Putting people at the core of everything we do is paramount at BCIT. We are committed to ensuring our people — those who make BCIT distinct, are developing while feeling valued, supported, and connected.
BCIT is a people-first organization, and we aim to learn more and celebrate our employees through by sharing their stories through the Our People series. The series features BCIT’s extraordinary employees who share a strong sense of pride and ambition for the Institute and make up our diverse community.
Get to know Anna Matheson, Manager, Health, Safety, and Environment, Safety, Security, Emergency Management who has been working at BCIT for six years.
How would you summarize the work that you do at the Institute?
I prevent employee injuries and exposures by identifying hazards, assessing risks, and implementing control measures.
What has been your most memorable moment at BCIT?
Celebrating events with my HSE team, like the end of COVID-19 restrictions. COVID-19 was a very stressful time for everyone at BCIT, and it was a challenge to respond to quickly changing public health information. BCIT was one of the post-secondary institutes that had a significant portion of programs still attending our campuses.
What do you enjoy the most about working in post-secondary education?
The enthusiasm of my colleagues and ongoing commitment to health and safety by the BCIT community.
What are some Institute projects or initiatives that make you proud?
Implementation of the two major software platforms: Cority (branded as IRIS) for incident and hazard reporting, and CampusOptics to track JOHSC safety inspections, chemical inventories, and SDSs. Before IRIS was implemented, employee and student injury reporting was by PDF documents, making it difficult to track and to run reports for employee and student injuries, which are provided monthly to BCIT’s Joint Occupational Health and Safety Committees (JOHSCs). Online incident and hazard reporting enables better documentation, tracking of action items, and more efficient trend analysis. CampusOptics is an online centralized chemical inventory system that all BCIT can access. Safety Data Sheets associated with these chemicals are also maintained in CampusOptics, which outlines key safety information, supporting the right for employees to know about the hazards in their workplace. CampusOptics also tracks inspections performed by BCIT’s 16 JOHSCs. All six campuses are included in this system, and JOHSC members can easily see what safety inspections are due, what issues were identified during the inspections, and if the issues have been actioned or not.
Is there an Institute event or initiative that you look forward to?
The Kick Start events are a busy event but really rewarding to see excited students trying to find out more information about BCIT.
Do you have a favourite spot or activity at the BCIT campuses?
The BCIT weight room is one of my favourite places on campus – I can go there after work, destress and miss rush hour traffic. What a great facility, friendly staff, and a good variety of free weights and weight machines. I encourage anyone to check out the new cardio equipment!
What are you passionate about outside of work?
Some sports I enjoy outside of BCIT include tennis, cycling, and running. I find participating in a variety of sports helps to keep me relatively injury free. I play in a spring tennis league where I play clubs throughout the Lower Mainland, and I’m a member of Tennis BC’s Board of Directors. I’ve run many marathons, including Boston, New York City, Chicago, London, Tokyo, and Berlin. I’m planning to run the Cape Town marathon in 2026. I also enjoy backpacking and I’ve hiked the West Coast Trail, and the North Coast Trail on Vancouver Island, as well in the Alps, Pyrenees, and Dolomites in Europe.
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