AIHA Fellows

Muhammad Akram founded the first M.Phil. degree program in Occupational Health and Safety at the University of the Punjab and helped draft the Punjab Occupational Safety and Health Act of 2019. Serving as AIHA Ambassador to Pakistan, he has worked to connect students facing significant barriers to the global profession, presenting their research at AIHA Connect on their behalf. He is a former president of AIHA's International Affairs Committee and has donated hundreds of OHS books to Pakistani institutions to grow the profession there.

Jeff Behar has advanced personal protective equipment and chemical safety over a career spanning nearly four decades, including 14 years as Principal Safety Engineer at JPL/NASA, where he developed the Chemical Hygiene Program and NASA's first Rapid Chemical Procurement Program. He is a contributing author to two editions of AIHA's Chemical Protective Clothing and has served on the Protective Clothing and Equipment Committee for over 25 years, holding every leadership role from secretary through past chair.

Shawn Gibbs is an internationally recognized researcher whose work on high-consequence infectious diseases has directly shaped federal policy, including protocols for safely treating Ebola patients in the United States. With over 130 peer-reviewed publications, he has briefed the White House, Congress, and the US Surgeon General on infectious disease response and chaired a 2025 National Academies workshop on PPE for avian influenza H5N1. Within AIHA, he has been a Distinguished Lecturer since 2019 and has mentored numerous students recognized with AIHA awards.

Frank John Hearl built a 46-year career at NIOSH, serving nearly 18 years as Chief of Staff in the Office of the Director, where he provided senior policy guidance on respiratory protection, asbestos, and silica. He holds a master's degree in chemical engineering from MIT and has authored or contributed to multiple editions of Patty's Industrial Hygiene and Toxicology. Since retiring in 2022, he has joined four AIHA advisory groups, the Risk Committee, and the JOEH Board.

Andrey Korchevskiy has produced more than 140 peer-reviewed publications and developed innovative toxicological models for assessing health risks from asbestos, elongate mineral particles, and nanoparticles, including authoring a CRC Press book on the subject. He has contributed to standards development through ASTM, ISO, and OECD and advised Kazakhstan's Ministry of Environmental Protection on its Environmental Code. Within AIHA, he has served as Chair of the Standards Advisory Panel and the Risk Committee and has led 17 professional development courses at AIHA Connect.

Roland Langford has led OEHS programs across three careers: as a US Army Environmental Science Officer retiring as a Lieutenant Colonel, as a Global Manager at a multinational petrochemical firm, and as a civilian engineer with the US Army and Army Corps of Engineers. He is the author of three books, including the international bestseller Weapons of Mass Destruction: Chemical, Biological, and Radiological. A continuous AIHA member for 43 years, he served on the Emergency Response Planning Committee for two decades and has taught at six universities.

Silvia Maberti is a leading contributor to exposure science methodology, with expertise in exposure modeling, dermal exposure assessment, and the alignment of industrial hygiene methods with EPA and international regulatory frameworks. She has served as a primary AIHA representative at US EPA exposure science workshops and as a key leader in the AIHA TSCA Advisory Group. She has also volunteered as a translator for AIHA technical documents to support the association's global reach.

Darrah Sleeth is a tenured full professor at the University of Utah and a recognized leader in occupational aerosol science, with 55 peer-reviewed publications, 36 funded research grants, and directorship of the university's wind tunnel laboratory. She serves as Convener for the ISO working group updating the foundational international standard for respirable, thoracic, and inhalable sampler specifications. Within AIHA, she served as President of the JOEH Board of Directors and chaired the Aerosol Technology Committee.

Simon James Smith has spent over 40 years advancing the science and standards of respiratory protection, with his first-responder CBRN filters serving as benchmarks for NIOSH CBRN respirator standards that remain in use today. During COVID-19, he led the development of Canadian respirator performance standard CSA Z94.4.1 in just ten months, earning the Canadian Standards Award of Excellence in 2022. Within AIHA, he has contributed for 33 years and founded the International Society for Respiratory Protection's Education Committee, leading a training program that reached all primary care hospitals in Cambodia.

John Snawder spent three decades at NIOSH as Co-Director of the Center for Direct Reading and Sensor Technologies, developing rapid immunochemical methods and point-of-care devices for detecting occupational chemical exposures in the field across oil and gas, nanotechnology, and first responder settings. A long-time AIHA volunteer, he chaired both the Oil and Gas Working Group and the Real-Time Detection Systems Committee and authored multiple AIHA publications. He also serves as a volunteer firefighter and emergency responder in his community.