UW News

August 16, 2007

Public Health honors state’s farmworker trainers

Patricia W. Wahl, dean of the UW School of Public Health and Community Medicine, presented the School’s first Community Service Award for Community Partners to Ofelio Borges and Flor Servin at a luncheon celebration on July 20. Borges and Servin are farmworker trainers for the Washington State Department of Agriculture’s (WSDA) Farmworker Education Program.

The Community Service Award for Community Partners was established because students in the School’s Pacific Northwest Agricultural Safety and Health (PNASH) Center wished to honor Borges and Servin for their knowledge and expertise, and the way they have encouraged and mentored students.

Jon Hofmann, a doctoral student in epidemiology who worked with both honorees in the Yakima Valley, said, “their enthusiasm and dedication is inspiring. They have greatly expanded our learning opportunities beyond the classroom and helped us to actually serve the public.”

The Farmworker Education Program offers “train-the-trainer” workshops and hands-on training on safe pesticide handling practices for agricultural employees. Borges and Servin have trained over 18,000 individuals, primarily young, Hispanic males. In addition to their work with the WSDA, they are dedicated collaborators with industry, extension services, and researchers. For the past two years, Borges and Servin have been key partners in the work of the PNASH Center. Both PNASH and the agricultural community greatly value their expertise and commitment to serving as a bridge between research and workplace pesticide safety practices.

Borges and Sevin have contributed to PNASH’s efforts by: working to develop the Fluorescent Tracer Manual: An Educational Tool for Pesticide Educators; serving on advisory boards for the PNASH Center and El Proyecto Bienstar (The Well-Being Project); assisting with the questionnaire design, recruitment, and testing for a study on risk factors for cholinesterase depression; and speaking at workshops and academic conferences on research and practice.

Dean Wahl said, “Our School is known for its collaborative research, training, and service activities and for building community alliances that bridge science and public health practice. Ofelio Borges and Flor Servin exemplify the kind of partners we need to help train our students to serve our communities.”

Now that the award has been established, Dean Wahl said the School of Public Health and Community Medicine plans to honor a community partner annually at a reception that highlights students’ work in the community.