Stop School Pests and iPestManager – School IPM Educational Programs Report
Thank you for attending the Stop School Pest and iPestManager webinar broadcast on May 10, 2016, a part of the School IPM Webinar series hosted by EPA’s Center of Expertise for School IPM.
Speakers
- Dawn Gouge, Ph.D., University of Arizona
- Janet Hurley, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension
- Marcia Anderson, Ph.D., EPA’s Center of Expertise for School IPM (Moderator)
Resources
These school IPM resources are available: The following links exit the site Exit
Questions and Answers
The questions below were posed by the webinar participants. The responses may have been refined by the presenters following the webinar for clarification or to include additional resources.
General Questions
- Will the presentation be available for download? Where?
You can access a recording of the webinar Exit.
- Where is a good source of promotional materials, posters, ect. to help educate our teachers, students and staff on IPM?
(M. Anderson) EPA’s Managing Pest in Schools website; eXtension’s School Integrated Pest Management” website; and the IPM Institute of North America’s School IPM 2020 website.
- Where are links to the resources discussed in today’s webinar?
These school IPM resources are accessible through both your computer, tablet, and smartphone at iSchoolPestManager and StopSchoolPests.
Specific Questions
- What pest-related topics are covered with school nurses?
(D. Gouge) Health risks associated with common pests; appropriate personal hygiene and facility sanitation measures to help prevent or reduce the spread of bed bugs, head lice, scabies mites, and ringworm; common pesticide poisoning symptoms; allergy and asthma triggers in classrooms including mice, class pets, mold, cockroaches; and chemical sensitivities.
- How important is it to have all the work roles listed, participate in this kind of education?
(D. Gouge) The more people who are involved, the easier it is for everyone; but, starting with one group is better than none. Most efforts begin with one or two groups and expand from there.
- What if I like the materials and want to host a class but do not feel confident enough to teach it myself?
(D. Gouge) I highly recommend contacting EPA’s Center of Expertise for School IPM (school.ipm@epa.gov; 844–EPA–SIPM) or your EPA Regional School IPM Coordinator. The EPA staff may direct you to experienced instructors in your state. You can also research instructors directly by looking at the contacts provided by the School IPM 2020 group.
- Can the training modules be used for continuing education?
(D. Gouge) Eventually, we will be seeking approval to offer continuing education credits with this training. If you contact me directly (dhgouge@email.arizona.edu) with a specific request, we will seek to make your state a priority.
- What are your thoughts regarding kitchen staff being only 60% regarding these issues?
(D. Gouge) IPM is a critical, but often under-recognized part of food safety. We are working to incorporate ServSafe® standards into the education materials. I believe this will help. But we do need the materials to be available in multiple languages and that is beyond the scope of this grant, but completely doable. If you think there are other ways to engage this group, please let us know.
- Are there training materials in other languages, such as Spanish?
(D.Gouge) The StopSchoolPests materials are not available in Spanish, but I do believe iSchoolPestManager houses some Spanish language materials.
- How often do you need to be recertified?
(D. Gouge) No reoccurring certification is necessary.
- Are there modules for ticks and Rocky Mountain spotted fever?
(D. Gouge) The CDC is currently reviewing materials covering ticks. In the meantime, message me (mdhgouge@email.arizona.edu) if you would like PowerPoints on these topics.
Upcoming School IPM Webinars
We welcome your participation in our upcoming webinars and ask you to encourage your peers to attend. These presentations are geared specifically to school and school district facility managers, buildings and grounds managers and staff, childcare facility managers, and school IPM practitioners. School nurses, school administrators, health officials, and pest management professionals are welcome to attend.