Date: Fri, 6 Jul 2007 10:03:40 -0400
Reply-To: Ralph Stuart <rstuart**At_Symbol_Here**UVM.EDU>
Sender: DCHAS-L Discussion List <DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**LIST.UVM.EDU>
From: Ralph Stuart <rstuart**At_Symbol_Here**UVM.EDU>
Subject: CHAS Election background information

Here is the biographical information for the candidates for CHAS  
office and pro and con statements on the question.

Question on CHAS CHAIR TERM IN OFFICE

Shall the length of term for the Chair of the Division of Chemical  
Health and Safety be changed from one year to two years?

Statement in support of a two-year term:
CHAS is a service-oriented organization whose mission touches on  
every area of chemistry. Governance of the division is provided by  
volunteers who learn their duties on the job. The position of Chair  
provides leadership and enthusiasm for all of those who offer their  
time and expertise to CHAS. Learning to do the job of Chair requires  
a full year. Those who have offered their time to this job recognize  
that accomplishing change and moving the Division forward requires  
both knowing how to do the job and having sufficient time to effect  
change. One year as Chair, that is, two National Meetings, is not  
sufficient to do this. Allowing the Chair to serve for two years will  
provide the time for the Chair to design, implement and move forward  
their agenda for CHAS. This will help make CHAS more dynamic and move  
the Division forward in its quest for recognition as a premier leader  
in chemical safety on a national and international level.

- Neal Langerman

Statement Against Changing Terms of CHAS Chair-Elect, Chair, and Past  
Chair to 2 Years Each:

The Executive Committee of the ACS Division of Chemical Health and  
Safety (CHAS) has discussed changing the term of office for the Chair- 
Elect, Chair, and Past-Chair to two years. The major idea in favor of  
such an extension of terms is that people who have served as Chair  
often feel that their term is over before they are able to implement  
many changes or effective actions.

The Division has had some difficulty recruiting candidates for all of  
its executive positions, and the most difficulty has been with the  
ChairElect and Chair positions. The Chair-Elect becomes the Chair  
during the following year and the Past Chair after that, so election  
to Chair- Elect is really a three-year commitment already. Most of  
the active Executive Committee members have already served as  
division chair. There seems to be a view among some members that if  
we only have to find a candidate once every two years, it will  
somehow be easier to find a candidate. Under the proposed extension  
of terms for Chair-Elect, Chair, and Past Chair, we would be asking  
for a total commitment of six years on the Executive Committee. In  
addition to being a large commitment on the part of the individual, a  
six-year commitment will be difficult to obtain from some employers.  
Industrial employees will find it extremely difficult to gain  
approval (with the associated implied agreement to allow the employee  
to attend both ACS National Meetings each year) for such an extensive  
commitment. The extended term does not seem to be such an employer- 
based barrier for academic chemists and those chemists serving as  
independent consultants.

There are alternative strategies to address the Chair’s sense that  
his/her term is going by too quickly to effect any change or  
meaningful action. First, a newly elected Chair-Elect can begin some  
initiatives and programs during the Chair-Elect year and continue  
those initiatives during the year as Chair and then continuing, if  
necessary, during the year as Past Chair. An example of this approach  
was Russ Phifer’s drive to have CHAS win a ChemLuminary Award. He  
started this before his year as Chair, and CHAS won the award during  
his term as Chair-Elect.

Part of the frustration felt by some past Chairs deals with the fact  
that there are only two occasions when the Chair meets face-to-face  
with the Executive Committee (i.e., at the two national meetings). If  
some initiative is introduced at the Spring EC meeting, the Chair has  
to wait until the Fall meeting to see if everyone has carried out  
their agreed tasks. If not, then the Chair is discouraged because his/ 
her term will be finished before the next national meeting. However,  
a new strategy has been employed during 2006 and 2007 that has helped  
avoid this situation. Jim Kapin, 2006 Chair, instituted a monthly  
teleconference call among Executive Committee members; Barbara  
Foster, 2007 Chair, has continued the practice. These monthly calls  
allow the EC to follow up on projects and monitor progress more  
closely. Projects no longer need to wait for national meetings for  
progress reports or completion of intermediate actions.

Because of the potential difficulty in finding candidates willing to  
commit to a six-year term of (three) offices, and in light of the  
alternative strategies discussed above for carrying out new programs  
or changes in our operation, I oppose the proposal to increase the  
terms of Chair-Elect, Chair, and Past Chair to two years.

