The Edgar Monsanto Queeny Safety Professional of the Year Award is awarded annually to an ASSP member who demonstrates outstanding achievement in the occupational safety and health (OSH) field while also advancing the OSH profession overall. The award is named for Edgar Monsanto Queeny, who exhibited unwavering commitment to workplace safety after a tragic industrial explosion in the late 1940s destroyed Monsanto’s Texas City plant, killing 512 people, including 145 employees. The tragedy moved him to place a greater emphasis on safety in the company’s operations. To this day, the firm’s safety record reflects his deep personal commitment to protecting workers. Through this award, Monsanto Company proudly supports our members efforts to create safe work environments that will lead to a safer, stronger future.  There are Chapter, Regional, and a Society-level SPY awards.  If you are interested in nominating a peer or yourself for this award, please contact Awards and Honors Chair Heather Earl at heather.earl@disney.com for assistance.  For a list of previous winners, please see the chapter website awards page.

ASSP Foundation Award Program:  will be accepting applications online for its 2020-2021 scholarship and grant program beginning 9/15/2020. More than $350,000 will be available to safety students and professionals this year thanks to hundreds of generous donors. More than 120 awards are available, including several scholarships of $10,000 to $15,000.  One of the scholarships is endowed by the Central Florida Chapter and the scholarship rules give preference to Central Florida Chapter member applicants – so please apply when the application period opens on 9/15/2020!

Funding is available to students who are seeking a degree in OSH or a related field, as well as working professionals looking to advance their career through certification, conferences, seminars, workshops and college credits. Every ASSP member can benefit from this program, which helps members set their career on a path for greater success. To learn about how Foundation scholarships have enabled past recipients to advance the knowledge, skills and abilities needed for a successful OSH career, visit the ASSP Foundation website.  Interested ASSP members can apply online. Applications must be completed online and submitted before 11:59 p.m. EST on Friday, Dec. 1, 2020. Applicants will be notified on or about April 1, 2021, as to whether they were selected for an award.

Central Florida Chapter Program:  Did you know the Central Florida Chapter also has a local scholarship/grant program?  The application is attached and it is due November 1st.  Please see the submission instructions in the application.  Two winners will be presented with their awards in December 2020.

We are excited to announce that CSTE and the Colorado School of Public Health Center for Health, Work & Environment will be hosting a webinar on September 24th, 2020 from 2-3:30 pm EDT on health equity and worker safety during COVID-19.

Dr. Georges Benjamin, MD (Executive Director, APHA) will be speaking on “Health equity and the COVID-19 pandemic” to be followed by Celeste Monforton (George Washington University) and Aquilino Soriana (Filipino Workers Center) who will discuss the workplace impacts of this historic pandemic.

Please register for the webinar using this link. For your reference, please find a calendar invitation attached to this message. For any questions regarding the webinar or registration, please contact Cailyn Lingwall at clingwall@cste.org.