2024 NIOSH Science and Service Awards

Exemplary science is the foundation for all National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) research and prevention activities. Each year, NIOSH recognizes outstanding science and service from our employees. This year’s Science and Service Awards took place on April 25, 2024. The awards booklet contains the finalists, awardees, and honorable mentions as well as information on the occupational safety and health pioneers whom many of the awards are named after. The winners in each category and a brief description of their work are included below.

James P. Keogh Award for Outstanding Service in Occupational Safety and Health

This award recognizes a current or former NIOSH employee for exceptional service in the field of occupational safety and health.

Thais Morata, PhD, is a Senior Research Audiologist in the NIOSH Division of Field Studies and Engineering and a world-renowned expert in occupational hearing loss. Dr. Morata was the first to demonstrate that combined exposure to noise and solvents could produce a synergistic effect. This and other ground-breaking work led to changes not only in NIOSH policies and priorities, but also affected national and international occupational safety and health policies.

Dr. Morata is a prolific scientist holding many leadership positions and serving as a Founding Associate Editor for the International Journal of Audiology and Founding Editorial Board Member for the prestigious Cochrane Systematic Reviews on Occupational Safety and Health. She is also responsible for creating the Safe-in-Sound Excellence in Hearing Loss Prevention Award Program.  Her forward-thinking vision led to many collaborations with Wikipedia, Wikimedia, and the Wiki Education Foundation to train students and expand the reach of safety and health information and working towards one of her goals to provide NIOSH resources in multiple languages to reach a larger global audience.

Read more about Dr. Morata’s accomplishments in the 2024 awards booklet.

Alice Hamilton Award for Occupational Safety and Health

This award recognizes the scientific excellence of NIOSH technical and instructional materials. Categories include Behavioral and Social Science, Communication and Guidance, Engineering and Control, Epidemiology and Surveillance, Exposure and Risk Assessment, Methods and Laboratory Science, and Research Service. The annual award honors Dr. Alice Hamilton (1869– 1970), a pioneering researcher and occupational physician. Read more about the award winners, honorable mentions, finalists, and Alice Hamilton in the 2024 Awards Booklet.

Behavioral and Social Science Awardee

Hope M. Tiesman, Scott A. Hendricks, Douglas M. Wiegand, Barbara Lopes-Cardozo, Carol Y. Rao, Libby Horter, Charles E. Rose, and Ramona Byrkit

Workplace Violence and the Mental Health of Public Health Workers During COVID-19 is the first to document the prevalence and impact of violence directed towards the public health workforce during an ongoing public health emergency. The findings revealed that nearly 1 out of 3 public health workers experienced workplace violence increasing the impact on their mental health.

Communication and Guidance Awardee

Eric J. Esswein, David Caruso, Kyla Hagan-Haynes, John E. Snawder, Laura Styles, Robert Harrison, Jordon Plotsky, and Jeff Knight 

The video, You’ve Got This: Understanding Hazards, Risks, and Controls for Safer Fluid Transfers in Oil and Gas Extraction, addresses a critical need in the oil and gas extraction industry for increased awareness about how to safely transfer all fluids from tanks to tanker trucks, and how workers can protect themselves from exposures when doing so.

Engineering and Control Awardee

Drew Thompson and Chaolong Qi

Characterization of the Emissions and Crystalline Silica Content of Airborne Dust Generated from Grinding Natural and Engineered Stones used a standard measurement method to characterize dust generation rates during grinding of engineered and natural stone products in a laboratory testing system.

Epidemiology and Surveillance Awardee

Alysha R. Meyers, Steven J. Wurzelbacher, Edward F. Krieg, Jessica G. Ramsey, Kenneth Crombie, Annette L. Christianson, Lian Luo, and Susan Burt  

Work-Related Risk Factors for Rotator Cuff Syndrome in a Prospective Study of Manufacturing and Healthcare Workers highlights the importance of assessing combinations of exposure to forceful repetition and upper arm elevation when developing interventions for preventing rotator cuff syndrome.

Exposure & Risk Assessment Awardee

David B. Richardson, Klervi Leuraud, Dominique Laurier, Michael Gillies, Richard Haylock, Kaitlin Kelly-Reif, Stephen Bertke, Robert D. Daniels, Isabelle Thierry-Chef, Monika Moissonnier, Ausrele Kesminiene, and Mary K. Schubauer-Berigan 

Cancer mortality after low dose exposure to ionizing radiation in workers in France, the United Kingdom, and the United States (INWORKS): cohort study reports that workers in nuclear facilities who are persistently exposed to low doses of ionizing radiation experience an increase in deaths due to cancer.

Methods & Laboratory Science Awardee

Cornelius Rimayi and Ju-Hyenong Park

Adjustment of Matrix Effects in Analysis of 36 Secondary Metabolites of Microbial and Plant Origin in Indoor Floor Dust Using Liquid Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry documents a method to accurately estimate the concentration of microbial secondary metabolites, which are biochemical products of indoor mold and bacteria, in damp indoor environments.

Research Service Category Awardee

Jessica F. Li, Dallas S. Shi, Dylan T. Neu, Sophia Chiu, and Melissa Charles 

In the Health Hazard Evaluation, Evaluation of Occupational Exposures to Illicit Drugs in Forensic Laboratories, investigators found detectable levels of methamphetamine, cocaine, fentanyl, and heroin on surfaces of a toxicology lab and provided recommendations to improve the safety and health of the workplace.

