NSC launched the Rising Stars of Safety in 2010 to highlight the achievements of the best safety professionals under the age of 40.

  The Rising Stars of Safety is designed to reward those individuals who have a current role in safety, and have influenced their company’s safety culture and safety leadership. Companies are encouraged to nominate multiple candidates, but only one honoree per company can be chosen.
  To be eligible for nomination, the nominee:

 

• Must have been nominated by another
• Can be based anywhere in the world
• Must be under 40 years old as of October 31 of the receiving year
   

The criteria that will be used in evaluating nominations may include, but not be limited to:  

 

• Demonstrated leadership
• Led a safety initiative with measurable results
• Engaged his or her peers around safety culture
• Demonstrated a personal belief in safety to business operations

  The National Safety Council may choose to recognize any number of Rising Stars of Safety in any given year. No one individual will win the award more than one time. Historically, the Rising Stars of Safety have been viewed as a “40 under 40” style award.

  When considering a potential nominee, it is important to consider the following:
 

• Self-nominations are not accepted
• Nominators should spend time early in the process discussing the nomination process with the NSC Award Manager, who can serve as a coach.
• Successful nominations include measurable, detailed descriptions and examples. Often, this means using a majority of the space available.
• The nominator’s obligation to the nominee and the process includes preparing a professional nomination package. A nominator may inform and engage the nominee in preparing this submission.
• Powerful, successful nominations are crisp in form, clear, neat, organized and not encumbered with extraneous information and endorsements. 
• All nominations must be submitted through the online application with all required fields complete.  No other documents will be accepted in lieu of the online form.
• Nominators must never assure a nominee that the award is theirs without the approval of the NSC Award Committee.

Nominations must be made through third parties; self-nominations will not be eligible. All eligible Rising Stars nominees must have at least one and no more than three letters of recommendation. A complete resume is required as part of the submission.

  Final nominations must be submitted online -- Sunday, March 2, 2025.

The Advanced Safety Certificate (ASC) Scholarship for Veterans program helps veterans who are on a safety career path obtain their NSC Advanced Safety Certificate*. 

The NSC ASC program teaches participants safety best practices. It’s a nationally recognized program that’s ideal for veterans who want to transition into a safety career or are currently in a safety role at their organization. The program delivers best-in-class professional development and provides a proactive process for safety and health. 

 Career resources and opportunities

Scholarship winners receive registration and travel accommodations at the NSC Safety Congress & Expo. Held Sept. 12 – 18 in Denver, the 2025 Congress & Expo is the nation’s largest safety conference.  It offers the opportunity to network with safety professionals and attend training sessions on emerging topics in health and safety. Scholarship winners also receive career path assistance such as internships and help in connecting with prospective employers.

The Advanced Safety Certificate (ASC) Scholarship for Veterans program application is open now through January 31, 2025. 

*Please note: You must be a veteran or currently serving to apply for this scholarship. The scholarship will support veterans that would like to start the ASC program or complete the ASC program. The scholarship will not reimburse for courses already taken within the ASC program. Selected individuals will be a part of cohort and are required to take the core course, Principals of Occupational Safety and Health during a private virtual session. All other courses within the program can be taken through the open enrollment schedule that will be provided. All courses are virtual instructor led. Recipients will be selected April 2025 and will have May 2025 through February 2026 to complete the program.

The Distinguished Service to Safety Award (DSSA) is the most prestigious award given to individuals by the National Safety Council in recognition of outstanding service and contribution in the field of safety. The NSC Awards Committee has established the following guidelines to facilitate the nomination process for this award program.

Scope: The DSSA is designed to reward those individuals who have had a sustained impact on safety on a local, national, or international scope. The nature of the contribution should reflect exceptional service resulting in more effective or increased levels of injury and/or illness prevention, or assistance in furtherance of those goals. This may also include advancement of safety theory and research.

Nominees:
  - Will be considered from members and nonmembers of NSC
  - Eligible nominees will have at least twenty years of experience in a safety related field
  - Active engagement in safety, either paid or unpaid, within the past five years
  - Retirees are eligible to be nominated, within two year of their retirement

Criteria:
  - Made impact on safety (international, national or local).  Impact can include affecting culture change around safety within an organization or locale; developing and implementing safety protocols previously lacking in an organization or industry; or public campaigns or advocacy with measurable success in affecting safety awareness and individual behavior.
  - Made significant and outstanding contributions to safety.  Contributions can include innovations, research, or other academic pursuits impacting safety.

Nominator Guidance: When considering a potential nominee, it is important to consider the following:
  - Self-nominations are not permitted
  - The nominator’s obligation to the nominee and the process includes preparing a professional nomination package. A nominator may inform and engage the nominee in preparing this.  
  - Powerful, successful nominations are crisp in form, clear, neat, organized and not encumbered with extraneous information and endorsements.
  - All nominations must be submitted through the online application with all required fields complete.  No other documents will be accepted in lieu of the online form.
  - Nominators must never assure a nominee that the award is theirs without the approval of the NSC Award Committee.
  - All eligible DSSA nominees must have at least one and no more than three letters of recommendation.
  - All criteria must be supported with metrics and appropriate documentation.

Deadline: Final nominations must be submitted online by March 2, 2025.
 To learn more about this award, click here.

To submit for this award, please log in and/or create a submittable.com account.  

