State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Companies has unveiled a new earthquake preparedness program for use in Missouri schools.

"Movers & Shakers" is a classroom-ready curriculum, says Dan Doran, vice president/public affairs for State Farm, headquartered at Bloomington, Ill. "It is designed to save lives and reduce injuries in the event of an earthquake."

The program, available to schools at no cost, is designed to educate students, kindergarten through 12th grade, said Doran.

"We feel this program can play an important role in teaching Missouri families how they can survive an earthquake," said Doran during a "Movers & Shakers" press conference at St. Louis this week. "There are thousands of Missouri citizens who live near fault lines."

Doran points out that the "Movers & Shakers" program is the result of a joint effort by State Farm, the Central United States Earthquake Consortium, the National Association of Elementary School Principals, and the National Coordinating Council on Emergency Management.

Doran explained the program.

"`Movers & Shakers' is a kit of materials about earthquake safety in the home," he said. "The kit includes outlines for class work that can be built into the school curriculum and can be adjusted for various grade levels."

The kit also includes a 22-minute video, and some take-home materials for the students.

Doran said State Farm became aware of the need for an inexpensive classroom-based earthquake preparedness program as a result of a study the company funded through the University of California at Los Angeles, following the 1989 California quake.

"Over the past two years, we have learned some valuable lessons concerning earthquakes," he said. "We learned that quakes can happen at any time. Those San Franciscans and I was among them watching the World Series will never forget that lesson.

"A year later, in December of 1990, we learned that there is no science exact enough to predict an earthquake," he said. "I'm sure you remember, as the world watched, the New Madrid Fault did not shake, and a widely publicized prediction did not come true."

Doran added that whether or not the earthquake happened was secondary to the fact that thousands of Missourians live along the fault line.

State Farm is making the instructional kits available to any school teacher in the state of Missouri.

To obtain a kit, a teacher should make a request on school stationery to State Farm Insurance Companies, Public Relations Department, One State Farm Plaza, Bloomington, Ill., 61710.

Additional information about the program is available from any local State Farm agent.