The 2011 Statewide School IPM Coordinators Conference, a Texas AgriLife Extension Service and Texas Association of School Business Officials joint venture, is slated for Nov. 16-17 at the Embassy Suites, 1001 East McCarty Lane, San Marcos.
The first day’s activities will run from 1-6 p.m. while the second day’s program will be from 8 a.m. – 5 p.m.
“This conference is geared toward public school integrated pest management coordinators or maintenance/operations directors, but we’re encouraging anyone with an interest in protecting people and the environment to participate,” said Janet Hurley, a conference planner and AgriLife Extension program specialist for school integrated pest management at Dallas. “More and more pest management professionals are practicing the environmentally responsible methods integrated pest management offers with its limited use of pesticides as a way to protect students, teachers, staff and the environment.”
Hurley said speakers from school districts across the state will present many of the talks, which will range from pests as carriers of disease in the classroom to keeping pests out of dirty floor drains and what to do when undesirable insects invade a school campus.
“A major conference highlight will be the recognition of three Houston area independent school districts, Katy, Klein and Spring, as IPM Star Schools,”
Hurley said. “Gaining this honor is no easy feat, because it really takes commitment on the part of everyone in the school district to make this achievement happen. It’s quite an honor.
“Dr. Tom Green our keynote speaker, will present the awards to the schools,” she said. “Green, president of the IPM Institute of North America, Inc. in Madison, WI, has dedicated his career to helping to improve health, the environment and economics through integrated pest management. Along with making the presentations to the schools, he’ll be speaking on ways to take integrated pest management programs to a higher level.”
Other conference topics will address monitoring programs, indoor air quality, conducting integrated pest management inspections, engaging parents and the community in integrated pest management programs, green turf management, termites, and the top 10 mistakes schools make during a Texas Department of Agriculture inspection.
Texas Association of School Business Officials members are encouraged to attend their association’s meeting, which is also at Embassy Suites, beginning Nov. 15 just prior to the IPM coordinators conference. Registration for that event is $175 per person.
Individual registration for the 2011 Statewide School IPM Coordinators Conference is $125. Individual registration for both events is $280.
For more information and to register, contact Hurley at 877-747-6872 or 972-952-9213, ja-hurley@tamu.edu .
For more information on integrated pest management in schools see, https://schoolipm.tamu.edu.