Bullard-Sherwood Research to Practice

This award recognizes outstanding efforts by NIOSH scientists and their partners in applying occupational safety and health research to prevent work-related injury, illness, and death. It highlights efforts that demonstrate noteworthy impact through partnerships. The award is named in honor of two distinguished inventors who made significant improvements in workplace injury and illness prevention. Edward W. Bullard designed the first “hard hat” as protective headgear for miners. R. Jeremy (Jerry) Sherwood merged research and industrial hygiene by inventing the first practical personal sampling pump in the late 1950s. Read more about this year’s winner and the inventors who inspired the award in the awards booklet.

The Bullard Sherwood Knowledge Award is given for research resulting in the development and transfer of new knowledge into practice.

Gavin P. Horn, Kenneth W. Fent, Steve Kerber, Dennis L. Smith, Alex Mayer, Angela Bennett, Leeanne Poist, Doug Mansen, and Peter Couste

An article and a free online training course were developed to help communicate the importance of exposure controls, policies, and procedures to protect firefighters from carcinogens.

Plain Language Awardees

The Plain Writing Act of 2010 requires that federal agencies provide clear communication that the public can understand and use. NIOSH encourages plain language in all communication products. Awards are given in two categories: Before and After and Original products.

Before and After Category Awardee

Asha Brogan, Amy Mobley, Jennifer Tyrawski, David Byrne, Wei Gong, Pamela Graydon, Elizabeth Masterson, Thais Morata, Christi Themann, and Ed Zechmann

The reorganized and rewritten topic page Noise and Occupational Hearing Loss makes it easier for users to navigate and understand. The revised topic page now serves as a one-stop-shop for workers, employers, public health professionals, and researchers.

Original Category Awardee

James Couch, Jessica Rinsky, Reed Grimes, Krystin Carlson, Laura Reynolds, ​Garrett Burnett, Rebecca Tsai, and Susan Afanuh

The infographic fact sheet Leave Lead at Work highlights the importance of take-home lead, defines the problem, conveys the health effects, and walks workers through steps to reduce potential lead exposures outside of work.

Service Excellence Awardees

These awards focus on both the management and operations side of the Institute and recognize NIOSH staff who provide excellent administrative and managerial support to the Institute’s mission and projects.

Excellence in Administration

Peter Grandillo, Office of Extramural Coordination and Special Projects, for his proactive and continuous improvement approach which has led to the development of sustainable systems and tools that contribute to efficient and effective grant administration.

Excellence in Leadership

Susan Moore, PhD, National Personal Protective Technology Laboratory, for proactively addressing challenges faced by NPPTL staff including the development of a guidance document and standard operating procedures to reduce the workload of NPPTL staff.

Aaron Reeder, National Personal Protective Technology Laboratory, for his exceptional leadership to help ensure NPPTL remains a world leader and innovator in respirator testing.

Dan Farwick, Division of Field Studies and Engineering, for his innovative use of technology resulting in an accelerated pace of research and significant government savings.

Excellence in Workforce Development

The NPPTL Workplace Satisfaction Committee’s Workforce Development Team for the development and execution of a multifaceted plan to assist employees in maximizing their workforce development and increasing workplace morale.

Team members: Christian Coby, Maryann D’Alessandro, Patrick Dempsey, Mihili Edirisooriya, Barbara Ginsburg, Lacy Hannon, Colleen Miller, Frank Palya, Jeff Peterson, Jonisha Pollard, Heather Reed, Adam Smith, Jonathan Szalajda, Brooke Vollmer, Justin Wehring, and Dawn Zubasic.

Excellence in Workforce Diversity

 The NPPTL Recruitment Excellence and Diversity Team: Susan Moore, Nora Payne, and Hom Sharma for the development of an NPPTL Candidate Recruitment and Selection standard operating procedure to help achieve a diverse workforce.

Director’s Intramural Award for Extraordinary Science Awardees

The Director’s Intramural Awards for Extraordinary Science recognize outstanding contributions to scientific excellence at NIOSH by scientists and support staff.

Emily Haas, PhD, received the Lew Wade Distinguished Career Scientist Award for her work in merging engineering and behavioral research to reduce worker risks.  She has led efforts to conduct safety climate assessments in hazardous workplaces; tailor leadership, communication, and engagement practices using a workplace health safety management system; integrate personal protective technology to minimize exposure; and coordinate high-visibility surveillance efforts.

Jennie Cox, PhD, received the Early Career Scientist Award for her work generating and obtaining funding for a new line of research into illicit drug exposures, publishing a collaborative review on the evaluation of SARS-CoV-2 sampling methods, and promoting diversity and inclusiveness within and outside of NIOSH.

Donnie Booher received the Scientific Support Award for his technical expertise and support of the Health Hazard Evaluation program as a Biomedical Engineering Technician for over 30 years. His highly sought after expertise ranges from how to procure the right PPE to the most technical details of putting a direct-reading instrument into a hostile environment. The countless HHE staff and NIOSH first responders are truly grateful for his contributions and support.

Congratulations to the NIOSH researchers and staff on their important work to protect America’s workforce!

The winners described here are only the tip of the iceberg. The awards booklet contains the honorable mentions and finalists in each category which further demonstrates the breadth of the Institute’s research. For more examples of NIOSH research see our website, e-News, blog, and social media accounts.

John Howard, MD, NIOSH Director

Marie de Perio, MD, MPH, Associate Director for Science

Kelley A. Durst, MPA, Deputy Director for Management

Christina Spring, MA, Associate Director, Communication and Research to Practice