Austin McKee recently joined EHS staff as a chemical hygiene officer. Austin comes to us from the Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering (CBE) where he was an instructor, and the Office of Innovation where he served as an Iowa Innovation Leadership Fellow and Medical Innovation Launch Lab (MILL) specialist.  Austin earned a Bachelor of Science, Master of Science, and PhD from the Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering at the University of Iowa. His thesis was on “using electrons to transform negative-value feedstocks to benign or value-added products” where he analyzed the effect of changing material properties of catalysts on their electrochemical reaction properties. Austin’s background in chemical safety through CBE is supplemented by his experience in occupational health and industrial hygiene supplied through experiential learning at his father’s self-owned and -operated company, McKee Environmental Inc.

Austin will be shadowing Rick Byrum, EHS chemical hygiene officer, as Rick prepares for retirement in November.  Austin will be responsible for overall management of the university’s chemical safety program. He will also serve as co-team lead for the laboratory safety advisor team. 

Please join us in welcoming Austin to EHS.