Skip to page content
Combine harvesting a field of grain.

Provide Graduate Opportunities

Purdue's Agricultural Safety and Health Program has set a goal to prepare the very best agricultural safety and health researchers and educators possible. It is anticipated that the demand for these individuals, both in the United States and abroad, will increase as the sensitivity to agricultural safety and health issues increases. Presently, few other graduate programs in the United States offer this type of formal preparation. During the past 31 years, over 35 graduate-level degrees in agricultural safety and health have been completed. Over 20 of these graduates are presently in leadership roles in the agricultural safety and health profession, Extension Education, or teaching at the university or college levels.

The graduate program in agricultural safety and health within the Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering utilizes an interdisciplinary approach involving areas of course work outside the field of agricultural engineering to prepare strong plans of study. These areas include educational psychology, industrial safety, industrial engineering, agricultural education, human factors, health education, and industrial hygiene.

The following is a summary of graduate degrees that have been awarded to date:

  • Durkes, M.S. Assessing Needs of Vocational Agriculture Teachers with Respect to farm Safety. May 1982.
  • R.L. Tormoehlen, M.S. Determining the Proportion and Nature of Physical Handicaps Affecting Active Farm Operators in Indiana. May 1982.
  • W.E. Sell, M.S. Analysis of Power-Take-Off Related Accidents. December 1984.
  • Tormoehlen, Ph.D. Economical Modeling of the Losses Associated with Farm-Related Permanent Disabilities. May 1985.
  • R.S. Williams, M.S. Biomass and the Environment. May 1985.
  • W.P. Campbell, M.S. Power-Take-Off Driveline Shielding and Education Effectiveness. May 1986.
  • J.M. Shutske, Ph.D. Sensing and Controlling Fires on Agricultural Equipment. December 1987.
  • T.L. Wilkinson, M.S. Agricultural Equipment Modifications for Physically Disabled Farm Operators. May 1987.
  • M.A. Purschwitz, Ph.D. Development of a Data Collection System for Fatal and Permanently Disabling Farm Accidents. August 1989.
  • T.L. Wilkinson, Ph.D. Power-Take-Off Entanglement Risk Factor Analysis. August 1991.
  • E.J. Sheldon, M.S. Alternative Enterprises and Off-Farm Employment Options for Farmers with Physical Disabilities. August 1992.
  • E.J. Sheldon, M.S. Review and Analysis of Farm Work-Related Injuries and Fatalities Involving Children and Adolescents Through Age 17. December 1992.
  • S.A. Freeman, Ph.D. A Knowledge System for the Selection and Documentation of Rural Assistive Technology. May 1993.
  • Z. You, Ph.D. The Design of Farm-Related Accident Only Disability Income Insurance. May 1993.
  • P.B. Allen, M.S. An Assessment of the Risks and Safety Education Training Needs of Farmers and Ranchers with Severe Physical Disabilities. August 1993.
  • A.J. Ploss, M.S. An Assessment of the Accessibility of Indiana High School Agricultural Education Programs for Students with Physical Disabilities. May 1994.
  • S.D. Whitman, M.S. Preventing Tractor Related Injuries Among Aged Farmers: Using Farm Injury Data and Formative Audience to Construct Persuasive Safety Messages. August 1994.
  • E.J. Sheldon, Ph.D. CAI/Multimedia Approach to Farm Tractor and Machinery Safety Certification. May 1995.
  • K.W. Kelley, M.S. Flow Characteristics of Gravity-Flow Grain Wagons Contributing to Engulfment in Flowing Grain and Possible Intervention Strategies. December 1995.
  • L. Zheng, M.S. Using Remote Controls to Improve the Accessibility to Agricultural Equipment. January 1996.
  • J.J. Carrabba, M.S. Effectiveness of Indiana 4-H Tractor Program at Instilling Safe Tractor Operating Behaviors and Attitudes in Youth. December 1998.
  • N.S. Sutherlin, M.S. Summary of Fatal Farm Work-Related Injuries to Children and Adolescents in Indiana and Wisconsin from 1970-1999. May 2001.
  • D.M. Kingman, M.S. Prevention Strategies for Flowing Grain Entrapments in On-Farm Grain Storage Bins. May 2000.
  • D.M. Kingman, Ph.D. Utilizing a Systems Approach to Develop an On-Farm Grain Storage Hazard Assessment Tool. May 2002.
  • A.M. Yoder, Ph.D. Ergonomic Evaluation of Commercially Available Operator Lifts for Farmers with Disabilities. December 2002.
  • R.R. Ortega, M.S. Analysis and Evaluation of the Effectiveness of the 4-H CAI/Multimedia Farm Tractor and Machinery Safety Certification Program. May 2003.
  • S.R. Beer, M.S. Development of a National Database Management System for Power-Take-Off Related Injuries and Fatalities. May 2004.
  • J. Kunkler, M.S. Farm-related Injuries in Amish and Old Order Communities. December 2004.
  • J. Metcalf, M.S. Enhanced Upper Limb Prosthetics for Farmers Who Have Experienced Upper Limb Loss. May 2005.
  • R. Beaver, M.S. Summary of Fatalities in Manure Storage and Handling Facilities. May 2005.
  • C. Racz, M.S. Preferences for Dissemination of Rural Assistive Technology Information. December 2006.
  • S. Bullock, Ph.D. Evaluating the Effectiveness of a Visually-Based Farm Tractor and Machinery Safety Curriculum Compared to a Text-Based Curriculum. December 2006.
  • M. Roberts, M.S. Summary of Prior Grain Entrapment Rescue Strategies and Application Principles Associated with using a Grain Rescue Tube as a Grain Retaining Device. August 2008.
  • S. Mathew, Ph.D. An Assessment Process to Estimate the Secondary Injury Potential of Assistive Technology Adopted by Farmers with Disabilities. December 2009.
  • A. Mann, M.S. Identification, Development, Validation, and Dissemination of Written Exam Items for the Agricultural Hazardous Occupations Order (AgHOs) Certification Training Program. August 2010.

At present, six graduate students are pursuing advanced degrees in the areas of agricultural safety and health. They are:

  • B. Hoover, ASM, Ph.D.
  • M. McClure, ASM, Ph.D.
  • R. Stuthridge, ASM, Ph.D.
  • C. Racz, ASM, Ph.D.
  • S. Snyder, ASM, Ph.D.
  • P. O'Conner, ASM, M.S.
  • S. Riedel, ASM, M.S.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              
Last updated: 07-Dec-2011 3:17 PM