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Southwest Technical Resource Center for IPM in Schools

Members of the CFBISD school board and staff were presented with certificates and plaques during the June meeting. From left to right: John Tepper, CFBISD School Board President, Victor Melton, Environmental Safety Coordinator, Danny Roberts, IPM Coordinator, Johnny Hibbs, director of maintenance and Schott Behner, Grounds IPM Coordinator.

Janet Hurley and David Lewis, IPM Coordinator for Plano ISD conducting an inspection.

Janet Hurley inspecting the outside of a school.

School IPM Program Helps Two Dallas Area Schools Receive National Honors

With the help from Texas AgriLife Extension Service, two North Texas school districts have earned national recognition for implementing integrated pest management (IPM) on their campuses.

Integrated pest management (IPM) is a knowledge-intensive strategy for managing pests using sampling, pest damage thresholds, knowledge of pest biology, and multiple control tactics selected to pose minimal health and environmental risks

The Carrollton-Farmers Branch and Plano school districts recently earned IPM Star certification, according to the IPM Institute of North America. The suburban-Dallas districts are the first in Texas and among only 33 others in the country with the distinction.

The IPM Institute is a non-profit organization that sets management standards and consults with companies and public agencies on implementing IPM.

“The districts have been working long and hard since 2002 to meet the rigorous standards set by the institute,” said Janet Hurley, an AgriLife Extension program specialist in Dallas who works with the districts on integrated pest management. “IPM Star certification is the highest praise a district can receive for managing pests.”

Carrollton-Farmers Branch received its formal certification during a June 26 school board meeting. Plano will be holding its formal certification during a meeting in August.

During training sessions, district employees learn a wide variety of pest management measures to deprive the unwanted creatures of the food, water and shelter pests need to thrive in a building, Hurley said.

Some tactics emphasized in the training include screening attic vents; sealing utility conduits; repairing cracks in pipes, walls and foundations; trimming tree branches away from roofs; and diligently cleaning food remains throughout buildings.

Formal policies and consistent, thorough recordkeeping help districts stay on task, she said.

Hurley coordinates the Southwest Technical Resource Center for IPM in Schools, which is housed at Texas AgriLife Research and Extension Urban Solutions Center in Dallas. Established in 2001 with help from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the center promotes awareness of integrated pest management and provides technical support to schools and childcare facilities in Texas, Oklahoma and New Mexico.

For more information, visit http://schoolipm.tamu.edu and www.ipminstitute.org