Ohio AgrAbility Peer-to-Peer meeting in August 2025. Credit: Courtesy of Laura Akgerman
Injury, illness or disability should be no barrier for Ohio farmers thanks to an Ohio State initiative to improve accessibility.
Ohio State and Easterseals Redwood have partnered for Ohio AgrAbility, a program where disabled farmers and their relatives can receive general assistance or technologies to support their farming.
?“I help farmers who have incurred injury, illness or disability on or off the farm, and we help them get back to farming in whatever ways that looks like for them,” said Rachel Jarman, a rural rehabilitation coordinator for Ohio AgrAbility. “We focus on making sure that the farmer is able to continue to work on their farm and earn an income.”
AgrAbility helps connect farmers with state resources such as Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities, peer-to-peer services with other disabled farmers and educational sessions, Jepsen said.
“We are kind of that bridge that connects the farmers to the state resources that they are deserving of,” said Dee Jepsen, director of the program and an Ohio State professor in state agricultural safety and health. “We’re those friendly people that say, you know, let’s see if we can put your case through.”?
A disabled farmer or their relative can call Ohio AgrAbility to receive recommendations that they can implement themselves on how to adapt their farm land.
“There may be suggestions that I can make easily and they can change that tomorrow,” Jarman said. “I went to the farm and I still said ‘Ok, well, have you thought about putting a lawn chair right here and instead of bending over, have you sit down?’”?
Jarman said she has also suggested hand gardening tools with adjusted handles.
“If you have arthritis or you don’t have great grip strength, you can still, again, plant flowers. Do something that gives you joy,” Jarman said.?
If the farmer is seeking state funding to adapt their farm, then the initiative can help the farmers file their application and guide them through the process, Jarman said.?
“If they are going through Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities, then we follow their case all the way to the point where they receive whatever it is,” Jarman said. “If they are to get approved for services, then OOD asks AgrAbility to go and then do the farm assessment.”?
From there, Ohio AgrAbility will make formal recommendations on the accommodations needed and follow through to see that they are implemented, Jarman said.?
“We might suggest that a farmer upgrade the seat they sit in on the tractor because the old seat might have very ill padding,” Jarman said. “They don’t need a new tractor. They just need a new seat.”?
There are specific accommodations for farmers in wheelchairs, such as a device to aid them in getting into their tractors or combines, Jarman said.?
“They may receive a pilot lift, which would be a lift that’s like, mounted to the back of their truck,” Jarman said.
Jarman said farmers can use an Action Trackchair, a wheelchair model that can go through wet grass, low-level water and mud.
Ohio AgrAbility hosts peer-to-peer events designed to create a community for disabled farmers, Jarman said.?
“That’s actually become a very valuable time for us because if someone comes in and has a question, if a farmer is standing there we can say, ‘Well, here’s Mr. Farmer. You can ask him how he feels about the service,’” Jarman said.?
Jepsen agreed, she said attendees love talking with each other.
“When we do get our farmers together, they have peer meetings, and they have caregivers that bring them or come with them, we can’t get the caregivers to be quiet,” Jepsen said. “They really make that connection and can talk, then, openly to somebody else that understands.”
Jarman said connecting those who recently became disabled with people who have had their disability for a long time can provide people with the resources they need.
“I have spent a lot of time connecting individuals with similar disabilities to individuals who are newly disabled,” Jarman said. “That peer-to-peer connection is also just as helpful as getting them, you know, tools or equipment they need.”?
Ohio AgrAbility will have a panel at the Multiple Perspectives Conference on April 13 and 14, a disability and accessibility conference hosted by Ohio State that is free to attend for students, staff and faculty. Registration is available via the ADA Coordinator’s Office website.
