Often one of the first staff members Joint School of Nanoscience and Nanoengineering (JSNN) students encounter, Allison Stockweather educates them on safety basics before they enter the lab workspace.
“Students aren’t always aware of how an injury could affect their lives,” Stockweather says. But she intimately knows the calamities that can happen in a lab as a direct result of carelessness or from someone not wearing personal protective equipment (PPE), like a lab coat or gloves.
Creating Safe Environments
Stockweather has one mission: to ensure JSNN is a safe environment for students, faculty, and employees.
As JSNN’s new director of research operations and environmental health and safety (EHS) since March, she helps researchers approach lab work with safety as their top priority.
Stockweather arrives at UNCG after five years managing the EHS program at the North Carolina Research Campus (NCRC). There, she helped seven universities, the David H. Murdock Research Institute, companies, and entrepreneurs focus on researching and developing safe and nutritious crops and foods. Before that, she worked as a chemist for the chemical and oil/gas industry.
One of the biggest differences Stockweather encountered in her move from corporate to academic environments was department size. At her previous companies, specialists, managers, directors, and vice presidents made up the EHS department.
But at NCRC and now JSNN, she says it’s a different story: “There’s one EHS director – and that’s me.”
Stockweather brings more than 25 years’ experience to the role and ensures a safe and compliant environment for students, faculty, and staff, juggling a broad range of responsibilities on a daily basis.
Safety First
Stockweather’s number one priority is simple: protect all JSNN students and employees while working in a laboratory environment.
“My goal is to stress the importance of health and safety to students, faculty, and staff, so everyone understands EHS is vital to JSNN’s success,” says Stockweather.
“I have learned by integrating safety and environmental considerations into the overall university mission, we can protect human health and the environment while contributing to the organization’s operational excellence and reputation.”
Stockweather ensures equipment is maintained and in working order. She inspects labs and other facilities, identifying any unsafe or unhealthy workplace conditions, and investigates accidents to recommend corrective measures to prevent recurring incidents. She also supports principal investigators (PIs) and research scientists in developing and implementing safety programs.
A Culture of Safety
Stockweather hopes students and faculty will always see her as a resource, rather than an obstacle, to their research. She seeks to make safety protocol compliance second nature at JSNN.
“I would like people to envision me as a vital mechanism in support of their research,” she says. “I am here to ensure whatever they’re working on, they do so in a safe manner.”
She also maintains an open-door policy, so JSNN students, faculty, and staff can easily address any concerns with her. “People can feel comfortable confiding in me if needed. I can be a potential liaison between a student and a PI to ensure everyone is safe.”
Stockweather will work in tandem with JSNN faculty to establish a stellar EHS program that prevents and mitigates injuries and maintains compliance with OSHA regulations.
“I will help identify risks before they cause an accident or costly harm to the JSNN building or its equipment,” she says.
And that’s a win-win for everyone!
Story written by Jessica Harlan, AMBCopy
Photography provided by Sean Norona, University Communications
