Janet Hurley, a program specialist with the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service, has received the Associate Certified Entomologist Award from the Entomological Society of America. The society recognized her for her years of work in structural pest management, protecting Texas schoolchildren and communities from pest-related health risks.
Hurley coordinates integrated pest management training for public schools. She also oversees the IPM Experience House at the Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Center at Dallas, where pest management professionals and homeowners learn to identify and address structural pest problems.
Hurley said the award is special because her IPM mentor, Mike Merchant, a retired AgriLife Extension urban entomologist, helped create it. She said Merchant thought it was important to recognize people focused on pest control.
Hurley is co-principal investigator, with Claudia Riegel of the City of New Orleans Mosquito, Termite and Rodent Control Board, on a five-year project funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The project raises awareness of vector-borne diseases and coordinates training among pest management, public health, animal health and pre-service students.