Meet the Staff
Zehra Schneider Graham
Director
Zehra Schneider Graham is the director of OEHS at the University of Massachusetts Boston. Graham has 20 years of environmental health & safety experience. She has primary responsibility for environmental management and construction issues, environmental permitting and laboratory compliance. She led the environmental management pilot program known as Project XL which culminated in the new EPA Academic Lab Rules. She is the past president of the Alliance of Hazardous Materials Professionals (AHMP), the Campus Consortium for Environmental Excellence (C2E2) and the New England Chapter of Certified Hazardous Material Managers. (NEACHMM).She holds a BS in biology and English from Simmons College, an MS in environmental science from the University of Massachusetts Boston, and an MS in botany from the University of Maine. She is a certified hazardous materials manager (CHMM) and a registered environmental manager (REM).
John Dembrowsky
Associate Director
John Dembrowsky joined OEHS in 2014 as the associate director. Dembrowsky is a certified industrial hygienist (CIH), and he was an associate director of the Environmental Health and Safety Office at Harvard University. Prior to Harvard, he spent eight years with Novartis Institutes for Biomedical Research in Cambridge. He also served as an industrial hygiene manager at MIT and Boston University Medical Center. He works closely with the Facilities Department and focuses on indoor air quality, worker safety, and fire prevention. He holds a BS in mechanical engineering as well as an MS in industrial hygiene from UMass Lowell.
Lalitha Adusumilli
Associate Director
Lalitha Adusumilli is an associate director. She joined the OEHS in May 2005. Adusumilli has primary responsibilities in areas of lab safety, hazardous material management, lab safety training, and chemical and biological waste disposal. She has an MS in environmental science from Nagarjuna University, India, and an MS in environmental science from the University of Massachusetts Boston. She is a certified hazardous material manager (CHMM), Registered Biosafety Professional (RBP), and Massachusetts Board Certified Grade -2 industrial wastewater operator.
John C. Meyer
Hazardous Material Technician
John Meyer started in January 2015 with the title “hazardous material technician,” working closely with Lalitha Adusumilli in the laboratory safety program. Meyer focuses on hazardous material and inventory control for both research and teaching laboratories including bar-coding and distribution of chemicals. He is a Certified Hazardous Material Manager (CHMM) and also supports hazardous waste collection and general lab safety initiatives.
Before joining the Office of Environmental Health and Safety (OEHS), Meyer worked at Clean Harbors Environmental Services Inc. for seven years as a lab pack chemist and field service chemist. John earned his BS in natural science from Saint Anselm College.
Sarah Phou
Business and Operations Manager
Sarah Phou joined the University of Massachusetts Boston in 2019. She assists OEHS with general office management and provides support for Summer Youth Programs. Her role with Emergency Management is heavily focused on the Travel Registry program and Business Continuity, with additional responsibilities around emergency and enterprise risk management.
The Office of Environmental Health & Safety
Service & Supply Building
Upper Level, Room 034, Contact
617.287.5445 (Telephone)
617.287.3855 (Fax)
umbehs@umb.edu
Other Resources
Office of Emergency Management and Business Continuity
UMass Boston Police Department
University Health Services
Facilities Department