12).   (Continue reading below)

The Pittsburgh Local Section of the AIHA has nominated Bernard (Bernie) Quinn, M.S., CIH, for designation as an AIHA Fellow through the National AIHA. The AIHA Fellows Designation recognizes those who are full members in good standing, have 15 years of continuous Full membership, and have made recognized contributions to industrial hygiene or related disciplines, either through research, leadership, publications, education, or service to AIHA.

Bernie has recently retired as President and CEO of AM Health and Safety, Inc. 20 years after establishing and running the company along with his partner, Barry Momyer, CIH. He is a Masters Degreed CIH, who has served the IH profession since 1979, and has been a continuous member of the AIHA since 1979. In addition to working in government, and the steel and chemical industries in the early part of his career, he has provided HES consultation services throughout the United States for over 28 years. (Click "read more" to continue)

​The Carnegie Science Center is currently recruiting sponsor judges for the 80th Covestro Pittsburgh Regional Science, Engineering & Technology Fair (PRSEF) which connects nearly 1,100 students in grades 6-12 with our area’s scientists and engineers.  Mark your calendar for Friday, March 29, 2019!  The competition takes place at Heinz Field – Club Levels!

Each year, the Pgh. AIHA sponsors two $500 awards - we need two more members (two have already registered) to participate as judges.  As a judge, you will help to choose the recipients of our LS Awards.  To register to be a sponsor judge, please go to https://www.scitechfestival.org/mainsf/Registration/sponsorjudge.aspx. 

There will be an orientation for new sponsor judges on Tuesday, March 12 from 11a - 2p at the Carnegie Science Center.
For those who are not comfortable judging, a variety of other science fair volunteer opportunities are also available at https://www.volunteersignup.org/8QEPF.  

Julie Panko, CIH is the newest Pittsburgh AIHA member to be named National AIHA Fellow -- Congratulations to Julie on this well-deserved honor.  Julie will be recognized at the 2018 AIHce in Philadelphia in May.

The Fellow designation (FAIHATM) was established to recognize members who are full members in good standing, have 15 years of continuous membership, and have made recognized contributions to industrial hygiene or related disciplines, either through research, leadership, publications, education, or service to AIHA. The Fellow designation is limited to no more than five percent of the membership. 

Earlier in September we sent out a survey request to gather information on member preferences related to event topics, meeting venues/locations and more.  The information gathered from this survey will help the Program Committee plan future events.  Thank you to President-Elect Lucinette Alvarado, CIH for coordinating this survey AND the 36 members who responded to the request!  The results are below -- Click "read more" for a summary.

Welcome members, corporate sponsors, and advertisers to a new year for our local section.  The executive committee (and some members) held a productive business meeting in July and we are excited for the near future.  Three main focus areas were discussed for this year:
 
1.  Promote and facilitate community outreach. 

It’s about the kids!  In the spring newsletter and following the president’s luncheon, we discussed the AIHA/NIOSH partnership - Safety Matters, a program for educating our youth on safety and health in the workplace.  Most students and new graduates beginning part-time or full-time jobs have never been taught about workplace hazards. We have the ability to directly talk to kids about how to not get hurt, sick or killed at work!  Our local section director from RJ Lee Group, Inc., Keith Rickabaugh, CIH lead the way by promoting this program during a recent presentation to the Pennsylvania Association for Middle Level Education (PAMLE).  As a result, PAMLE plans to post the Safety Matters content on the Pennsylvania List Serve, a messaging center used by all schools in PA.

 Aaron Trippler, Director of AIHA Government Affairs has posted his latest report (May 4, 2016).  Headlines are below:

• Congress Takes Short Break with No Budget in Sight
• TSCA Reform Still Alive
• Silica Standard Challenged in Court
• Recordkeeping Rule Moving Forward
• OSHA Fines to Increase
• Worker Fatality Rate Increases
  
• OSHA and NIOSH Guidance to Zika Virus
  
• CLICK HERE to read the report...

The 2016 American Industrial Hygiene Foundation (AIHF) Scholarship Application is now available. Every year the AIHF provides support to students completing an undergraduate or graduate studies in Industrial Hygiene or a related field. One application qualifies students for up to 30 different awards.

The American Industrial Hygiene Association's - Government Affairs Department recently published the Happenings On The Hill newsletter.  Headlines this issue include:

Congress Settles In To Do Some Work

• TSCA Reform, Regulatory Reform, Child Labor Law for Logging, Injury and Illness Reporting, Occupational Safety and Health Appropriations, Safe patient Handling, OSHA Reform. 

Regulatory Activity

• Confined Spaces in Construction Rule, Silica Rule, Beryllium, Infectious Diseases Rule.

Regulatory News Bits

Click here to view the report.

The September 2014 newsletter is available now.  Take a few minutes to check it out- click here! 

Information and Articles in this issue:

• Meeting Announcement
• Corporate Sponsor Update
• AIHA Pittsburgh By-Laws Revision Update
  
• Member News
  
• AIHA Virtual Fall Conference—No Travel Required!
  
• AIHA Launches New Website to Elevate Global Conversation, Connect With OEHS Professionals in China
  
• Emerging OEHS Government Policies Explored at AIHA Fall Conference
  
• AIHA Pittsburgh Local Section Audit Report
  
• Maintaining Your ABIH Certification
  

The next newsletter will be out in November - please submit any articles, announcements, member news, etc. to Christy by November 7, 2014.

Thanks to Stan Liang, Pgh. AIHA Director, we now have Facebook and LinkedIn interest groups. In addition, to getting the latest local section news, announcements, and job postings this is your opportunity to network with local EHS professionals.  Members can also post local EHS related announcements and job openings.

Three social media buttons have been added to the top of each page (beside the search box) for Facebook, LinkedIn, and the RSS Feed button so you can set up a live bookmark on your web browser.  

Members of these groups are welcome to provide feedback to us at AIHA Pittsburgh Section (by posting discussion threads) on what interests you or how we can better address your needs or concerns.  Stan will monitor these accounts, so any questions or comments can be directed to him at sliang@kta.com.

Thank you to the members who participated in our online ballot to approve the revised Local Section By-Laws.  All but one were in favor of the revision.  Once the National AIHA approves the By-Laws, they will be updated on the website.