Campus Safety Committee Program
Mission Statement
The mission of the Campus Safety Committee is to provide support and enhance Whitworth University's occupational and environmental safety programs. This group of staff and faculty will help reduce the risk of workplace injuries and illnesses by providing recommendations to the university's safety manager. The committee is composed of elected and appointed employees from various departments on campus. Please contact the safety manager or a committee member if you have questions or concerns regarding occupational health and safety.
Staff Members
- Allison Brier – Printing Services
- Lori Wright – Continuing Studies
- Staci Schneider – Administrative Services
- Christina Dolan-Derks – Library
- Matt Quigley – Grounds and Landscape
- Erik Eschenbacher – General Trades/Facilities
Appointed Members
- August Weil – Human Resources
- Alex McCue – Academic Safety Manager
- Tracey Mouser – Director, Career Services
- Sarah Cummings – Assistant Athletics Director for Sports Medicine
Purpose & Responsibilities
- To fulfill the requirement for an employee elected safety committee outlined in WAC 296-800.
- To review incident and near-miss reports, and identify trends.
- To help reduce the risk of workplace injuries and illnesses by providing recommendations to
the university's safety manager. - To help promote health and safety as an integral part of the organization's culture.
- To make health and safety findings available to employees as appropriate.
- To provide an opportunity for discussion of health and safety problems and possible solutions.
Committee Composition
| Members | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Academic safety | Hazardous & Academic Safety Manager/designee | One position | Appointed |
| At large | Areas not already represented | Four positions | Elected |
| Athletics | Assistant Athletics Director/designee | One position | Appointed |
| Career services | Director of Career Services/designee | One position | Appointed |
| Facilities services | One custodian, one grounds and one trades employee |
Three positions |
Elected |
| Finance & administration | Human Resource Services/designee Safety Manager |
One position | Appointed |
| Ad Hoc Members | ||
|---|---|---|
| Security | Security officer | One position |
| Finance & administration | Vice president, finance & administration | One position |
Safety Committee Functions
Chairperson
- Facilitate safety committee meetings
- Arrange meeting locations in collaboration with the safety manager
- Schedule meeting times in collaboration with the committee members
- Notify members of the monthly meetings
- Prepare and distribute meeting agendas in collaboration with the safety manager
- Responsible for coordinating yearly elections for the committee in collaboration with the
safety manager
Safety Manager
- Attend committee meetings
- Advise the chairperson to ensure the purpose and responsibilities of the committee are met
- Advise the chairperson regarding required agenda items
- Take into consideration input provided by the committee
- Review previous minutes and materials to ensure their compliance with WAC 296-800
Chair-Elect
- Attend committee meetings
- Facilitate committee meetings in the chairperson's absence
- Assist the chairperson with their responsibilities when necessary
- Produce and distribute meeting minutes that are compliant with WAC 296-800
- Serve as chairperson in the second year of regular term
Members
- Attend committee meetings
- Review incident and near-miss data, and provide recommendations for injury prevention
- Contribute ideas and suggestions for the improvement of occupational and environmental safety
- Bring health and safety concerns to the committee
- Work safely and lead by example, thereby encouraging others to work safely
Ad Hoc Members
- Ad hoc members will be identified by the safety manager on an as-needed basis to fill specific needs that are generally infrequent or irregular in nature.
- Ad hoc members may participate in committee meetings and deliberations but do not have a formal vote on the committee.
Committee Member Requirements
- Employees will serve a one-year term (or will fill a vacant one-year term in the process).
- Must represent the Whitworth community.
- Employees selected must be assigned to a regular position, employed for one year or more,
and must be employed at least 12 months during the year. - Employees selected must have their supervisor's understanding of the time commitment
required.
Elections & Service Requirements
Nominations for the campus safety committee will be gathered every year in the fall. Elections will
be held in November and new members will begin their term in January of the following year.
Elected members will serve one year terms and those who wish to serve additional terms may
volunteer for re-election. Elected members may serve a maximum two consecutive terms and may
be re-elected after rotating off for at least one term.
The chair-elect position will be elected by a majority vote of the committee members. Employees
selected to serve as the chair-elect and committee chair will automatically serve a combined
length of two years.
Committee Guidelines
- The campus safety committee will convene at least once a month
- All committee members are required to be in attendance
- Members must notify the committee chairperson or safety manager in advance if they will be unable to attend.
- Committee members may have an alternate attend the meeting if approved by the chairperson or safety manager.
- In compliance with state requirements, unexcused absences may result in a member being replaced on the committee.
- Appointed positions may not outnumber elected representatives during a committee meeting.
Extent of Authority
The campus safety committee is advisory only. The committee is responsible for making recommendations to Whitworth's safety manager and Whitworth's administration.