The National AgrAbility Project represents a unique intersection of:
- Agriculture
- Disability services
- Assistive technology
Since its inception in 1991, this federally-funded program has been transforming lives by helping agricultural workers with disabilities continue their careers through:
- Education
- Assistive technology
- On-site assistance
The project operates on a fundamental belief: disability doesn’t have to mean the end of farming. When disability enters the picture, whether through injury, illness, or age-related conditions, the stakes are incredibly high.
AgrAbility recognizes these complexities and provides tailored support that respects the agricultural lifestyle while addressing real-world challenges.
Mission
The National AgrAbility Project’s mission is straightforward yet powerful: to enhance the quality of life for farmers, ranchers, and other agricultural workers with disabilities by providing education, networking, and resource referral to promote their independence and productivity.
Unlike many occupations where workplace accommodations might be relatively straightforward, agriculture presents diverse and often unpredictable physical demands. Tasks range from operating heavy machinery to handling livestock, from working in various weather conditions to navigating uneven terrain.
The mission extends beyond simply keeping farmers working. It’s about preserving dignity, independence, and the agricultural way of life. For many farming families, their operation represents generations of knowledge, tradition, and connection to specific land. Losing the ability to farm can mean losing family heritage and community identity.
By helping disabled farmers remain productive, AgrAbility supports not just individuals and families, but entire rural communities and the broader agricultural economy.
Services
The National AgrAbility Project delivers a comprehensive array of services designed to address the multifaceted challenges farmers with disabilities face. These services combine practical problem-solving with education and peer support.
Assessment and Consultation:
One of AgrAbility’s cornerstone services is individualized assessment. Trained specialists visit farms to evaluate specific challenges and identify solutions. These assessments consider:
- The farmer’s disability
- The farm’s operations
- Existing equipment
- The farmer’s goals
Specialists examine everything from how a farmer enters and exits equipment to how tasks like feeding livestock or checking irrigation systems might be modified. This personalized approach ensures that recommendations fit the specific farm and farmer rather than offering generic solutions.
Assistive Technology and Adaptive Equipment:
AgrAbility helps farmers discover and implement assistive technologies that enable continued work. These solutions range from simple, low-cost modifications to sophisticated equipment adaptations. Examples include:
- Hydraulic lifts for tractor entry
- Specialized grips for tools
- Voice-activated controls
- All-terrain wheelchairs for field navigation
- Modified workstations
The project helps farmers understand what’s available, where to obtain it, and sometimes how to fabricate custom solutions when commercial options don’t exist.
Education and Training:
AgrAbility provides extensive educational resources covering disability-related topics relevant to agriculture. This includes workshops, webinars, publications, and online resources addressing subjects like:
- Ergonomics
- Injury prevention
- Equipment modification
- Navigating disability benefits while self-employed
The educational component also helps farmers understand their rights under the Americans with Disabilities Act and how to access various assistance programs.
Resource Referral:
Recognizing that farmers’ needs often extend beyond farm modifications, AgrAbility connects clients with relevant resources. This might include:
- Vocational rehabilitation services
- Mental health support
- Financial counseling
- Legal assistance
- Healthcare providers familiar with agricultural work
- Peer support networks
These referrals acknowledge that managing disability while farming involves multiple dimensions of life.
Peer Support and Mentoring:
AgrAbility facilitates connections between farmers facing similar challenges. These peer relationships provide emotional support, practical advice, and living proof that farming with disability is possible.
Hearing from someone who has successfully adapted their operation can be incredibly motivating and informative.
Information Hotline:
The project operates a toll-free hotline (1-800-825-4264) where agricultural workers with disabilities, their families, and service providers can call for information, resources, and referrals. This accessible entry point ensures that help is available regardless of location or internet access.
Collaborations and Partnerships
The National AgrAbility Project’s effectiveness stems largely from its robust collaborative framework. The project is funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (USDA-NIFA), demonstrating federal recognition of its importance to American agriculture.
State AgrAbility Projects:
The national project coordinates a network of state-level AgrAbility projects across the country. These state projects are typically collaborative efforts between state Cooperative Extension Services and disability service organizations.
This structure allows AgrAbility to combine agricultural expertise from land-grant universities with disability services knowledge from specialized organizations.
