UMSC February Minutes
UNION-MANAGEMENT SAFETY COMMITTEE
February 2026 Meeting Minutes
The monthly meeting of the Union-Management Safety Committee was conducted on February 10th, 2026 by the Environmental Health and Safety department with the following individuals in attendance:
Kyle Bushee VA Legal Affairs, Risk, and Compliance
Cory Ghiringhelli VA Environmental Health and Safety
Greg Macleery VA Dining Services
David Prellwitz A AFSCME
Keith Pung A Environmental Health and Safety
Jacob Woods A Environmental Health and Safety
In-Person Attendance: (A)
Virtual Attendance: (VA)
OLD BUSINESS
Cory Ghiringhelli previously provided an update to the safety concern involving the lack of tornado shelter and evacuation maps for the Landscape Services and ROTC areas in the Campus Services Building. The maps are typically located on walls, approximately 5’ high, near building entries. Jake Woods previously investigated and gathered necessary information regarding current locations of fire extinguishers and alarm pull stations. Devin Johnson subsequently used the data, along with hand-noted floor prints to create temporary evacuation maps; Jake helped to get them displayed at the necessary CSB locations. The Projects, Design, and Construction division pursued funding resources via the deferred maintenance program for campus-wide updated emergency plans. Cory mentioned that he met with Shannon S. Becker to initiate the efforts and the related project manager is now Wristen Paschich.
Vince Renda previously introduced a safety concern involving safe personnel access to the Student Center roof-mounted cooling towers. The units were originally installed without a ladder-platform which would afford a safe working environment for persons completing maintenance and non-routine tasks. Committee discussions revealed that initial efforts were possibly underway to determine construction feasibility. Jake will investigate progress with FM and provide a follow up.
Jake Woods previously provided an update to the issue involving damaged exterior concrete steps-landings at Moore Hall entry #7. The issue was submitted to FM Service by Dennis and Cory but further actions were unknown at the time. Jake reached out to Landscape Services whom immediately placed a safety cone in the areas of concern. Committee discussions from the January meeting, and subsequent WMU Today release, confirmed that repairs to the exterior stairs was ongoing and expected to be completed by Friday, January 23rd. Jake will investigate the restoration progress and provide a follow up.
Cindy Beebe previously introduced a safety concern involving observations of damaged asphalt located near the East entrance of the Bill Brown facility. Committee discussions recommended forwarding photos and description of the damaged walkway materials to the FM Service Center for their awareness of the issue and resolution.
Jake Woods previously provided an update to the safety concern regarding safe work access and environment for the Custodial Services Special Projects division. The group recently encountered work locations, predominately newer on-campus construction, where safe access to rooftops/certain exterior locations was not provided or engineered into the building’s design. Jake met with Cindy Beebe at The Student Center and Sprau Tower and helped identify the fall protection protocol and how the spaces could be safely accessed. Both locations had prior systems in place and require no further action; a roof access gate padlock’s core was changed to a 2-49 following a request to WMU Public Safety.
COMPLETED/CLOSED
Jake Woods previously provided an update to the inquiry regarding the campus emergency phones (blue-light) that can be found throughout our campus’. Committee discussions revealed that Maintenance Services electrician tradespeople service-support the electrical supply and that DPS/OIT service-support the network and physical phones themselves. A FM work order should be submitted if any phones appear to have issues or are non-operational. It was mentioned that a missing blue light (likely removed or deactivated by WMU) indicates that the phone is non-operational or undergoing service. Jake contacted DPS and was provided the following update. The emergency call boxes/phones are inspected and tested once a year, typically in the summer, by parking enforcement officers. A list of any issues found is compiled and turned over to OIT or Maintenance Services for repair depending on what's observed to be wrong. Any issues discovered throughout the year are reported upon discovery to the responsible departments reporting system.
COMPLETED/CLOSED
Jake Woods previously provided an update to the safety concern involving a walkway and unmarked pedestrian crossing located just North of the intersection of Ring Rd N and Valley 2 Dr. Pedestrians using the NE to SW sidewalk encounter Valley 2 Dr. to be unmarked. The W side of the road does not have curb-cut out and the E side is the tapered driveway for the nearby Maintenance Services region shop that is located in the basement of Goldsworth Valley #1. This situation had been observed to cause confusion for pedestrians and some near-miss incidents. Jake initially made the concern known to DPS who provided a summary of their thoughts. These included guidance on how the area of concern could be potentially changed to an approved crosswalk and their recommendation of maintaining the current configuration depending on the future of the Goldsworth Valley complexes. As of now, it is the pedestrian's responsibility to yield to traffic since traffic has the right of way. Jake subsequently contacted Residence Life and made the safety concerns and information known. Their intent was to educate occupants of GV#2 of the ongoing issue and encourage usage of the designated crosswalk.
COMPLETED/CLOSED
Jake Woods previously provided an update to the issue involving an overhead mounted batting cage at the Seeyle Center that had incurred significant damage. Component(s) of the lift system broke causing part the suspended netting and framing system to fall to the floor abruptly. Student athletes were in the near vicinity when the net fell but fortunately no injuries took place. Jake previously mentioned that the affected netting system was immediately lowered by Maintenance Services tradespeople to mitigate the safety hazard. Jake stated that a third-party firm completed annual inspections of the lifting systems at the Seeyle Center during the week of January 5th. The devices were found to be in functional condition with no imminent hazards present, but replacement of all devices is warranted and recommended.
COMPLETED/CLOSED
PROJECT LIST/TABLE
No new projects introduced.
NEW BUSINESS
Cory Ghiringhelli introduced a safety issue involving snow and ice buildup in the Hilltop Parking Structure that contributed to an injury recently incurred by a student. The structure’s open design and airflows allow snow to enter and accumulate on interior walking surfaces. Affected areas are cleared of snow and treated by Landscape Services but re-accumulation occurs quickly. Cory is working with Darrell Junkins of Landscape Services in an effort to determine feasibility of seasonal windscreens or other methods to prevent the problem.
SAFETY HAPPENINGS
David Prellwitz shared that Landscape Services continues to work hard performing snow and ice removal efforts on campus. During discussion David highlighted that application of salt and/or brine on walking surfaces is dependent on ambient temperatures. There is a potential that treatment products may not be utilized during extreme cold events due to their effectiveness. Areas on campus that are observed to be in need of immediate snow removal should be made known to the FM Service Center.
Jake Woods mentioned that he recently completed annual safety refresher training (asbestos awareness, lock out / tag out, confined space entry, and laddery safety) with Maintenance Services tradespeople.
Jake Woods shared that the National Institute for Health recognizes February as American Hearth Month, a national effort to increase awareness that heart disease is the leading cause of death in the U.S. and that prioritizing your heart can help you avoid severe illness. Practicing self-care can keep our hearts healthy. Being physically active, eating healthier foods, getting enough sleep, not smoking, and finding healthy ways to reduce stress can help prevent heart disease. Further information can be found at: https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/education/american-heart-month.
The next UMSC meeting will be held on Tuesday, March 10th, 2026 in the shared conference room located on the ground floor of the E.W. Building at 10:00 a.m.; an invitation to attend via video conferencing platform (WebEx) will also be sent out with these minutes. Please send a substitute representative if you are unable to attend.
Published: 2/18/2026