Courtesy of Morgan State University
Morgan State University’s Office of Safety, Health and Environment (OSHE) was recognized with the Health and Safety Award of Excellence by the State Employee Risk Management Administration (SERMA). The award was presented at the annual SERMA Conference, held in Baltimore, Maryland, on May 23, 2024.
Upon accepting the award for his eight-member staff, Dwayne L. Jackson, associate director of OSHE, said, “Receiving this award sends a strong message to our employees that safety is not just a one-time occurrence but rather a change of mindset: continuing to be proactive in all we do in order to reduce the potential risk of injuries to our staff, faculty and students.”
Added Jackson, “It’s an honor to receive the Health and Safety Award of Excellence, but (we) could not have done so without a team effort, to include our Physical Plant Department, Facilities, Design and Construction Management, and Human Resources partnerships.”
Awarded annually, the Health and Safety Award of Excellence recognizes groups, teams or facilities whose ongoing efforts have resulted in positive changes in safety behaviors and/or culture within their organizations.
SERMA’s purpose is to prevent occupational accidents and injuries among State of Maryland employees and promote workplace health and safety, creating a safer and healthier work environment.
Jackson credits OSHE with taking great pride in ensuring compliance with local, state and federal guidelines. To that end, the primary focus of the Office is to routinely meet safety goals, complete required safety training and successfully implement safety practices across the entire campus.
Creating and maintaining a safe working environment that benefits everyone — employees, visitors and the public — are central to SERMA and Morgan’s OSHE staff. Safety and risk management programs can help avert injuries and illnesses, prevent property damage from occurring and ensure that fewer work hours or workdays are missed.
“We still have much to accomplish, but working with other departments, I am confident we are well on our way to establishing a comprehensive safety program that we can all be proud of,” Jackson said.
SERMA was established by an executive order of President George H.W. Bush, in 1989. The executive order specified that SERMA be based at the Injured Workers’ Insurance Fund (IWIF). The SERMA Committee created the Safety and Risk Management Awards Program to recognize employees and groups for working safely, promoting safety and encouraging safe work practices at all levels of employment at State of Maryland agencies.