WorkSafeNB honoured two exceptional teachers who make safety, in and out of the classroom, a priority.
Keith Armstrong, of Rothesay, and Charles Allain, of Moncton, were each honoured with WorkSafeNB’s first-ever Health and Safety Educator Award Friday at Delta Beauséjour in Moncton.
The awards were presented during WorkSafeNB’s Safety Stars Breakfast at its annual Health and Safety Conference among more than 500 attendees.
“These two teachers each show an enthusiasm to go above and beyond what’s expected. They recognize that safety always comes first and it must be demonstrated from the top down,” said Gerard Adams, WorkSafeNB’s president and CEO.
Armstrong teaches skilled trades, including welding, millwork and machine shop, at Harbour View High School in Saint John. He ensures students receive a 100% grade on all safety modules before participating in shop work. Armstrong was a member of a safety advisory committee that improved safety in skilled trade and technology courses. He is also a member of the school’s joint health and safety committee.
Allain plays a key role in improving safety at École Mathieu-Martin, a Dieppe high school of 1,000 students. As the school’s department head of trades, he ensures staff members apply safety in the daily curriculum. Allain also managed a district pilot project to reduce injury risks and near-misses in high school shops. Teachers now document all incidents and near-misses. They review safety concerns weekly and work together to determine trends, seeking ways to reduce or eliminate those patterns.
“Allain and Armstrong are examples of exceptional educators making a difference in the lives of New Brunswick students,” Adams said. “These lessons will carry young people throughout their lifetime and be passed onto others. I congratulate both Allain and Armstrong for their outstanding leadership.”
WorkSafeNB developed the Health and Safety Educator Award in collaboration with the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development. The award celebrates and inspires health and safety leadership in the grades K-12 school setting. Two awards are presented each year, one in the anglophone school sector, and the second in the francophone school sector.
To learn more about the award or nominate an educator for 2017, please visit youthsafenb.ca.
