WINTERSVILLE - Students at Indian Creek High School are taking a stand against a national epidemic that is sweeping across America - texting while driving.
The Students Against Drunk Driving club and the National Honor Society at Indian Creek High School have joined to promote Allstate Insurance's "X the TXT" campaign.
The campaign promotes drivers to pledge not to text while drive. As Allstate's website states, "An epidemic is sweeping across America causing drivers everywhere to black out. It's called texting and driving."
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Allstate is encouraging teens and parents to make a difference and pledge to not text while driving.
This will be the first year for the campaign at the high school, according to multimedia instructor Dave Moffat.
"We found the information through Channel One and applied to be part of the campaign," he said. "We were lucky enough to be one of the first 200 schools chosen."
The campaign states that when someone texts while drive:
It takes his or her eyes off the road on an average of five seconds at a time. At 55 mph, that is the length of a football field.
It's like driving after having four beers.
It makes a driver 23 times more likely to crash.
It results in car crashes that kill an average of 11 teens each day.
It results in 330,000 distracted driving injuries every year.
According to NHS president Dhatri Kotekal, the groups will hold numerous events during the week of Feb. 7, including displaying a poster in the main hallway with slots for thumb prints for people to pledge to not text while driving as well as the creation of a video explaining the dangers of texting and driving.
"We are aware that texting and driving is dangerous and students should be made more aware of it," she said. "It is especially dangerous during the winter months. We know a lot of people who have had texting related accidents."
Ashten Gibson, treasurer of the school's SADD, said it only takes five seconds for something dangerous to occur.
"A lot of people don't think that it is going to happen to them, but all it takes is a couple seconds of taking your eyes off of the road for something to happen" she noted.
Moffat added the students are very positive about promoting the campaign to the community.
The school has the chance to win $10,000, a private concert with Ashlyne Huff and a live Channel One News show taping, Moffat said.
"We need members of the community to help us promote the campaign and pledge to not text and drive," he stated. "Family, friends and members of the community are encouraged to visit www.channelone.com/xthetext, select Indian Creek High School and make the pledge. The contest will last from Feb. 7 until Feb. 13."
For information, visit www.allstate.com/auto-insurance/teen-text-pledge.aspx or www.channelone.com.
(Looman can be contacted at jlooman@heraldstaronline.com.)
