About the Center

The goal of the Great Lakes Center for Agricultural Safety and Health (GLCASH) is to promote agricultural safety and health for farm, forestry and fishery employers, workers, families and their communities in the Great Lakes region. The Great Lakes Center serves the states of: Illinois (IL), Indiana (IN), Kentucky (KY), Michigan (MI), Minnesota (MN), Ohio (OH), Pennsylvania (PA), Wisconsin (WI) and West Virginia (WV). Other CDC/NIOSH Agricultural Safety and Health Centers may overlap some of these states. It is expected that activities within these states will be communicated and coordinated among Centers. The states within the Center’s working circle share many common attributes, i.e., crops, farming practices, farm sizes, migrant streams, poverty in the Appalachian areas, strong commercial fishing and timber industries, to mention a few.

The Great Lakes Center is based at The Ohio State University (OSU). The Administration team within the Center is a strong collaborative effort between the College of Food, Agriculture and Environmental Science (CFAES) and the OSU School of Public Health in the OSU College of Medicine and Public Health. Dr. Jay Wilkins serves as the Center Director, Professor, OSU School of Public Health. Assisting the Director, Dr. Thomas L. Bean, Department of Food, Agricultural, and Biological Engineering Chair, serves as Deputy Director. In addition, the Center has three core areas of operation. The Multi-Disciplinary Research Core that facilitates/promotes interaction/collaboration among researchers affiliated with the Center is directed also by Dr. Thomas L. Bean. The Prevention/ Education Core facilitates the development, implementation of evaluation projects, intervention effectiveness research and provides technical assistance in evaluation design is directed by Dr. Tom Archer, Ohio State University Extension. The Outreach Core, directed by Dr. Dee Jepsen, Ohio State Safety Leader, oversees collaborations, which facilitate the transition of research results into practical educational programs targeting Extension Field staff, public health professionals, scientists, and other professionals engaged in agricultural safety and health issues.

The Great Lakes Center for Agricultural Safety and Health currently has the following agricultural safety and health focus areas: Ergonomics; Pesticide Exposure and Health Effects Assessment; Acute Unintentional Injury; Virtual Reality Simulation of Hazardous Agricultural Jobs and Agricultural Safety and Health Education and Outreach.