Each state project adapts the national model to local agricultural contexts—what works for wheat farmers in Kansas may differ from solutions for dairy farmers in Wisconsin or orchard operators in Washington.
Purdue University Partnership:
Purdue University serves as home to the National AgrAbility Project, providing coordination, technical assistance, and resources to state projects. This partnership with a major research university ensures that AgrAbility stays current with both agricultural technology and disability-related research.
Easter Seals Collaboration:
The project has historically partnered with disability service organizations like Easter Seals, bringing disability expertise to the agricultural context.
These organizations contribute:
- Knowledge about assistive technology
- Disability rights
- Rehabilitation
- Service Coordination
Vocational Rehabilitation Agencies:
AgrAbility works closely with state vocational rehabilitation agencies, which serve individuals with disabilities seeking employment.
These partnerships help farmers access funding for assistive technology and modifications, as vocational rehabilitation may cover costs for work-related accommodations.
Equipment Manufacturers and Dealers:
AgrAbility collaborates with agricultural equipment manufacturers and dealers to promote universal design features and develop adaptations.
These partnerships have led to improved accessibility features in new equipment and greater awareness among manufacturers about the disability market.
Healthcare and Rehabilitation Professionals:
The project partners with occupational therapists, physical therapists, and other rehabilitation professionals, often training them about agricultural work’s unique demands.
Agricultural Organizations:
AgrAbility partners with farm organizations, commodity groups, and agricultural nonprofits to reach farmers who might benefit from services.
These partnerships help spread awareness and reduce stigma around disability in agricultural communities.
Outreach Services
Reaching farmers with disabilities presents unique challenges:
- Agricultural communities can be geographically dispersed
- Farmers may be reluctant to acknowledge limitations
- The culture of self-reliance in farming can make asking for help difficult
AgrAbility has developed creative outreach strategies to overcome these barriers.
Farm Shows and Agricultural Events:
AgrAbility maintains a presence at:
- Farm shows
- State fairs
- Agricultural conferences
These venues allow direct interaction with farming communities in comfortable, familiar settings.
Demonstrations of adaptive equipment at these events show concrete solutions and spark conversations about possibilities.
Publications and Media:
The project produces:
- Newsletters
- Fact sheets
- Videos
- Case studies showcasing farmer success stories
These materials, distributed through agricultural media and cooperative extension networks, reach farmers where they already seek information.
Success stories are particularly powerful, showing rather than telling that farming with disability is achievable.
Online Presence:
The AgrAbility website serves as a comprehensive resource hub, offering information about services, state project contacts, educational materials, and success stories.
Social media platforms extend the project’s reach, sharing tips, resources, and connecting with younger farmers who may be more digitally engaged.
Healthcare Provider Education:
AgrAbility conducts outreach to healthcare providers, helping doctors, therapists, and rehabilitation counselors understand farming as an occupation worth preserving.
When healthcare providers understand agricultural work’s nature and importance, they can make more appropriate recommendations and referrals.
Word-of-Mouth and Peer Networks:
Perhaps most effectively, farmers who’ve been helped by AgrAbility become ambassadors, sharing their experiences with neighbors and friends. This grassroots promotion carries special weight in tight-knit agricultural communities where trust and personal recommendation matter enormously.
Workshops and Field Days:
State AgrAbility projects host workshops addressing specific topics:
- Arthritis management for farmers
- Safe livestock handling with mobility limitations
- Assitive technology demonstrations
Field days at modified farms show adaptations in action, making abstract concepts tangible.
Collaboration with Rural Organizations:
Partnerships with rural health clinics, veterans’ organizations, and community service providers help AgrAbility reach farmers through trusted local institutions.
Veterans’ organizations are particularly important partners, as many farmers are veterans whose disabilities may be service-connected.
Visit agrability.org
The National AgrAbility Project represents something profoundly important: the recognition that farming is more than just an occupation—it’s an identity, a lifestyle, and often a calling. By refusing to accept that disability must end agricultural careers, AgrAbility challenges assumptions and expands possibilities.
Anyone interested in learning more about the National AgrAbility Project, finding their state project, or accessing resources can visit agrability.org or call their toll-free information line 1-800-825-4264.
Visit The National AgrAbility You Tube Channel to get a feel for the breadth and depth of their services.
