Gayle Shipley to retire in December as director of Western’s Environmental Health and Safety Office

Gayle Shipley, director of the Office of Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) at Western Washington University since 1992, will retire at the end of December 2013.

“On behalf of the entire campus, I would like to thank Gayle for her outstanding efforts and service to Western. Because of Gayle’s commitment to the welfare and safety of our campus community, Western is a much safer and better place,” said Rich Van Den Hul, vice president for WWU Business and Financial Affairs.

As director of EHS, Shipley has overseen office responsibilities ranging from risk management and workers’ compensation to a wide set of health and safety areas including ergonomics, First Aid/CPR, construction safety, hazardous materials management and disposal, radiation safety and emergency management planning. The EHS office now has six full-time and one quarter-time staffers.

“I am grateful for the opportunity to help shape Western’s safety and health program. It has been a big responsibility and a great gift – to be allowed to work at such an important task,” Shipley said.

For 13 years prior to working at Western, Shipley was responsible for chemical safety, hazardous waste management, and emergency response for hazardous materials at the research and medical laboratories for Northwestern University.

She also has 20 years of experience in environmental consulting. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Chemistry from Case Western Reserve University and a master’s degree in Environmental Health Engineering from Northwestern University.

A search committee is being formed to seek her successor.