College of Agriculture held Home
and Farm Safety Expo for 5th graders

The College of Agriculture at Arkansas State University in Jonesboro hosted a Home and Farm Safety Expo for 5^th graders in the area on Wednesday, Oct. 6, at the Craighead County Fairgrounds in Jonesboro.

Each year hundreds of children across the nation are injured in home and farm accidents on everything from ATV’s to tractors to chemical exposures, according to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.

Safety education is the only way to reduce accident-related injuries and fatalities and was the focus of the expo, which was held from 8:30 a.m. until 1:30 p.m. Students learned:

First Aid and 911

ATV safety

Tractor Roll-over and Run-over prevention

Electrical safety

Combine safety

Grain bin safety

Gun safety  

Animal safety

           Chemical Safety

Schools throughout Northeast Arkansas were invited earlier in the school year to send 5^th graders to the Home and Farm Safety Expo. More than 300 students registered for the expo which included students from Bay Elementary (Craighead County), Brookland Middle School (Craighead County), Cherry Valley Elementary (Cross County), Crowley’s Ridge Academy Elementary in Paragould (Greene County), Harrisburg Middle School (Poinsett County), Hickory Ridge Elementary (Cross County) and Vanndale Elementary (Cross County).

In 1999, a committee was formed to address child safety issues in Northeast Arkansas. This committee is made up of a diverse group of volunteer individuals from business, industry, and education that are deeply concerned for the safety of children.

Since its inception, the committee has hosted four successful safety expos for children in Northeast Arkansas.

At the expo, 5^th grade students learned about safety through presentations, role playing and hands-on experiences. Eleven stations were set up as students were guided through 15 - 20 minute presentations at each of the 11 stations.

Among the presenters were: Arkansas Farm Bureau with Jeremy Wesson, safety coordinator; St. Bernards Medical Center of Jonesboro, Arkansas Game & Fish Commission, Craighead County Cooperative Extension Service, Farm Credit Services, Emerson Ambulance Service, Fire Protection of Arkansas, John Deere - Melton Bros., Craighead Electric and vocational agriculture teachers Steve Davis and Fred Swaggart.

Approximately seven high school Future Farmers of America (FFA) chapters provided more than 45 students as group leaders to assist in the group sessions. In addition, Papa John’s Pizza and Coca Cola of Jonesboro provided lunch for everyone attending and participating in the expo.

In addition to the ASU College of Agriculture, other lead sponsors were St. Bernards Medical Center, RiceTec Inc. and Town & Country International Inc.

For more information, please contact, Dr. Kevin Humphrey at 870-972-2203 or email him at jhumphre@astate.edu.