RADD College Program Educates Hundreds of Students About Driver Safety at UC Irvine's ReggaeFest

June 3, 2011 - PRLog -- IRVINE, June 2, 2011 – On a sunny day, UCI students enjoyed mai-tais and mojitos … minus the alcohol.  Just steps away from the beer garden at UC Irvine’s annual ReggaeFest concert, about 500 RADD Designated Driver Rewards Cards were distributed, along with nearly 800 non-alcoholic drinks, all while students participated in activities that promoted driver safety.

RADD, the award winning non-profit that is the Entertainment Industry’s Voice for Road Safety, partnered with UCI’s Health Education Center to educate students during the University’s big event. UCI’s RADD Crew passed out information about the designated driver program and helped with games that tested students’ motor skills and coordination while wearing beer goggles (simulating an approximate impairment level of 0.08 BAC) on May 27, 2011.

Doug Everhart, acting director of UCI’s Health Education Center said, “Students provided positive feedback on our involvement, and felt that the RADD Rewards program was a great way to promote and encourage students to use sober designated drivers when they go out.”

“It’s important to have this type of program on campus,” said 23-year-old Dianne Valenciano, who received a RADD card. “It’s the community that needs this type of resource the most. Having it out here (at ReggaeFest) makes it OK to be the DD (Designated Driver).”

ReggaeFest is one of UCI’s oldest annual traditions. For more than 20 years, the Associated Students of UCI has thrown a free Reggae festival for the student body.

“It is a pleasure to collaborate with UCI’s Health Education Center on this collegiate DUI project,” says Erin Meluso, president of RADD. “But it was especially exciting to participate with such a visible and impactful presence at a major campus event for the first time.  We look forward to more events like this in the future.”

A RADD card can be used at participating merchants throughout the California communities of Davis, Sacramento, Los Angeles, Orange County and San Diego.  For a complete listing of participating RADD Rewards partners, visit www.collegeisradd.org.

Thanks to a generous grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety, through the National Highway Traffic Administration, training and materials are provided by RADD at no cost to the university to educate students and merchants alike on alternatives to drinking and driving, with an emphasis on the importance and utilization of designated drivers.

About the RADD® College Program
Alcohol related crashes continue to be a leading killer of college-aged young adults. RADD has been the leader in developing designated driver and prevention programs to help combat this issue. In 2009, RADD partnered with UCI’s Health Education Center to obtain a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS) to continue development of university-based designed driver initiatives. RADD is currently partnered with nine California universities. Over 175 popular college–area establishments throughout the state have committed to the RADD Rewards Designated Driver program and over 28,000 RADD Designated Driver Rewards cards have been distributed at over 75 campus and community events.  RADD is a proud two-time recipient of the US Department of Transportation’s prestigious “Public Service Award.”

http://www.radd.org
http://raddindtla.com/
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Contact:
Christine Morente
CW3PR
Office: 323.476.1050 x 2
christine@cw3pr.com