Senior Safety Specialist, Regulatory Compliance & Biosafety

Donald Danforth Plant Science Center, Inc; St. Louis (MO); On-site; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

The Danforth Center seeks a Senior Safety Specialist for Regulatory Compliance & Biosafety to lead advanced biosafety and regulatory work across laboratories, greenhouses, and field sites. The role includes mentoring staff and delivering training on biosafety, compliance, and safety programs.

Ideal candidates are self-directed, organized, and capable of managing diverse responsibilities while contributing to institutional safety culture and compliance goals.

Qualifications

• Ability to work independently with professional judgment in complex situations.
• Strong collaboration within interdisciplinary research teams.
• Excellent organizational skills to manage multiple tasks and deadlines.

Responsibilities

• Lead projects within regulatory compliance and biosafety programs.
• Serve as primary contact for regulatory agencies and maintain records.
• Support inspections, audits, and corrective actions.
• Develop training materials, SOPs, and program documents.
• Participate in regulatory committees and safety-related groups.

Skills

Independent work

Regulatory knowledge

Biosafety expertise

Communication

Organizational skills

Education

Bachelor's degree in Environmental/Biological sciences or regulatory field

Tools

Microsoft Office

Job description

Job Details: Job Location: Saint Louis - Saint Louis, MO, Position Type: Full Time, Salary Range: Undisclosed, Description

The Senior Safety Specialist for Regulatory Compliance & Biosafety, is a senior, highly independent role that provides advanced technical expertise and leadership in regulatory compliance and biosafety, with broader responsibility across safety and stewardship programs. Working with minimal supervision, this position exercises professional judgment to ensure regulatory compliance across research activities including biosafety, agricultural, chemical, and environmental regulations while promoting a proactive safety culture across laboratories, greenhouses, field sites, and office areas. The role serves as a key liaison to regulatory agencies and institutional biosafety and compliance committees, mentors junior staff, and delivers both routine and advanced service and training related to regulatory compliance, biosafety, and general safety.

As a member of the Environmental Health & Safety and Biosafety team, this role works collaboratively with colleagues, sharing expertise and knowledge to strength the team's collective capability and support the Center's safety and compliance goals. The ideal candidate is self-directed, organized, detail oriented, and capable of managing diverse compliance responsibilities while continuing to build leadership skills.

Responsibilities:

• Leads assigned projects and functional areas within regulatory compliance and biosafety programs, working independently with limited supervision.
• Serves as the primary contact for regulatory agencies, organize and maintain regulatory records and submit reports as needed.
• Serve as a key participant in regulatory agency inspections and audits; documents outcomes and support response actions as assigned.
• Supports and coordinates institutional regulatory compliance processes, including review, tracking and updating of biological and agricultural permits and related signage throughout the Center.
• Conducts audits and inspections of main campus, greenhouse, and field sites to identify environmental, chemical, and biological hazards and to ensure regulatory and stewardship compliance; documents findings and ensure corrective actions are implemented and tracked to completion.
• Develops, updates, and delivers training materials, SOPs, program documents, and manuals for regulatory compliance, biosafety, and general safety topics; routinelyprovides center wide training across these programs.
• Leads and co-lead investigations of incidents, near misses, and unsafe or non-compliant conditions; performs root cause analysis and recommend corrective and preventive actions.
• Performs risk assessmentsfor research activities, regulated materials, equipment, and new processes;recommendandimplementeffectiveriskmitigationand compliancestrategies.
• Serves on the Institutional Biosafety Committeeand other safety- orcompliance-related committees and working groupsasassigned, providing technical expertise and institutional perspective.
• Contributes tothedevelopment,evaluation,andcontinuous improvementof regulatory compliance,biosafetyand safety programs, procedures, and institutional policies; analyze trends in incidents, inspections, permits, and training data to recommend improvements.
• Performs other duties as assigned in support of Safety and Regulatory Compliance.

Required Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

• Demonstrated ability to work independently and apply sound professional judgment in complex or ambiguous situations.
• A positive, service-oriented approach with the ability to collaborate effectively within interdisciplinary research teams.
• Strong organizational skills with the ability to prioritize, manage multiple tasks, and meet deadlines.
• Reliable, responsible, and punctual.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office applications and ability to quickly learn and support additional software systems.
• Working knowledge of applicable regulatory and biosafety frameworks (e.g., NIH Guidelines for Recombinant/Synthetic Nucleic Acid Molecules, USDA-APHIS regulated articles and permits, OSHA, EPA, RCRA, Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act) as they apply to research environments, is a plus.
• Ability to communicate technical information clearly and effectively to diverse audiences.
• Commitment to living the Danforth Center values: Collaboration, Diversity & Inclusion, Innovation, Integrity & Respect, Environmental Sustainability, and Stewardship

Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in Environmental science, Biological sciences, Regulatory affairs, Occupational Health, Industrial Hygiene, or a related scientific field required; coursework or experience in biosafety or regulatory compliance preferred.
• 5 to 10 years of experience in safety-related roles, preferably including regulatory compliance or biosafety responsibilities in a laboratory, greenhouse, or field research environment.