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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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