Jeffrey S. Lee Scholarship

Dr. Lee’s notable career in industrial hygiene spanned three decades. A Salt Lake City, Utah native, he completed his engineering degree at the University of Utah and began his career with the Bureau of Occupational Safety and Health in Cincinnati, Ohio. He earned a doctorate degree in environmental health sciences from the University of California Berkeley School of Public Health. Lee then returned to Salt Lake City as the Deputy Director of NIOSH’s western operations.

After NIOSH closed its Salt Lake City facility, Lee became one of the original members of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) Health Response Team. Later, he departed OSHA to help establish and direct the industrial hygiene program at the University of Utah Rocky Mountain Center for Occupational and Environmental Health, a NIOSH Educational Resource Center.

In addition to the many accomplishments while at NIOSH, OSHA, and the university, Lee co-founded Industrial Health, Inc., an occupational health and safety consulting firm. He also chaired the American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists, served on the American Industrial Hygiene Association Board of Directors, and co-founded the International Occupational Health Association, serving as its first president. Lee also authored and co-authored a number of articles and books related to industrial hygiene and served as editor of the Applied Occupational and Environmental Hygiene Journal (later known as the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Health). He received several recognition and awards for excellence, including being the first recipient of the International Occupational Health Association’s lifetime achievement award and AIHA’s Donald E. Cummings Award (posthumously).

Lee was a wonderful husband to Mary Ann, an attentive father to two sons, Chris and Alex, a caring and true friend to many, and a respected professional. Outside of the professional realm, he was an avid and accomplished skier of the Cottonwood canyons of Utah, an experienced outdoorsman, and a world traveler. Dr. Lee leaves a legacy of innovative thinking, good humor, hard work, dedication to important causes, and a life lived with vitality.