State Project Feature: Kentucky AgrAbility Project

Kentucky is a largely rural state. AgrAbility has made a home in the bluegrass under the leadership of John Hancock since 1993. John recognizes the importance of providing resources and reassurance to farmers and rural residents with disabilities, and to that end, Kentucky AgrAbility has provided direct technical assistance to nearly 500 Kentuckians with disabilities since its inception. Kentucky AgrAbility works as a partnership between the Kentucky Cooperative Extension Service and Cardinal Hill Rehabilitation Hospital and serves all 120 counties in the commonwealth.

Services provided by Kentucky AgrAbility include: direct on-farm technical assistance (such as modifying tools, equipment, and machinery); making recommendations to make homes and farm buildings more accessible; facilitating networking among farmers with disabilities to share ideas, experiences, and support; referring individuals to appropriate agencies and organizations that best meet their needs; training rural professionals on rehabilitation technology in agriculture, and; providing awareness resources to Kentuckians so that they call upon Kentucky AgrAbility if needed.

Plowing Into the Future

Kentucky AgrAbility recognizes that technology and the changing landscape of our society mean new challenges and opportunities for rural Kentuckians. Kentucky AgrAbility has strong ties with Kentucky GROW, a three year grant funded by the Rehabilitation Services Administration, in an effort to provide agricultural employment opportunities for people with disabilities. In addition, Kentucky AgrAbility works closely with the Interdisciplinary Human Development Institute at the University of Kentucky to increase awareness of AgrAbility for people with developmental disabilities and their families.

Your Kentucky AgrAbility Project Contact Information

www.ihdi.uky.edu/agrability/kyagrability.htm

John Hancock
University of Kentucky
Cooperative Extension Service
304 Garrigus Building
Lexington, KY 40546-0215
toll free: 800-333-2814
phone: 859-257-1845
fax: 859-323-1991
jhancock@uky.edu

Kathy Sheppard-Jones
University of Kentucky
Cooperative Extension Service
209 Mineral Industries Building
Lexington, KY 40506-0051
phone: 859-257-8104
fax: 859-323-1901
kjone@uky.edu

Linda Freudenberger
Cardinal Hill Rehabilitation Hospital
2050 Versailles Road
Lexington, KY 40504
lmf2@cardinalhill.org

Brent Garrett
725 Kentucky Utilities Building
One Quality Street
Lexington, KY 40507-1428
bgarret@uky.edu

Kentucky AgrAbility Staff

A color photo of the Kentucky AgrAbility staff posing together in a room.
From Left to Right: Brett Garrett, Kathy Sheppard-Jones, John Hancock, & Linda Fruedenberger

John Hancock, M.S., is the project director of Kentucky AgrAbility with nearly 20 years experience in agriculture and rehabilitation. He is a former Kentucky Cooperative Extension Service agent and brings a vast knowledge of agricultural resources and technology to AgrAbility. When he isn’t working one-on-one with farmers around the state, he can be found on his own land in Mercer county, usually tinkering with some gadget that just might make a job easier for one of the farmers with whom he works.

Linda Freudenberger, OTR/L, works with John at farm site visits, providing valuable perspective on ergonomics and compensatory strategies to help clients find new techniques to accomplish tasks. Linda also provides pre-service training to up and coming professionals in the field. She works at Cardinal Hill Rehabilitation Hospital. This enables Kentucky AgrAbility to become involved in the rehabilitation process for a rural resident who has become injured or ill, sometimes even before that person returns home.

Kathy Sheppard-Jones, PhD, CRC, oversees training opportunities and resource development for Kentucky AgrAbility. She coordinates the yearly Kentucky AgrAbility conference, produces newsletters, fact sheets, and other resource materials, and seeks ways to spread the word about Kentucky AgrAbility services. She conducts quality of life research and teaches at the University of Kentucky. In her free time, Kathy trains and shows Morgan horses.

Brent Garrett, PhD, has come on board Kentucky AgrAbility to help provide ongoing evaluation of the project’s activities. He is the “data guy” who helps determine what we are doing well and what needs are present in Kentucky that we might be able to better meet. Brent oversees several evaluation endeavors at the Interdisciplinary Human Development Institute and teaches at the University of Kentucky.

Other important collaborators:

Barney Fleming, rehabilitation engineer, often travels with John around the state to provide additional insight when rehabilitation technology may be needed. John and Barney recently presented at the national Association for Driver Rehabilitation Specialists (ADED) conference on agricultural modifications for field and forest.

Matt John, M.S., often works with Kentucky AgrAbility in his capacity as project director of Kentucky GROW. Matt is a former Cooperative Extension Service agent who assists individuals with disabilities who are considering self-employment in agriculture.

BACK: Assistive Technology – Making and Handling Hay Bales Has Gotten Easier

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In This Issue
Section 1: Client Story: Incident Makes Kentucky Farmer Think Twice About Safety Section 2: Focus – Making and Handling Hay Bales Section 3: Assistive Technology – Making and Handling Hay Bales Has Gotten Easier	Section 4: State Project Feature: Kentucky AgrAbility Project Section 5: References Section 6: Contacts