Meet the Team: Buffalo District Industrial Hygienist Brings Proactive Safety Focus to the Mission
From a childhood spent moving with a Coast Guard family to a career focused on occupational health and safety, Ashlyn Schmitt brings both technical expertise and a people-first mindset to the Buffalo District. As an Industrial Hygienist, she helps identify and evaluate workplace health hazards while supporting safe operations across the district.
Q: Where are you from?
Ashlyn: I was born at Cherry Point Marine Corps Air Station in Havelock, North Carolina, and moved frequently growing up because my father served in the U.S. Coast Guard. My family lived in California and Iowa before eventually settling in Northeast Ohio, where we moved to be closer to extended family after my father accepted a position at the Coast Guard station in Cleveland.
Q: What did you study, and where did you attend college? Ashlyn: I attended The University of Akron, where I majored in chemical engineering and earned my bachelor’s degree in 2020.
Q: What is your position with the Buffalo District? Ashlyn: I serve as an Industrial Hygienist with the Buffalo District, specializing in occupational health hazards. My work includes conducting air and noise sampling at project sites to help evaluate employee exposure levels and ensure conditions remain within appropriate limits.
Q: How did you learn about the position with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers? Ashlyn: I was already living in the same city as the field office where I worked, so I knew the Buffalo District had a local presence. When I saw the Industrial Hygienist vacancy, I viewed it as a great opportunity because it was closer to home and allowed me to remain in Ohio.
Q: What motivated you to join the Buffalo District? Ashlyn: Before joining the Buffalo District, I worked for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration as a Safety Engineer, conducting onsite inspections and issuing citations throughout Northeast Ohio. I was interested in transitioning into a more proactive role that focused less on enforcement and more on helping prevent workplace hazards.
Q: What do you enjoy doing outside of work? Ashlyn: Outside of work, my husband and I spend a lot of time with our four shepherd-mix dogs. I also compete with two of them in an Akron-area frisbee league that I have participated in for the past five years. In addition, I enjoy bouldering, scuba diving, and playing trivia. One of the most memorable places I have gone scuba diving was Taiwan, and I am National Association of Underwater Instructors (NAUI)-certified with additional diving experience in quarries throughout Ohio.
With a background in engineering, safety, and field-based hazard assessment, Ashlyn plays an important role in helping protect the Buffalo District workforce. Her proactive approach to occupational health supports safe, effective mission execution across the district.
The Buffalo District delivers world-class engineering solutions to the Great Lakes Region, the Army and the Nation to ensure national security, environmental sustainability, water resource management, and emergency assistance during peace and war.
For 250 years, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has been at the forefront of the nation’s engineering excellence, responding when called. From constructing fortifications during the Revolutionary War, to building the infrastructure that saw America’s strength grow militarily and economically, USACE’s mission has always been to deliver engineering solutions for our nation’s toughest challenges.**Learn more athttp://www.usace.army.mil/Home/250th.
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