Steven L. Grimm
President
About AIRRS
Welcome to the AIRRS Section Website! Please be patient with us as we update our content. If you have content ideas please let Steven L. Grimm, AIRRS President know what you’d like to see on this page.
The primary objectives of the Section are to:
- disseminate information related to operational health physics and radiation safety programs,
- provide a forum for dealing with regulatory issues,
- promote professional development within radiation safety programs,
- develop consensus standards of practice for radiation safety programs, and
- provide for open lines of communication between Section members.
Officers
Alexander Bakken
Secretary/Treasurer
Alexander Bakken
Danny McClung
President-Elect
Danny McClung
Caitlin Root
Board Member
Caitlin Root
Frederick Monette
Board Member
Frederick Monette
Ran Angela Meng
Board Member
Ran Angela Meng
News
Events
July 15, 2025
70th Annual Health Physics Society Meeting 2025
AIRRS Special Session Roundtable
The Academic, Industrial, and Research Radiation Safety Section (AIRRS) hosted a roundtable session at the 70th annual Health Physics Society meeting in Madison, WI. This special session focused on current challenges facing…
70th Annual Health Physics Society Meeting 2025
The Academic, Industrial, and Research Radiation Safety Section (AIRRS) hosted a roundtable session at the 70th annual Health Physics Society meeting in Madison, WI.
This special session focused on current challenges facing health physicists in academic, industrial, and research radiation protection. The panel included eight seasoned AIRRS health physicists representing six different institutions. AIRRS also sponsored a refreshment break during the session to provide an opportunity to meet other radiation safety professionals.
March 31, 2002
67th Annual Health Physics Society Meeting 2022 – AIRRS Special Session
The Academic, Industrial, and Research Radiation Safety Section (AIRRS) is hosting its 3rd consecutive roundtable session at the 67th annual Health Physics Society meeting. Following a similar venue used during its two…
67th Annual Health Physics Society Meeting 2022 – AIRRS Special Session
The Academic, Industrial, and Research Radiation Safety Section (AIRRS) is hosting its 3rd consecutive roundtable session at the 67th annual Health Physics Society meeting. Following a similar venue used during its two previous virtual Special Sessions, several panelists comprised of Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) will lead a four (4) hour session engaging in discussions on various topics of noteworthy importance, encompassing areas in private industry, academia, research, and a cadre of contemporary challenging issues confronting today’s Health Physicists.
Alan Jackson, CHP is the RSO for the Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit, MI and will be serving as the SME on the roundtable discussing health physicist retention and staffing challenges the industry is currently facing. Steven Dewey, CHP is the Chief of Health Physics for the NIST Center Neutron Research and Caitlin Root is a Safety Advisor at Yale University. Steven and Caitlin will be serving as the SMEs in safety culture and will be discussing challenges and development in radiation safety culture as it applies to academic, industrial, and research radiation safety. Ruth McBurney, CHP is the Executive Director of the Conference of Radiation Control Program Directors, Inc. (CRCPD) and will be discussing decommissioning from the CRCPD standpoint. Alex Bakken is a Radioisotope R&D Specialist at Niowave, Inc. in Lansing, MI and will be serving as the SME in research & development (R&D)/ isotope production and discussing challenges and issues facing R&D/isotope production. Mark Linsley, CHP is currently a consultant and will be reprising his role as the roundtable moderator. Ian Parker is a Radiological Engineer for Newtech Environmental Solutions and will be monitoring the chat to engage discussion among attendees.
Invited comments and questions will be encouraged, The intent of the Special Session is to help fellow radiation safety personnel and HP colleagues benchmark and find solutions to their day-to-day challenges, supporting the vision and mission of AIRRS.
The AIRRS Section business meeting will immediately follow the Special Session during which time the recipient of AIRRS first Outstanding Radiation Safety Program Award will be recognized and the new officers for Secretary/Treasurer Elect and Directors will be announced.
Submitted by:
Carl A. Tarantino, MS, CHP, RRPT
AIRRS President
September 10, 2020
Health Physics Society 2020 Virtual Workshop
The Academic, Industrial, and Research Radiation Safety Section (AIRRS) had a very successful roundtable session at the Health Physics Society 2020 Virtual Workshop. Did you join in? Thirteen panelists spent three…
Health Physics Society 2020 Virtual Workshop
The Academic, Industrial, and Research Radiation Safety Section (AIRRS) had a very successful roundtable session at the Health Physics Society 2020 Virtual Workshop. Did you join in? Thirteen panelists spent three hours hanging around the virtual water cooler and engaging in discussions on decommissioning/radwaste, generally licensed devices, air sampling, HP recruitment, and other miscellaneous topics. We were kept organized and on topic by our own Mark Linsley—great job, Mark! Special thanks to the other panelists: Bryan Edwards, Steve Grimm, Ike Hall, Bryan Lemieux, Patrick McDermott, Fred Mis, Troy Prutzman, Cathy Ribaudo, Caitlin Root, Greg Sackett, Dan Szatkowski, and Carl Tarantino. And a special thanks to all of you who witnessed the roundtable, joined in with your comments and questions, and supported the AIRRS’ effort to launch this new idea. We hope everyone enjoyed the topical discussions and polls. Helping our fellow radiation safety officers and HP staff benchmark and find solutions to their day-to-day challenges is a big part of the AIRRS’ mission. Who knows, perhaps this was the start of a new tradition.
Following the roundtable, AIRRS held its annual business meeting to report on several significant accomplishments and expenditures. Despite the cancellation of many events we intended to support, AIRRS was able to make a difference this year by funding the Public Information Committee and the virtual US Science and Engineering Festival. We continue to look for opportunities to offer grants, scholarships, career fair assistance, awards, and other outreach activities.
Please notify your friendly AIRRS officer if you have any feedback to share—we welcome your ideas and input.
Last updated: October 24, 2025 (SLG)