It's been a week since the first message on Occupancy Load/Class Size. The responses have been interesting. I wanted to share some of what we've learn ed. First A Reminder ... The research shows that as the number of students in a science laboratory increases, the frequency and severity of accidents increase. "LSI is gearin g up to do something constructive about this issue.=A0 What suggestions do you ha ve for a best course of action?" How would you like to help? What Did We Learn So Far ... 1. Many share the Laboratory Safety Institute's (LSI) concern about this issue. This includes LSI's Board of Director which met and discussed approa ches on Friday. 2. We received several constructive suggestions and they will be pursued further. Some felt having the directory of regulations and contact would be helpful. Some volunteered to be the point of contact in their state to gath er more information. Would you like to help with your state? 3. According to the NFPA Life Safety Code Handbook (2003), it was not NFPA's intention that it's occupancy load numbers be used to limit the number of students in classes. We'll be having direct conversation with NFPA and othe r agencies to discuss this and other applications of their numbers. 4. Different State, local, and private agencies use and interpret occupancy load/class size numbers differently. We need to continue identifying agenci es, positions, policies, and having discussions. 5. Several felt that it was important to teach the teacher how to conduct safer labs. LSI agrees and offers more than 50 one-day, two-day, and 24-hou r lab safety training programs each year. Visit the training page of our webs ite for the dates, locations, cost, and program outlines. ... www.labsafety.org LSI also provides on-site inservice programs for school and post-secondary science departments. The Next Steps ... To paraphrase one national figure: The problem is not going to go away and LSI is not going to go away. We have begun revising our publication, "There 's No Safety In Numbers: Class Size and Lab Accidents." We want to update the state regulations, contact information, association standards, and good idea s. What successes have you had in reducing the occupancy load/class size (student to teacher ratio)? We would like to include "What Works" in the ne xt edition of the report and here in our updates on the discussion lists. We continue to welcome your suggestions. ... Jim ************************************ James A. Kaufman, Ph.D. President/CEO The Laboratory Safety Institute Safety in Science and Science Education 192 Worcester Road, Natick, MA 01760 508-647-1900 Fax: 508-647-0062 Cell: 508-574-6264 Email: jimkaufman**At_Symbol_Here**labsafety.org Web Site: http://www.labsafety.org *************************************
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