West Virginia University Extension Safety and Health has been a leader in providing professional continuing education courses to help students advance in the safety and health industry. WVU Extension Safety and Health serves as the lead organization in the National Resource Center, an OSHA Training Institute Education Center, one of 27 in the United States.
WVU Extension Safety and Health offers many educational courses and two certificate programs, Certified Safety Trainer and Certified Safety Specialist. These programs can help improve the work of new and seasoned employees in the industry. This holds true for three recent graduates who all advanced in their career after completing a certificate program with WVU Extension Safety and Health.
Carl Graybeal, a recent graduate of the Certified Safety Specialist and Trainer program, had been working in the industry for many years prior to completing the program. After graduation, his current employer encouraged him to apply for a safety position that he ultimately attained. Today, Graybeal is the onsite safety specialist at Tier 1 Utility Designs in Washington, D.C. and credits the program with much of his success.
“This program opened my eyes to things that we do every day on the job site that you often do not put thought into,” Graybeal said. “The program really helped me, and I developed knowledge on where I will be able to keep myself and those around me safe at work.”
Of the courses he completed, Graybeal states that the fall protection course was one of his favorites. Not only did he enjoy the class, but he asserts that the knowledge gained has proven useful in his daily work—especially when he is assigned jobs that are over 150 feet in the air.
“This program gave me the confidence to apply for my current job,” Graybeal said. “I would not have interviewed for my job if I had not taken these courses.”
Ryan Rohrbaugh has a similar story; he credits the Certified Safety Specialist program for helping him advance in his career. Having this certification was a driving factor to getting his current job. Today, Rohrbaugh works as an environmental health and safety specialist manager at Coldwell Banker Richard Ellis (CBRE) in Virginia.
“While taking courses, I started to increase my knowledge around environmental health and safety,” Rohrbaugh said. “I got the job at CBRE because of the background I had by completing this certificate program. There is a lot of value in taking these courses, I would recommend others to enroll in the courses.”
Each course shed a lot of light on OSHA regulations and the instructors were always very helpful and willing to answer questions, explained Rohrbaugh.
“In the workplace safety must be number one because people are a company's greatest asset and keeping them safe means the workplace is going to be productive and morale is going to be good,” Rohrbaugh said.
Rohrbaugh has taken courses for three years to complete the Certified Safety Specialist certifications in general industry and construction. In the future, he is hoping to complete the Certified Safety Trainer program.
Tim Sparks, another graduate of the Certified Safety Specialist and Trainer program, works on solar panels at DEPCOM Power. Sparks has been working in the industry for 15 years and has been taking courses at WVU Extension Safety and Health for several years. He credits these courses with helping him be secure in his job and feel confident in the work he does.
“The program helped my career because now whenever I see a problem, I can talk with people to fix it and take care of it,” Sparks said. “I think safety is the number one thing you can do in any job, you need to be able to do it safely, and this program helped me to do that.”
Sparks explained that there is value in the certificate program. Having recently finished the program, he already wants to start another certificate program to gain a certificate in a different industry.
“I want to start my own consulting business, and the more classes I have, the more they benefit me and help me feel confident,” Sparks explained. “The classes are great; the instructors are not afraid to help you, and I would recommend this program to everyone.”
“The mission of WVU Extension is to improve the lives and livelihoods of our communities,” said Tiffany Rice, director, NRC-WVU OSHA Training Institute Education Center. “Our WVU Safety and Health Extension team has a front row seat in seeing this impact play out in the lives of our students. Every success story told is an opportunity to share the good news of certificate programs and workforce development with West Virginians and beyond. We are so proud of our students' accomplishments.”
The Certified Safety Specialist program is just one of many types of workforce training available. WVU Extension Safety and Health offers trainings and programs to help individuals lead safe, prosperous lives – including more than 40 OSHA courses covering everything from basic workplace safety to specialized safety trainings, as well as health care continuing education opportunities through the Shirley M. Kimble Training Center.
“The most fulfilling aspect of my job is watching our students leave the program and succeed in the safety and health profession,” said Amanda Mason, assistant director, NRC-WVU OSHA Training Institute Education Center. “My hope is that all our students—past, current, and future—know that we, as a department, celebrate each of their accomplishments and look forward to any good news shared with us.”
To learn more about what WVU Extension Safety and Health offers, visit https://extension.wvu.edu/community-business-safety/safety-health.
If you want to learn about WVU Extension, visit extension.wvu.edu or follow @WVUExtension on Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and Instagram.
-WVU-
sd/09/19/24
CONTACT: Sophia Darmelio
Marketing Strategist
WVU Division for Land-Grant Engagement
304-293-9490; swd0003@mail.wvu.edu