WASHINGTON, D.C. – The National Safety Council is proud to announce its 14th class of Rising Stars of Safety – a group of leaders younger than 40 dedicated to making workplaces safer. The 36 honorees for 2023 have promoted continuous safety improvement within their organizations and created initiatives focused on measurable outcomes to provide workforces safe environments.
“These 36 safety leaders, representing eight countries and a wide range of industries, are truly the best and brightest in safety,” said Lorraine Martin, president and CEO of the National Safety Council. “Through innovation, collaboration and communication, they have helped create safer workplaces and enabled people to live their fullest lives – both on and off the job. Though we know these leaders did not choose their profession for the accolades, they deserve our celebration and recognition.”
The Rising Stars of Safety Award is sponsored by The Dow Chemical Company. The class of 2023 honorees are listed below and featured in the October issue of Safety+Health magazine:
● Fahed Ahmed AlAwadhi, Director, Sewerage and Recycled Water Projects Department, Dubai Municipality
● Mohamed AlMarzooqi, Head of Accident Investigation Team, Health and Safety Dept., Dubai Municipality
● Ali Ayub, Process Safety Engineer, Vantage Specialty Chemicals
● Srikanth Bangaru, Director of Construction Technology, Inncircles Technologies Inc.
● Mark Brogan, EHS Manager, APAC, Netflix Inc.
● Cory Buchanan, Occupational Health and Safety Specialist, Boeing
● Natalie Centeno, Athletic Trainer, Pivot Onsite Innovations
● Austin Clary, Safety Engineer, Jacobs
● Sean Davis, Industrial Hygienist, North Carolina State University
● Raffi F. Elchemmas, Executive Director, Safety, Health, and Risk Management, Mechanical Contractors Association of America
● Paul Ferrara, EHS Leader, Owens Corning
● Raven Foster, Biosafety Officer, Houston Health Department
● Ali Raza Ghori, Deputy Manager HSE, Sindh Engro Coal Mining Co.
● Taylor Goyke, Division Safety Manager, Clark Construction
● Ryan Gunther, Regional HSE Manager, Ampirical Solutions
● Corey Hayes, Safety Director, Alberici Constructors
● Ryan Holsopple, SH&E Specialist, Nutrien
● Carissa Imrecke, Hospital Quality Manager, Memorial Hermann Health System – Sugarland Hospital
● Delaney Jaworski, Senior WHS RME Lead, GDS/ATS, Amazon
● Samuel Lilly, Senior Safety Manager, Rosendin
● Rachel Michaud, Occupational Safety & Health Specialist, The Boeing Co.
● Thomas Mihalic, EHS&S Consultant, Corteva Agriscience
● Amy Mika, Manager – Safety, Health & Environment, Ecolab
● Tech. Sgt. Jalleshia Miller, Occupational Safety Technician, U.S. Air Force
● Katie Mulligan, Research Scientist/Reactive Chemicals Subject Matter Expert, The Dow Chemical Co.
● Angelica Nava-Gutierrez, Regional EHS Manager, Cardinal Health
● Chuma Nnaji, Assistant Professor, Texas A&M University
● Mansoor Poozhithodi, Senior HSE Engineer, Kent PLC
● Jordan Roberts, Senior Safety Engineer, Cummins
● Courtney Smith, Occupational Safety and Industrial Hygiene Program Manager, Central Plateau Cleanup Co.
● Jamie Sydykova, Safety Specialist, City of Rockville
● Adam Tallman, Occupational Safety Non-Commissioned Officer In Charge, U.S. Air Force
● Carlos Umana, Regional EHS Manager, Swire Coca-Cola
● Robert Vannice, Senior Industrial Hygienist, Amazon
● Nathaniel Winkelmann, Corporate Safety Director, Hartung Glass Industries
● Denny Yu, Associate Professor, Purdue University
The class of 2023 honorees will be recognized at the National Awards Celebration on Tuesday, Oct. 24 in New Orleans. The event takes place in conjunction with the 2023 NSC Safety Congress & Expo, the nation’s largest gathering of safety and health professionals. For more information, please visit congress.nsc.org.
About the National Safety Council
The National Safety Council is America’s leading nonprofit safety advocate – and has been for nearly 110 years. As a mission-based organization, we work to eliminate the leading causes of preventable death and injury, focusing our efforts on the workplace, roadway and impairment. We create a culture of safety to not only keep people safer at work, but also beyond the workplace so they can live their fullest lives.