The NSC Marion Martin Award was established in 2016 to recognize and celebrate outstanding service and contributions in the field of safety by women.  The NSC Awards Committee has established the following guidelines to facilitate the nomination process for this award program. 

Purpose: The purpose of the NSC Marion Martin Award is to recognize women who have achieved professional excellence within their area of specialty and have helped pave the way to success for other women in the profession. These women have distinguished themselves in a variety of professional settings and personify excellence on either the local, regional, national or international level.

Scope: The NSC Marion Martin Award is designed to reward those women who have had a significant impact on other women in the safety field.  This award is designed to celebrate the career of women who have not only achieved professional excellence, but did so while encouraging other women to pursue a career in safety.

Eligibility: To be eligible for nomination, the nominee must be a woman, and may not be an active National Safety Council staff member, or member of the NSC Women’s Division Leadership Committee. 

Deadline:  All submissions must be received by March 31, 2025. 

Click here to learn more about this award.

To submit for this award, please log in and/or create a submittable.com account. 

Application deadline is January 17, 2025 at 11:59 pm Eastern

2025 Road to Zero  Community Traffic Safety Grants
Road to Zero Coalition: Launched in 2016 as a partnership between the U.S. Department of Transportation National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the National Safety Council (NSC), the Road to Zero Coalition has the goal of ending fatalities on our nation’s roads by 2050. Tens of thousands of people die on U.S. roads in preventable crashes each year, with record high numbers of deaths for pedestrians and cyclists seen in recent years. To address this devastating reality and work towards a safer future, the Road to Zero Coalition, made up of over 1,800 member organizations, brings a cross-sector approach to implementing proven techniques. RTZ shares innovative research and actionable information, and advances the conversation around transportation safety through its three-pillar, multi-modal framework focused on:

• Doubling down on what works through proven, evidence-based strategies
• Advancing life-saving technology in vehicles and infrastructure
• Prioritizing safety by adopting a Safe System Approach and creating a positive safety culture
   

Road to Zero Grant Program: The Road to Zero Community Traffic Safety Grant Program is focused on supporting innovative and promising approaches for implementing evidence-based countermeasures, supporting a Safe System approach, and performing necessary research to address traffic fatalities and serious injuries, and disparities in mobility safety and access. Learn more about the Road to Zero Grant Program and the work of previous grantees.

• Proposals should demonstrate the promising nature of the countermeasure by describing the innovative implementation approach, citing the evidence of effectiveness or identifying how effectiveness will be evaluated, and/or discussing how the project fills a gap or addresses existing disparities in traffic safety.
• Proposed projects should have measurable objectives and generalizable results. That is, projects should demonstrate innovative approaches that could be replicated in other locations or scaled up to a broader level.
• The scope of work should be realistically achievable within a one-year time frame; funded extensions are not available.
• Proposals from past Road to Zero grantees are acceptable. They may be for new projects or for additional innovations on the previous project (i.e. phase #2) but not a continuation of any current or previous project.

Eligibility

• Applicant must be a Road to Zero Coalition Member
• Applicant must be a non-profit organization or other entity. Individuals cannot apply.
• Government Entities (cities, states, counties, governors’ safety offices, etc.) also qualify.
• Proposed programs must operate within the United States.
• Federally-recognized Indian Tribes, Tribal Organizations, and Urban Indian Organizations are also eligible.

Funding

• Organizations may apply for a one-year grant.
• Supplanting is prohibited. "Supplanting" is defined as the "Use of Federal funds to support personnel or an activity that is already supported (paid for) by any other funds".
• Proposals selected will be reimbursed for mutually agreed grant expenses.
• Awarded grants are contingent upon the availability of funds; awards may be given in the range of $50,000 - $200,000.

Timeline

• Grant applications are due by January 17, 2025 at 11:59 pm Eastern. This deadline is firm and cannot be extended.
• Grants will be awarded beginning in Spring 2025.
• Grant work will have an expected completion date of on or before one year after the date of the award.

Reporting

• Proposals selected will be required to submit monthly reports and documentation showing objectives that have been met.
• Documentation will show objectives that have been met, time spent, and expenses incurred for grant activity.
• Grantees will submit monthly invoices for reimbursement using guidelines set out by Road to Zero and the National Safety Council.
• Grantees will be expected to have quarterly meetings with Road to Zero staff.
• Grantees will be expected to submit a formal final report detailing the project objectives and results.
• Grantees will be expected to participate in promotional activities for the grant program and the funded projects including presenting on webinars and other meetings.
• These grants are subject to the Federal funding requirements under CFDA #20.614.

Review Committee

• All submissions will undergo a technical review by National Safety Council staff, and will then be forwarded to an external Review Selection Committee for consideration.
• Committee members will include individuals such as business leaders, safety advocates, researchers, etc.
• Individuals and/or organizations applying for grants will not be eligible to serve on the Review Selection Committee.
• Final evaluation of the grant application will be composed of evaluation and scoring by the Review Selection Committee and National Safety Council staff.

Award Information

• $750,000 dollars will be disbursed per year, and the requested amounts must be between $50,000 and $200,000.

Grant applications are due by 11:59 pm (Eastern time) January 17, 2025. If you have questions email us at roadtozero@nsc.org. National Safety Council and Road to Zero Coalition staff cannot comment or provide guidance on the strength or compatibility of a proposed project.