Schools have a serious responsibility to educate and care for your children throughout the school year. A large part of a schools responsibility is to provide a healthy and safe learning environment for your children. This is a task that not properly be tackled if there are pests that have infiltrated the school. Do you ever wonder just how your children are being protected from pests in the school? This quick guide can help.

Integrated Pest Management

Decades ago, the norm was to simply spray whatever chemical pest control solution was the most appropriate that particular pest problem was present. There was not a lot of care or concern for the well-being of the students, as it was not thought that these chemicals might endanger their health. Today however, we know better.

Integrated Pest Management was created to make use of non-chemical pest control wherever possible, and many schools are beginning to adopt these non-chemical practices. Some states even have laws that mandate them. The idea here is that schools sit down and evaluate their current pest management program so they can establish areas that may need improvement. From there, they will create a plan that identifies routine procedures and then decide upon a course of action should a bigger problem arise.

Regular meetings have to be part of this, and once a pest problem is spotted, low impact removal methods are always preferred over traditional chemical interventions. The difference is that pest problems are often spotted sooner, and thus other methods can be used to protect students while dealing with the pests. What's more, though, is that staff cooperation is involved extensively with this plan. There are often pest sighting logs and the like to make certain problems are kept to a minimum.

Other Options

Integrated Pest Management is far from the norm in schools, though. Many schools still take a wait and see approach, simply dealing with problems as they come up. While this certainly is not a bad method, the key is to have the right help in place before a problem comes up. Working with an exterminator on an ongoing basis, even if he or she simply comes in once a month to evaluate potential problems, can keep students safe and infestations out of the building.

Are you wondering what your school is doing to keep pests out? If you are not sure, then you may want to touch base with your school administrator or even a school board member to see what pest control plan they utilize. The last thing you want to hear about when you pick your child up at school is the roach infestation they had in the cafeteria. YUCK!

If they are not currently utilizing a pest management company that utilizes integrated pest management, you might encourage them to do so, for the safety and well-being of all students. In Massachusetts, look for a pest control contractor that is FAC-74 certified.