Cape May Courthouse, NJ (January 18, 2013)
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| From left: State Farm Agent Bob Noel; School Board Vice President Dennis Roberts; Student Council President Victoria Deever; Middle Township Public Schools Superintendent Michael J. Kopakowski; and Middle Township High School Principal Richard Falletta. |
With motor vehicle accidents the number one killer of teens, representatives from Middle Township High School announced a community teen driving collaboration at a check presentation held at the high school. The teen driver program will receive funding from State Farm, the largest insurer of automobiles in the country.
As a community and school based information program, the collaborative will have outreach to all residents in Middle Township. "Whether we have a teen driver in our family or not, we should all care about this issue", spoke Bob Noel, a local State Farm agent in Cape May Courthouse, who presented $2500 on behalf of State Farm. "When most people think about those affected by teen driver crashes, they think of the teens behind the wheel. We must also consider the significant impact of these crashes on other members of our communities: occupants of other vehicles, pedestrians, cyclists, and other road-users."
With that premise, the high school will work to promote the role that smart decisions have behind the wheel of an automobile and the impact that behavior has on their lives and the lives of those around them. This will includes school programs that include speakers and presentations on safe driving. Driving simulation could come to the district in the fall. About 200 students are enrolled in the high school's driver's education program.
The grant, provided by State Farm's Celebrate My Drive® Teen Driving campaign, included events in September and grants awarded during October's National Teen Driving Safety Week. State Farm introduced Celebrate My Drive as an opportunity for communities to rally around teens as they learn to drive. As part of Celebrate My Drive, 14 participating high schools won $100,000 grants and 14 participating teens won brand new cars.
Last year, in the 2012 Miles To Go report, State Farm and The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia Research Institute focused on the progress made in reducing teen driver-related crashes since 2005. Key findings from the report include:
The second report in an annual series, it followed the 2011 Miles To Go report, which established several metrics and benchmarks on the state of teen driver safety in the United States.
Dave Phillips
State Farm Public Affairs
Work: (610) 358-7667
State Farm and its affiliates are the largest provider of car insurance in the U.S. and is a leading insurer in Canada. In addition to providing auto insurance quotes, their 17,800 agents and more than 65,000 employees serve 81 million policies and accounts - more than 79 million auto, home, life and health policies in the United States and Canada, and nearly 2 million bank accounts. Commercial auto insurance, along with coverage for renters, business owners, boats and motorcycles, is also available. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company is the parent of the State Farm family of companies. State Farm is ranked No. 43 on the Fortune 500 list of largest companies. For more information, please visit http://www.statefarm.com or in Canada http://www.statefarm.ca.
