The Northeast Iowa ASSP Chapter is holding a Special Election to fill key leadership positions within the chapter. Your participation is essential in helping guide our chapter’s direction and supporting the growth of our professional community.

A 15-day notice will be sent via chapter email with voting instructions and the official ballot. Please watch your inbox for details.

Candidates

President – Kirk Dighton

Kirk Dighton, a Northeast Iowa ASSP member, is the safety manager for D. C. Taylor Co. since February of 2017. He has a Master of Science in Occupational Health and Safety from Columbia Southern University and is a retired Paramedic in the state of Iowa. Kirk has a diverse safety background with experience in emergency medicine, construction, general industry, agriculture and the wind industry. Kirk is a competent person instructor in fall protection and an authorized instructor for OSHA 10 and 30-hour general industry and construction specialty. He is an adjunct safety instructor for Kirkwood Community College, a contracted instructor for NICC Community College and an Authorized trainer for The OSHA Training Institute.  In addition to his Safety Manager role at D. C. Taylor, he is the owner and consultant of Imperial Safety Solutions LLC. Kirk has an established track record of safety success stories through both ventures and a known passion for safety and people.

Secretary – Dan Weekly, CSP

Dan Weekly has served as the Safety Director for Price Electric in Robins since 2011. He is a Certified Safety Professional with more than a decade of experience in safety training and management, specializing in NFPA 70E and apprentice education.

As a journeyman electrician, Dan approaches electrical safety with a practical and realistic perspective, ensuring workers are equipped with the knowledge and tools needed to stay safe in a high-risk industry.

Dan lives in Alburnett, Iowa with his wife and three children. Outside of work, he enjoys coaching youth sports and collecting retro video games.

Advisory Group Member – Paul Blocklinger, CSP

Paul holds a B.S. in Occupational Safety from Illinois State University and has been an ASSE/ASSP member since 1992. With 35 years of safety experience, he has worked for major employers including Sony, Stanley, Procter & Gamble, Bayer, and Ingredion.
His background spans manufacturing, chemical, and agricultural industries, with technical expertise in:

• Combustible dust
• PSM and Highly Hazardous Materials
• Management Systems
• Lead Auditing

Next Step

Watch for the special election email, which will be distributed with at least 15 days’ notice before voting begins. Your vote is important to ensure strong leadership and continued success for the Northeast Iowa ASSP Chapter.

Northeast Iowa and Quad Cities chapters co-hosted the Fall Regional Operating Conference (ROC).

The conference was held at the Hyatt Regency in Coralville, Iowa September 26-27.  The conference included a tour of the University of Iowa Driving and Safety Research Institute.

Greetings to all Northeast Iowa ASSP members.  It is getting close to spring and that means we will have elections coming up soon. We are currently working on replacing Kali Gamerdinger who left our chapter for a new career in Des Moines Iowa. Kali was instrumental in keeping our website up to date and sending out meeting notifications. This leaves a big hole for us in the Chapter. If anyone is interested in assisting the chapter with this task, please let us know.

We are taking the month of March to meet as a Board to discuss upcoming elections and recruiting more board members to help out the chapter. We don’t require a great deal of hours to participate, only to have a passion for people and a flair for keeping people safe. If you have an interest and would like to talk, please send Kirk Dighton, Board President an email at kirk.dighton@dctaylorco.com.

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