Presenter Biographies
2008 Governor's Conference
Gary Freeman, MD
Gary C. Freeman is a perpetual student. He earned his BA from Baylor University, via a four year baseball scholarship; Post-graduate Marston Scholar, American History, Brown University; Pre-Med studies and teaching, University of Arkansas; MD, Baylor College of Medicine, 1964; Internship and orthopaedic residency, Hermann Hospital, Houston, 1969; JD, South Texas College of Law, 1982; Masters of Liberal Arts, Houston Baptist University, 1989; summer study, Braesnose College, Oxford University. Dr. Freeman served as team doctor for the Houston Oilers, the Houston Texans (World Football League), and Texas Southern University.
Dr. Freeman enjoys an active orthopaedic medical practice. He performs treatments, medical evaluations, and peer reviews. He serves as an expert witness, both plaintiff and defense. In his free time, Dr. Freeman and his wife enjoy traveling, museums, and their dog, Kelli.
Dr. Freeman will be presenting "U & T Guidelines" on Thursday, October 2nd from 8:15 - 10:15 am and "AMA, 6th Edition" on Thursday, October 2nd from 10:30 - 11:40am.
Martanaze Hancock
Martanaze Hancock is the Training Manager for the Training Network. He is the lead abatement contractor/supervisor and asbestos abatement contractor/supervisor in Maryland, DC and Virginia. He has done trainings in asbestos abatement, lead abatement, OSHA safety, and disaster response.
Martanaze will be presenting "Lead-Based Paint" on Thursday, October 2nd from 1:15 - 2:30 pm.
Richard Hawk
It's rare to find someone who is both a safety professional and an entertaining speaker, but Richard fits the bill. While his depth of knowledge and experience make for content-rich sessions (Richard spent ten-years as a safety engineer and management trainer in the Nuclear Industry), he also draws on his sense of humor and theater background to deliver presentations that are truly enjoyable.
An accomplished guitarist and singer-songwriter, Richard weaves original songs and parodies into his presentations and uses all manner of innovative props, prizes and stories. Audiences can't help but participate, learn and have fun. Richard's one-of-a-kind presentation style sets him apart and allows him to connect with audiences from start to finish.
Richard's depth of knowledge also comes from his interactions with thousands of leaders in hundreds of organizations in a wide array of industries, including energy, manufacturing, chemical, construction, healthcare, technology, retail, food services, transportation, government and education. His diverse background and his experiences as a union and nonunion employee, line worker and manager, and now successful business owner, give him the insight to relate to people at all levels, from employees to CEOs, truck drivers to scholars.
Richard will be presenting "The Future of Safety" on Wednesday, October 1st from 1:15 - 4:15pm.
Josh Hotalen
Josh Hotalen has been employed as a Correctional Officer with the Montana State Prison since 2002. He earned an Associate’s degree in Drafting from the Butte College of Technology in 1998. Prior to working for the State, Josh was a Surveyor for Cashell Engineers in Butte. Josh enjoys the outdoors and regularly goes hunting, fishing, and camping. He also likes to work on computers and small engines in his spare time. Josh married his wife Jill in 2006. They have two children, Hunter age four and Hailey age fifteen months.
Josh will be participating in the "Return-to-Work Panel Discussion" on Thursday, October 2nd, from 3:30 - 4:30pm.
Trina Mailloux
Trina Mailloux, Assistant Area Director, Billings Area Office, OSHA—Trina has been with the Agency approximately 12 years. She was a Compliance Officer up until July 2007 and has been the Assistant AD for just over one year. Prior to OSHA, Trina was a crane operator and heavy equipment operator in Montana for 17 years.
Trina will be presenting "Combustible Dust and Other OSHA Areas of Interest" on Thursday, October 2nd from 10:30 - 11:40am.
Mary Matz
As a result of almost ten years of research involving patient care ergonomics, Ms. Matz is internationally known for her expertise in the field. She promotes patient care ergonomics nationally as a consultant for the VA, DoD, and other healthcare organizations and she has authored many peer-reviewed articles on the subject. Her patient care ergonomic focus keeps her in collaborative associations with national professional associations and research and educational institutions. She serves as a member of the University of South Florida NIOSH Sunshine Environmental Resource Center and Occupational Health Psychology Advisory Boards. As well, she is a member and contributor to the American Institute of Architects Healthcare Guideline Revisions Committee. Ms. Matz received a Masters of Science in Public Health from the University of South Florida.
The “Patient Care Ergonomics” presentation will focus on the serious problems patient care providers encounter on a day to day basis as they move and handle patients and residents. Information will be relayed on the scope of the problem, the biomechanics and ergonomics of patient handling and how it is related to risk of injury, and control technologies to decrease the risk. As well, successful program implementation strategies that support the use of patient handling technology as well as foster an effective culture of safety will be discussed.
