Sometimes, you never know what special talents you may have until you get a chance to use them. Take Jacquaine Shepherd of Dallas, Texas, who works at a manufacturing company.

“I started out in my current job by helping the operations manager with small tasks related to safety in order to kill time,” she explained. “I quickly found that I had a real talent and passion for safety. I began to take on a bigger role and was able to create a successful safety culture that has grown and flourished. As a result of my work, I was awarded the Exemplary Safety Leadership Award in 2014 and then again in 2017.”

With these accomplishments, it is no wonder Shepherd was recently awarded a national safety scholarship from Columbia Southern University, a leader in safety education based in Orange Beach, Alabama. The scholarship will allow her to gain more safety training while earning a bachelor’s degree in occupational safety and health.

“It feels great to earn this opportunity. It will open a new host of possibilities and allow me to pursue a career in a field that I am extremely passionate about,” said Shepherd, who works as a freight/safety specialist coordinator.

Shepherd hopes to become a health and safety director in the next five years and sees the CSU degree as huge part of meeting that goal.

“I will take what I learn at CSU and couple it with my work experience and leverage it into becoming a powerhouse that brings new, innovative and effective safety ideas and builds a safety culture that any company would be proud of,” she added.