Welcome to the Department of Pesticide Regulation
School IPM

School Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Home Page

Welcome to the California School IPM web site! This site has been created by the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) as part of its implementation of the Healthy Schools Act. Here you will find a variety of documents, web links, and other resources related to the Act and to integrated pest management in schools.

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What is integrated pest management (IPM)? Integrated pest management is a widely accepted approach to pest management that results in effective suppression of pest populations while minimizing human health and environmental hazards. wedge more...

School and flag

What is the Healthy Schools Act? The Healthy Schools Act put into code DPR’s existing voluntary school IPM program and added some requirements for schools, such as parental notification of pesticide applications, warning signs, recordkeeping at schools and pesticide use reporting by licensed pest control businesses that apply pesticides at schools. DPR is committed to facilitating voluntary adoption of IPM policies and programs in schools throughout California, and will be assisting school districts with their implementation of the Healthy Schools Act. wedge more...

What’s New

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School IPM Survey Report, 2010

The report for the 2010 School IPM survey, 2010 Integrated Pest Management Survey of California School Districts, was recently published. In the survey, school district employees answered questions about their pesticide use and pest management practices and about their compliance with the Healthy Schools Act requirements. This was the fifth survey conducted since 2000; therefore, the results were analyzed for trends in these areas. According to the survey results, over two thirds of school districts report adopting an IPM program. School districts report that IPM programs were more effective and saved districts money.

School IPM Publication

A Survey of California Public School Districts’ Ant and Weed Management Practices and a Review of Their Use of IPM, was published in the April 2012 edition of the Journal of Environmental Health. The article describes the use of IPM practices used for ant and weed management in California public schools and is based on information from DPR's 2001, 2002, and 2004 School IPM surveys.

IPM Toolkit for Child Care Providers

Integrated Pest Management: A Toolkit for Early Care and Education Programs presents practical information about using integrated pest management (IPM) to prevent and manage pest problems in child care centers. Follow the link above to view the Toolkit in its entirety, which includes a curriculum booklet, health and safety notes, IPM posters, and an IPM checklist.

List of Pesticide Products Prohibited from Use in Schools and Child Care Facilities
(English, PDF, 96 kb) (En Español, PDF, 93 kb)

Child Care IPM Electronic Notification List

Would you like to receive IPM information that is specific to the child care setting? Sign up for DPR’s new Child Care IPM electronic notification list to receive announcements regarding the Healthy Schools Act, training opportunities for child care providers, IPM resources, green cleaning and other pest management topics related to child care IPM.

School IPM workshops scheduled for 2012-2013

Please check back. New workshop dates will be added as they become available.