University Director of Environmental Health, Safety and Risk Management

Howard Apsan serves as the University Director of Environmental, Health, Safety, and Risk Management (EHSRM) for The City University of New York, the largest urban university system in the United States. CUNY has 23 colleges, graduate schools and professional schools; approximately 460,000 matriculated and non-matriculated students; 35,000 faculty members and other employees; and more than 23 million square feet of space in almost 300 buildings located throughout New York City’s five boroughs. The University Director of EHSRM is responsible for environmental health and safety (EH&S) management and compliance throughout the University; serves as the University’s chief risk officer, tasked with assessing liabilities and designing systems for minimizing CUNY’s operational and reputational risks; co-chairs the University’s Business Continuity Committee; and is the chair of the University’s Emergency Preparedness Task Force.

Before joining CUNY, Howard worked as an analyst, manager and consultant for most of his career. He served for several years in New York City government at the Mayor’s Office, the Board of Education, and the Sanitation Department, and he spent seventeen years in private consulting, including eight years as a Principal, and ultimately National Director, of a nation-wide consulting firm. He has also been president of his own firm, Apsan Consulting, Inc., since 2001. He has served clients throughout the United States and has extensive international experience.

In addition to his management and consulting activities, he has been a member of the faculty at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs since 1986. He has also served on the United States Technical Advisory Group (US TAG) for ISO 14000, the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) Environmental Committee (E-50), the Springfield (New Jersey) Environmental Commission, and chaired the New York Chamber of Commerce Environment and Energy Committee and the New York Chapter of the Environmental Auditing Roundtable. He is a LEED Accredited Professional, a member of the Editorial Board of Environmental Quality Management, and writes and lectures regularly.

Contact Information:

Howard N. Apsan, Ph.D.
University Director Environmental, Health, Safety and Risk Management
The City University of New York
205 East 42nd Street,
New York, NY 10017
Phone: (646) 664-2854
Fax: (646) 664-2965
E-mail: Howard.Apsan@cuny.edu