PSA Contest Invites Teens To Be Creative To Help Prevent Drowsy Driving, A Factor In 328,000 Crashes

Winner gets $1,000 and a trip to NYC to work with an award-winning director and turn their concept into public service message for national broadcast

News provided by

The National Road Safety Foundation

Nov 02, 2018, 11:00 ET

NEW YORK, Nov. 2, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Drowsy driving is estimated to be a factor in 328,000 traffic crashes every year, reports the Governors Highway Safety Association, resulting in an estimated 5,000 deaths. Studies by NHTSA and the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety find that more than 31 percent of Americans have driven when they're so tired that they have trouble keeping their eyes open.

Drowsy driving is the theme of the annual Drive2Life PSA Contest, which has just launched from The National Road Safety Foundation in collaboration with Scholastic, the global children's publishing, education and media company. Students in grades 6 – 12 throughout the U.S. are invited to submit a script or storyboard for a 30-second video public service announcement (PSA) to help educate their peers and others about the dangers of drowsy driving.

The winner will receive a $1,000 prize and an expenses-paid trip to New York to work with an Emmy Award-winning director to turn his or her idea into a public service message that will air nationwide on more than 150 TV stations on the nationally-syndicated program "Teen Kids News" next May during Global Youth Traffic Safety Month. The winner will be profiled in select Scholastic Classroom Magazines, reaching nearly 5 million students and 50,000 teachers. Two runners-up in each grade category (grades 6–8, 9–12) will each receive $500.

"Drowsiness is often overlooked," said Michelle Anderson of The National Road Safety Foundation (NRSF), a non-profit group that creates driver safety programs distributed free to schools, police and traffic safety advocates. "Most of us, and especially teens, tend not to get enough sleep. Drowsiness and driving can be a deadly combination, which is why we are asking teens to help us spread the important message to avoid driving while fatigued."

"Scholastic has collaborated with The National Road Safety Foundation for more than seven years, recognizing the power of youth voices to affect change among their peers," said Ann Amstutz Hayes, Senior Vice President, Scholastic National Partnerships. "We hope this year's contest helps young people recognize the risks of drowsy driving and how to avoid it, while spurring important dialogues around road safety. We look forward to seeing the creative ideas from students to help address this serious safety issue."

Entry deadline is Feb. 4, 2019. For information, entry form, prize details and complete rules, visit http://nrsf.org/teenlane/contests/drive_2_life. No purchase necessary. No videos or group entries will be accepted and void where prohibited.

Last year's winner, Pavel Karabelov, an eighth grader from Santa Rosa, Calif., was selected from more than 1,400 entries. His PSA dealt with the theme of speeding.

The National Road Safety Foundation, Inc. (NRSF) is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit charitable organization that for more than 55 years has worked toward reducing crashes, deaths and injuries on our nation's highways by promoting safe driving habits through greater public awareness. NRSF produces documentaries, educational programs and public service campaigns for broadcast and for use by police, teachers, traffic safety agencies, healthcare professionals, youth advocacy groups and other grass-roots related agencies, as well as federal, state and local government agencies. NRSF programs, which are free, deal with distracted driving, speed and aggression, impaired driving, drowsy driving, driver proficiency and pedestrian safety. NRSF also works with youth advocacy groups and sponsors contests to engage teens in encouraging safe driving behavior to their peers and their communities.

Contact: David Reich (212) 573-6000
[email protected]

SOURCE The National Road Safety Foundation