# Occupational Safety and Health Training Project Grant in Industrial Hygiene

> **NIH ALLCDC T03** · UNIVERSITY OF NORTH ALABAMA · 2024 · $50,000

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
 The University of North Alabama (UNA) Occupational Health Science (OHS) Program (formerly called
Industrial Hygiene) is one of four baccalaureate programs in the United States accredited by the Applied and
Natural Science Accreditation Commission (ANSAC) of ABET. The program, which requires a major in OHS
and chemistry minor, has earned a reputation for graduating a pool of qualified industrial hygienists who
provide valuable services to workers and employers in this geographical region and beyond. Enrollment in the
program remains sufficient, necessitating consistent offerings of OHS courses and yielding viable graduation
outputs. The continuation of the NIOSH Training Project Grant (TPG) is essential to remain effective in
recruiting and retaining students with good scholastic merits, to maintain the current expectations of academic
quality, and to expand into new and promising foreseeable opportunities. The objectives of this proposal for the
continuation of the NIOSH-TPG are threefold: (i) to promote and further the recruitment of qualified students in
the OHS field; (ii) to support and strengthen continuous academic improvement; and (iii) to expand and
develop the educational opportunities and services of the OHS Program.
 Recruitment will be promoted by academic scholarships (NIOSH TPG and departmental) and strategic
recruitment and retention efforts involving on-campus events to promote retention of current majors and target
undecided majors; off-campus events focused on area high schools identified as feeder schools and schools
with underrepresented populations; and an enhanced social media campaign utilizing custom made videos
highlighting the OHS major. Continuous improvement will be approached by periodic evaluations of
educational objectives, annual evaluations of student outcomes, and timely correction of shortcomings.
Expanded educational opportunities will include an initiative to develop international collaborations for this
degree program and an evaluation of the potential and opportunity to add a related master’s program.
 The NIOSH TPG has been pivotal in supporting this baccalaureate program in OHS housed at a regional
university. From dismal enrollment figures that threatened its viability, the UNA OHS program blossomed into a
successful academic program that is often highlighted as exemplary by UNA administrators and noticed by
stakeholders as an effective contributor to the advancement of OHS. The discontinuation of this grant may
certainly halt the continuous path of success and affect our ability to recruit students, particularly those
academically gifted students whom we have seen populating our program over the years.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10854706
- **Project number:** 5T03OH008624-20
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF NORTH ALABAMA
- **Principal Investigator:** Leshan J Kimbrough
- **Activity code:** T03 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** ALLCDC
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $50,000
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2022-07-01 → 2027-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10854706

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10854706, Occupational Safety and Health Training Project Grant in Industrial Hygiene (5T03OH008624-20). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-26 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10854706. Licensed CC0.

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