CEDARVILLE — ThinkFast Interactive had Cedarville High School students up out of their seats during the teen driving safety assembly in the cafeteria Oct. 8.
Cedarville is the first school in Greene County to experience the engaging awareness program — identifiable by its music videos, lights, and team-based trivia — thanks to a State Farm community grant and collaboration with the Greene County Safe Communities Coalition.
According to State Farm Public Affairs Specialist Benjamin Justice, motor vehicle crashes are the number one cause of death among teens in the U.S.
The fast-paced, education-based program focused on messages of prevention, responsibility and awareness surrounding driving safety, covering topics like distracted driving, aggressive driving and Ohio driving laws.
In 2018, there were almost 14,000 crashes in Ohio that involved one or more drivers who were distracted, students learned. Out of these crashes, 47 were fatal with 51 deaths.
“We are strongly committed to doing everything we can to reduce these needless tragedies and help save lives,” Justice said. “One of the ways we can combat this startling statistic is to improve opportunities for young people to get involved and participate in programs like ThinkFast Interactive to help bring awareness around safe driving.”
State Farm Insurance Agent Rick Kolmin, of Xenia, and Safe Communities Coordinator Jillian Drew said they plan to bring ThinkFast to another Greene County school next year.
“I think it was wonderful. It not only kept kids’ attention, they were into it, but it also provided a lot of really relevant, good information. This area has had a lot of teen deaths recently,” CHS Principal Chad Haemmerle added. “I think this needs to be in every high school in Greene County and in Ohio.”
