Helix Charter High School Plans Teen Safe Driving Activities in California

Nov. 11, 2010 - PRLog -- Students Against Violence Everywhere (SAVE) is receiving a $100,000 grant from The Allstate Foundation to assist SAVE chapters in California to increase youth safety and promote teen safe driving. The grant will support SAVE programming in schools and community agencies, specifically teen safe driving awareness campaigns will be conducted throughout the year.

In collaboration with their SADD Chapter and the La Mesa Police Department, the Helix High School SAVE Chapter students plan to conduct student and parent campaigns focusing on distracted driving, underage drinking and impaired driving, "Click it or Ticket" and National Youth Traffic Safety Month.

With support from Allstate exclusive agents and volunteers, SAVE will demonstrate its chapter leadership in schools and communities by ensuring that students are encouraged to participate and engage in these educational activities enhancing teen safe driving and youth safety. There are 89 SAVE Chapters throughout California.

SAVE is a peer-to-peer organization that focuses on the power of positive peer influences. According to a recent Allstate Foundation survey, Shifting Teen Attitudes: The State of Teen Driving 2009, peers are a major influence on teens – both positive and negative. Some of the concerning statistics that SAVE chapters will address include:

•   Eighty-two percent of teens reported using cell phones while driving.
•   Nearly half (48 percent) of girls admit they are likely to speed more than 10 mph over the limit, versus 36 percent of boys.
•   Seventy-seven percent of teens admit they have felt unsafe with another teen's driving.

“This generous grant from The Allstate Foundation will assist students in finding real solutions to the issues of teen safe driving that they face each day,” stated SAVE’s executive director, Carleen Wray.

Previous assistance from The Allstate Foundation has benefited SAVE schools in North Carolina, South Carolina, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Indiana, Illinois, Nevada, Michigan, Minnesota, Texas, Oklahoma, Utah, Wisconsin, California, Colorado, and Ohio. “By empowering teens to become smart driving activists in their schools and communities, we hope to reverse the staggering statistics,” said Melanie Merrion, Allstate Senior Corporate Relations Manager. “Through The Allstate Foundation, we seek to develop innovative, teen-focused approaches to raise awareness of the issue and, ultimately, to help save lives and reduce injuries.”

About the National Association of Students Against Violence Everywhere:SAVE started at West Charlotte High School in Charlotte, N.C. in 1989 following the tragic death of a student who was trying to break up a fight at an off-campus party. Students met first to console each other, then as an organization to promote violence prevention and to work together to prevent future incidents from occurring. SAVE provides education about the effects and consequences of violence and helps provide safe activities for students, parents and communities. For more information on SAVE or starting a SAVE chapter, visit www.nationalsave.org, or contact SAVE at (866) 343-SAVE to receive free start-up materials and guidance.

About The Allstate Foundation:Established in 1952, The Allstate Foundation is an independent, charitable organization made possible by subsidiaries of The Allstate Corporation . Allstate and The Allstate Foundation sponsor community initiatives to promote safe and vital communities; tolerance, inclusion, and diversity; and economic empowerment. The Allstate Foundation believes in the financial potential of every individual and in helping America's families achieve their American dream.

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Students Against Violence Everywhere (SAVE), Inc. is a nonprofit organization striving to decrease violence in our schools and communities by promoting student involvement, education and service opportunities to provide safer environments for learning.