Dr. Larry Grayson, chair and professor of mining engineering at UMR was recently appointed to serve a three-year term on the Mine Safety and Health Research Advisory Committee for the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) in Washington, D.C. The agency is part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

This 10-person committee will meet twice a year to advise the Department of Health and Human Services, NIOSH and CDC on the conduct of mine health research, including grants and contracts for such research.

Prior to becoming chair of mining engineering at UMR in 2000, Grayson served as NIOSH’s associate director of mining. While at NIOSH, he was responsible for activities at the institute’s mining research laboratories in Pittsburgh, Pa., and Spokane, Wash., and for coordinating mining research throughout NIOSH.

NIOSH, which is part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, became the lead federal institute for research and training in mine safety and health with the acquisition of the Pittsburgh and Spokane facilities. Those facilities were formerly part of the U.S. Bureau of Mines.