Ken Fivizzani
5/8/07

Information about the Candidate for 2007 Chair-elect and 2008 chair

Erik Talley currently serves as the Director of Environmental Health  
and Safety at Weill Medical College of Cornell University. Erik is  
the 1998 recipient of the CHAS Tillmanns-Skolnick Award and past  
Treasurer of CHAS. He is also a member of the ACS Committee on  
Chemical Safety. One of Erik's priorities as chair would be finding  
ways to bring new and emerging chemical health and safety information  
directly to the membership, including the use of video conferencing  
and other technologies. He is interested in ideas for other  
priorities and can be reached at ert2002**At_Symbol_Here**med.cornell.edu or  
212-746-6201.

Information about the Candidate for 2008 Chair-elect and 2009 chair

Russ Phifer is President of WC Environmental, LLC in West Chester,  
Pennsylvania, an environmental health & safety consulting firm. He  
has been an active member of the Division of Chemical Health & Safety  
since 1982.

Mr. Phifer has held a variety of positions for the Division ,  
including Chair (2005), Secretary (2002-2004), Councilor (1993-1996),  
Alternate Councilor (1997-1999) and Chair of the Workshops Committee  
(1996-2000; 2006 - present). Other positions within ACS include  
membership on the Committee on Chemical Safety (1998-present),  
Committee on Environmental Improvement (1995- 1998), and the ACS Task  
Force on Laboratory Environment, Health & Safety (1982-present; Chair  
from 1986-1994; 2003). He is a CHAS Fellow, and was honored as the  
Tillmanns-Skolnick Award winner in 2005.

He lives in West Grove, Pennsylvania with his wife, Molly and five  
children, along with pets too numerous to mention.

Candidates for Members at Large of the CHAS Executive Committee

Dr. Patrick A. Ceas is Chemical Hygiene Officer at St. Olaf College  
in Northfield, Minnesota

Ken Fivizzani
Nalco Company; Ph.D., University of Wisconsin-Madison; B.S.,
M.S., Loyola University Chicago.
Division of Chemical Health and Safety 91-07: Member-at-Large 02-07;  
Chair-Elect/Chair/Past Chair 99-01; Program Co-Chair 96-99;
Journal of Chemical Health & Safety Board of Editors 00-07, Co-author  
of The Last Word column 02-07.
Awards: CHAS Fellow 04.
ACS Committee on Chemical Safety: Member 02-07, Chair 02-04,  
Associate Member 01.
ACS Chicago Section: Chair-Elect/Chair 06/07; Environmental & Lab  
Safety Co-chair 06-07; IL State Fair 06; Nominations 03, 05-06.

Candidates for ACS Councilor

George Wahl has served as Division Chair, Program Chair (he  
instituted the successful Program Lunch at National Meetings), and  
Councilor. With Russ Phifer and Jim Kaufmann he developed and  
continues to present the very successful Workshop - "How to Be a More  
Effective CHO". He has hosted a well received Teaching Safety  
Symposium at National Meetings for the past several years. As he  
nears full retirement from University Teaching, he would like to  
increase his commitment to the Division by serving again as your  
Councilor.

Laurence James Doemeny, Ph.D.
San Diego, California
EMPLOYMENT: Commissioned Officer in the United States Public Health  
Service (USPHS)
Assigned to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National  
Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Cincinnati, Ohio.
Rank: Captain (Navy Equivalent) Retired, 12/2003.
EDUCATION: Ph.D., Physical Chemistry, 1970, University of California,  
Santa Barbara, California

PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES:
ACS AND DIVISION SERVICE:
- American Chemical Society, Board of Directors Committee on Chemical  
Safety, 2003 - present.
- Long-Range Planning Committee, Division of Chemical Health and  
Safety, American Chemical Society, 1998 - present.
- Member, Joint Board of Directors-Council Committee on Chemistry and  
Public Affairs, American Chemical Society, 1985, reappointed  
1986-1988 (subcommittees: Science, OSHA, and Regulations).
- Chairman, Division of Chemical Health and Safety (elected),  
American Chemical Society (1981), and Chairman, Planning Committee.
- Councilor; American Chemical Society, Division of Chemical Health  
and Safety, 1984 to 1987 (elected)
DIVISION SERVICE:
- Drafted revised Division Bylaws that were approved by the  
membership. Arranged for the Division Strategic Planning Conference  
in 2007 and continues to champion the effort with the help of several  
members.

PAPERS AND PUBLICATIONS: Published extensively on health and safety  
relating to chemical, particulate, and EMF exposure.

STATEMENT:
If elected chair I will continue to serve and carry out my activities  
as the Long-Range Planning Chair and complete the Strategic Planning  
Project. I will make every effort to champion health and safety to  
the Council and carry out the wishes of the Executive Committee.

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