John A. Principe III

John A. Principe III, Denison University Director of Environmental Health & Safety, recently received the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) Region VII Safety Professional of the Year (SPY) Award. Region VII represents ASSE chapters in Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, Tennessee, West Virginia, as well as Nigeria.

The Region SPY awards, voted on by peers, are given annually to the most outstanding safety professionals for contributions to service and leadership within their regions and chapters for “making a difference.” There are eight ASSE regions, each containing 15 to 20 chapters. ASSE members volunteer their time to assist their chapters in promoting work safety and the safety, health and environmental profession.

As an active professional member of ASSE, Principe is a Central Ohio Chapter past president and has served on the chapter executive committee for seven years. He is a program chair, public relations chair and the chapter webmaster. He also is a delegate to the ASSE Council on Member & Region Affairs (CoMRA), where he serves on the leadership conference committee. In addition, he is a member of the ASSE Fire Protection Practice Specialty, and in 2008-09, Principe served on the ASSE Region VII nominations committee.v

Principe has served for 16 years as a volunteer firefighter and paramedic. He also volunteers as an American Red Cross Disaster Shelter volunteer and has been a member of the Boy Scouts of America for more than 13 years, receiving the rank of Eagle Scout. While serving as president of the Licking County Safety Council, he coordinated efforts with the ASSE Central Ohio Chapter and the Licking County Safety Council to establish a special meeting to raise awareness of North American Occupational Safety & Health (NAOSH) Week in May 2006. Principe is the college & university committee chair for the Ohio Safety Congress & Expo and was recently honored by Cambridge’s Who’s Who as a VIP selection, due to his leadership and contributions to his profession.

Previously he served in various positions at Wheeling Pittsburgh Steel Corporation in Steubenville, Ohio, including fire/safety inspector, safety trainer and safety supervisor. Principe holds a Bachelor of Science in management from Wheeling Jesuit College in Wheeling, W.Va., and is a National Registry EMT-paramedic. He is also a certified safety professional and is certified as an American Heart Association instructor and an American Safety and Health Institute instructor.

Founded in 1911, ASSE is the largest and oldest professional safety organization and is committed to protecting people, property and the environment. Its more than 32,000 occupational safety, health and environmental professional members lead, manage, supervise, research and consult on safety, health, transportation and environmental issues in all industries, government, labor, health care and education.