Overview
The National Mine Health and Safety Academy is one of eight Federal academies operated by the U.S. Government and was opened for service in August, 1976. The Academy’s primary focus is training the mine safety and health inspectors and technical support personnel of the Mine Safety and Health Administration. Some examples of training offered include entry-level, journeyman, specialist, and supervisor training. Mining professionals from across the United States and many foreign countries come to the Academy for a variety of health and safety training, including: mine rescue, fire brigade, and accident investigation. At this facility, students are exposed to a variety of different disciplines in five different laboratories using hands-on instructional techniques.
The Academy is located in Beckley, West Virginia, on a 74-acre site near the Raleigh County Airport. The Academy complex consists of twelve buildings: The Residence Hall, Administration Building, Classroom Building, Electrical Laboratory Building, Publication Distribution Center Building, Gymnasium, National Air and Dust Laboratory Building, Mine Emergency Operations Building, Mine Simulation Laboratory Building, Surface Simulation Laboratory Building, the Beckley District Office Building, and the Maintenance Garage Building.
The Academy complex includes classrooms and laboratories that can accommodate up to 600 students, a residence hall consisting of 174 lodging rooms, a cafeteria that can seat 300 people,, library, auditorium that can seat 284 people, and wellness facilities.
The gymnasium is a modern, fully-equipped facility suitable for wellness and physical fitness training for students. Wellness facilities include: racquetball court, table games, sauna, modern up-to-date conditioning room, indoor Junior Olympic sized (25 meter) swimming pool that was recently renovated, and an outdoor sports field.
The MSHA Beckley Enforcement District and the National Air and Dust Laboratory were recently relocated from a leased facility in Mt. Hope, WV to the Academy.