For students preparing to enter the construction industry, safety is more than a set of rules to follow on a job site. At The Ohio State University, it is a mindset that Berry Grant IV wants students to carry with them throughout their careers.
Grant, senior facilities safety program manager for Facilities Operations and Development’s (FOD) Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) team, has taught the Construction Safety and Health Course for the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences (CFAES) through the Department of Food, Agricultural and Biological Engineering since spring 2025. The course is designed primarily for students majoring in construction systems management and combines classroom instruction with hands-on experiences designed to prepare students for the realities of construction safety.
“This course is helping me prepare by showing the things that can happen on job sites,” said Nathan Novotny, junior construction management student,” So it teaches us what can happen if you're not cautious or prepared, but also just following standard safety rules.”
Throughout the course, students examine case studies involving construction catastrophes that occurred before the establishment of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration in 1970. They also gain hands-on experience inspecting fall protection equipment, hear from construction safety professionals during a panel focused on ethics in safety and develop a Site-Specific Safety Plan as their final project.
“I hope that my students leave my class and enter the workforce with a culture of safety within them and ready to take that culture of safety into their careers to better the work environment of their respective organizations,” said Grant.
The lessons extend beyond immediate job site hazards. Students learn about risks that can emerge during renovation and demolition projects, including exposure to asbestos and other hazardous materials. They also learn how to recognize and properly inspect personal protective equipment used to protect workers from falls and other hazards.
“We went over harnesses, retractable safety lines and how to look over them to see if they're safe from wear and tear but also what they're rated for weight-wise,” said Novotny.
That culture can become particularly important when safety professionals and construction leaders face competing pressures on a project. Grant hopes students leave the course prepared to advocate for safe practices even when productivity, quality or other demands create pressure to move faster.
“I hope my class prepares my students to be a leader and an advocate for safety,” Grant said.
Novotny sees that responsibility as extending to everyone working on a construction site. Taking safety seriously can help protect workers from injury while also helping future construction professionals understand their responsibilities to their employers and coworkers.
“I think it's important because if no one takes it seriously or is aware of the problems that can happen then people end up dying or getting seriously injured,” Novotny said.
Grant’s passion for construction safety comes from the role the industry plays in people’s lives. He says construction provides careers for people with a wide range of educational backgrounds while creating the buildings and infrastructure communities depend on, from medical facilities and universities to stadiums and other public spaces.
The technical knowledge students gain in the course is important, but he also wants them to understand the broader responsibility that comes with entering the construction profession.
“I take a lot of pride in being a lecturer at the university,” Grant said. “I believe each of us educators have a duty accompanied with the honor to provide a world class education.”
Grant says that responsibility is also connected to what students will contribute after they leave Ohio State.
“The university is amazing because it is what we make it,” said Grant. “So, I take pride in my contribution to the future leaders of the industry so that they walk away proud that they received their construction systems management degree from The Ohio State University.”