Mary will be presenting "Patient Care Ergonomics" on Thursday, October 2nd from 8:15 - 10:15am.
Bill Nolte
Bill Nolte is the Project Manager for CEI Electrical Contractors. He has been a Journeyman Inside Wireman since 1979 and served as the Vice-President for Safety for RJB Enterprises, Inc. from 1991 to 2000.
His presentation will touch upon topics of NFPA 70E into workplace electrical safety and OSHA compliance, electrical safety for the non-electrician, electrical products that equitably enhance typical construction and plant safety operations, electrical safety for the low voltage (under 600 volt) electrician (construction), and electrical safety for medium (over 600 volts) and high voltage (construction).
Bill will be presenting "Electrical Safety" on Thursday, October 2nd from 3:00 - 4:30pm.
Judge James Jeremiah Shea
Judge James Jeremiah Shea was born and raised in Butte, Montana. He was sworn in as the fourth Judge of the Montana Workers’ Compensation Court on September 6, 2005, after being appointed by Governor Brian Schweitzer. At the time of his appointment, Jim was a partner with the law firm of Paoli & Shea in Missoula. From 1994 until taking the bench, Jim’s practice was devoted almost exclusively to the representation of injured railroad workers under the Federal Employers’ Liability Act. During his career, Jim represented employees of the Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway, Montana Rail Link, and the Union Pacific Railroad throughout Montana, Idaho, Washington, Oregon, Wyoming, and Utah. Immediately after graduating from law school, Jim clerked for Chief Judge Paul G. Hatfield of the United States District Court for the District of Montana. He then spent four years practicing law in Oregon before moving home to Montana in 1996. While living in Oregon, Jim worked as a trial lawyer with the Metropolitan Public Defender in Portland and was a member of the Portland law firm of Bricker, Zakovics & Querin. He is a graduate of Butte Central Catholic High School and received both his undergraduate and law degrees from the University of Montana. Jim and his wife Kathy met in college and have been married since 1989. They are the proud parents of two daughters, Kate and Moira.
In his spare time, Judge Shea enjoys camping and other activities with his family, GRIZZLY FOOTBALL, playing handball, hunting, and fly fishing. He is also somewhat embarrassed to admit that he possesses an almost savant-like knowledge of most movies, 1980s television and music, and useless entertainment and political trivia.
Judge Shea will be presenting "Workers' Compensation Court Update" on Thursday, October 2nd from 1:15 - 1:45pm.
Paige Tabor, DC
Paige Tabor, DC is a licensed chiropractor implementing the new Return-to-Work policy for the State of Montana which is the largest employer within the state. Paige recently chaired the Executive Committee for 60 Summits: Montana. She practiced as a chiropractor and Qualified Medical Evaluator for the State of California prior to relocating to Helena. Her professional experience includes serving as a primary and secondary treating physician in one of the Vert Mooney, MD spine rehabilitation centers in San Diego. Paige has served as a treating chiropractor for two California AIDS Rides and as a participant with the Leukemia Society’s Team in Training century ride around Lake Tahoe. She lived and worked on four continents prior to enlisting in the Naval Reserves. Paige and her husband are foster parents for abused horses, llamas, and other animals.
Paige Tabor will be presenting "Disability Management Program" and "60 Summits Update" on Thursday, October 2nd from 1:45-3:30pm.
Josh Williams
Josh Williams earned a Ph.D. in Industrial/Organizational Psychology from Virginia Tech. He is a Senior Project Manager with Safety Performance Solutions (SPS) in Blacksburg, Virginia.
Josh has delivered keynote presentations to ExxonMobil, LL Bean, NASA, UPS, and the U.S. Army. He is managing behavioral safety initiatives in both English and Spanish with companies such as: Borden Chemicals, Ensign Drilling, Shell, Merck and Pfizer Pharmaceuticals. He’s also involved in culture change efforts with Bristol-Myers Squibb, Caterpillar, Coca-Cola, Dow Chemical, Honeywell, Los Alamos Laboratories, and Lucent Technologies.
Josh co-edited Keys to Behavior-Based Safety with E. Scott Geller and is co-authoring a book entitled “Improving Safety Culture.” He has numerous publications in both professional and academic journals and received the Cambridge Center National First Prize for his long-term research project “Optimizing Organizational Safety Performance through Behavioral Feedback.” He’s currently working to maintain his golf handicap in single digits.
The current presentation will focus on the importance of People Based Safety principles to improve organizational safety culture and reduce injuries. Specific topics include: defining an ideal safety culture, moving from dependence to interdependence, focusing on all 3 sides of the safety triad (environment, person, behavior), moving from unconsciously at-risk to consciously safe, understanding the ABC model of behavior change, influencing the 5 key person factors for safety, improving communication skills, and increasing management support for safety.
Josh will be presenting "Safety Performance Solutions: People Based Safety" on Wednesday, October 1st from 9:00 - 11:45am.
