# The Environmental Health Science Program at Western Kentucky University

> **NIH ALLCDC T03** · WESTERN KENTUCKY UNIVERSITY · 2021 · $199,314

## Abstract

Project Summary
The Environmental Health Science (EHS) degree program at Western Kentucky University (WKU) is a
comprehensive program built upon education and training in basic and applied sciences. The overall
educational objective is to provide students the opportunity to develop a comprehensive understanding of the
chemical, biological, physical and social factors or stressors in the occupational and natural environments that
impact public health. Because of the interdisciplinary nature of the program, the core EHS faculty collaborate
on research within the program and with other academic disciplines, departments and programs both within the
institution and externally. A core component of the program is engagement of faculty and students in research
and/or practice experiences with an environmental and occupational health science focus.
The courses offered are designed to meet the general requirements for evaluating workplace and
environmental hazards by anticipating, recognizing, evaluating, and controlling stressors or factors that may
affect the health, comfort or productivity of workers and the general public. This program responds to needs
identified by our advisory committee members, area industries, consultants, and administrators, and is
consistent with the existing inventory of classroom courses and laboratory courses offered at WKU. The
success of graduates employed as occupational safety and health specialists, environmental health and safety
specialists, industrial hygienists, and in closely related fields has established the credibility of the institution to
offer this curriculum.
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Training Project Grant (TPG) at WKU has
specific objectives to enhance occupational safety and health, and related training through the EHS degree
program. Primary long-term objectives are to support recruitment of students, provide training and
professional development opportunities, advance the environmental and occupational health science field in
Kentucky and beyond, and enhance the diversity of students in the program.
Specifically, the program will provide stipends in the form of tuition scholarships to train six (6) students, or
more, each project annum for the 5 year project period. Training though the EHS curriculum will allow students
in the TPG to graduate with an environmental and occupational health degree. A broad goal of the TPG is to
attract and retain minority students. The EHS program has seen an increase in minority student enrollments,
both African American and Hispanic students; however, the relative percentage of minority students in the
program is low. The administrators of WKU’s TPG believe that it is important to continue to be diligent and
innovative in expanding opportunities for minorities to enter the EHS field. NIOSH TPG sponsorship of the
WKU EHS Program will ensure opportunities and training that will promote expertise in the EHS field for the
people of Kent...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10246154
- **Project number:** 5T03OH010637-08
- **Recipient organization:** WESTERN KENTUCKY UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Ritchie Don Taylor
- **Activity code:** T03 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** ALLCDC
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $199,314
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2017-07-01 → 2022-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10246154

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10246154, The Environmental Health Science Program at Western Kentucky University (5T03OH010637-08). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10246154. Licensed CC0.

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