Private Pesticide Safety Education Program Clinics

The Illinois Pesticide Act requires individual farmers to become certified as a Private Pesticide Applicator in order to purchase and use restricted use pesticides (RUPs). These products will clearly state the words "Restricted Use Pesticide" on the label. Common examples include the insecticides Counter, Force, and Pounce, and the herbicides Atrazine, Gramoxone Max, and Harness.

To become certified, you must pass a closed-book, 50 question examination administered by representatives of the Illinois Department of Agriculture (IDA). Once passed, a three-year certification license will be issued by the IDA upon receipt of a $30 licensing fee. To help you prepare for the examination, the University of Illinois Extension offers Pesticide Safety Education Program (PSEP) clinics as well as online training, a training manual and workbook.

The reorganization of Extension has resulted in a change for Private PSEP clinics as well. We are moving to fewer, larger, more regional clinics. The schedule for the 2010-2011 Private training and testing clinics is:

Date-Location-Facility

Dec. 14, 2010 - Springfield - Crowne Plaza

Dec. 17, 2010* - Collinsville - Gateway Center

Jan. 6, 2011 - Rockford - Clock Tower - B.W.

Jan. 7, 2011 - Rock Falls - Rock Falls Hotel & Conf Ctr.

Jan. 10, 2011 - Mt. Vernon - Holiday Inn

Jan. 13, 2011 - Effingham - Keller Convention Center

Jan. 18, 2011 - Springfield - Crowne Plaza

Jan. 28, 2011 - Champaign I-Hotel

Feb. 18, 2011 - Kankakee - Knights of Columbus

Feb. 22, 2011 - Peoria - Holiday Inn City Center

Feb. 25, 2011 - Bloomington - Chateau Hotel & Conf. Center

Mar. 1, 2011 - Galesburg - Best Western Prairie Inn

Mar. 4, 2011 - Quincy - Quincy City Center Hotel

Mar. 8, 2011 - Utica

Celebrations 150 Ltd.

*Also offers Grain Fumigation Training

For all clinics, training will be offered from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm. Testing will offered from 1:00 to 3:00 pm.  Please be advised that there is a $30 clinic fee and preregistration requirement.  This $30 fee is for training only, and is separate from the $30 licensing fee charged by IDA. You can register for one of the clinics listed above by calling 877-626-1650 or by visiting our website at www.pesticidesafety.uiuc.edu. Enter the site, select Training Schedule, and then Private. If you are unable to attend a Private PSEP clinic, consider using the online Private PSEP training program, also available from our website.

Another option for studying on your own is the Private Applicator training manual and workbook. The manual was revised in 1999, and the workbook was revised in 2005. Use the manual as a reference to complete the workbook before attending a clinic. To purchase a manual or workbook, please contact your local Extension office.