State awards KSU’s Wellness Center grant to promote driver safety
Grant will fund awareness campaign to help reduce traffic fatalities
KENNESAW, Ga. (Nov. 4,…
Georgia
(Nov 18, 2009) —
Grant will fund awareness campaign to help reduce traffic fatalities
KENNESAW, Ga. (Nov. 4, 2009) — The Georgia Governor’s Office of Highway Safety (GOHS) has awarded the WellStar College
of Health & Human Services’ Wellness Center a grant for $13,070 for an awareness campaign
aimed at reducing the number of traffic fatalities among 18- to 24-year-old drivers,
a high-risk group.
The grant — the Wellness Center’s third award from GOHS — funds the Georgia Young
Adult Program, a high profile peer-education campaign that seeks to convince young
motorists that crashes are preventable.
Traffic crashes are one of the leading causes of death and injury among 16- to 24-year-olds.
The state’s latest data show that more than 23,000 16- to 24-year-olds were injured
in auto crashes, and almost 270 of them died.
Cobb County traffic accident data show a clear need to boost highway safety among
18- to 24-year-olds. Vehicle crashes, injuries and fatalities among drivers in this
age group represented 38 percent of crashes in Cobb County from 2003 to 2005. The
number of traffic fatalities during that same time period among 18- to 24-year-olds
increased 22 percent.
“Our state’s teen drivers represent a disproportionate number of drivers involved
in crashes that involve injuries and deaths on Georgia’s roadways,” said Bob Dallas,
director of the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety. “Our hope is to have every high
school and college student graduate without being involved in an injury or fatality
crash.”
Kennesaw State will use grant funds to promote seatbelt use and prevent impaired driving,
according to Sherry Grable, director of KSU’s Wellness Center, a department within
the WellStar College of Health & Human Services.
The campaign seeks to influence student behavior on buckling up and staying sober
on the roads by placing posters in prominent places. Postcard reinforcing that message
will be mailed to specific populations, such as first-year students, Greeks, and student
athletes during high risk times including spring break, homecoming, rush, & St. Patrick’s
Day. The goal is to change what students perceive as the norm.
“Perception of the norm is a powerful prediction of personal behavior, whether it’s
alcohol use, cigarette smoking, substance abuse, seatbelt use or bullying,” Grable
said. “The social norms model proposes that many problem behaviors may be due to the
desire to fit within one’s social group. With repeated exposure to a norm, misperceptions
are reduced, and the target population begins to act in accordance with the true norm
of their peers.”
Funds will also be used to train student peer-health educators at Kennesaw State
to help fellow students understand the dangers of drinking and driving and the importance
of seatbelt use.
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Kennesaw State University is the third-largest university in Georgia, offering more
than 65 graduate and undergraduate degrees, including new doctorates in education
and business. A member of the 35-unit University System of Georgia, Kennesaw State
is a comprehensive, residential institution with a growing student population of more
than 21,000 from 142 countries.
A leader in innovative teaching and learning, Kennesaw State University offers undergraduate, graduate and doctoral degrees to its nearly 43,000 students. With 11 colleges on two metro Atlanta campuses, Kennesaw State is a member of the University System of Georgia. The university’s vibrant campus culture, diverse population, strong global ties and entrepreneurial spirit draw students from throughout the country and the world. Kennesaw State is a Carnegie-designated doctoral research institution (R2), placing it among an elite group of only 6 percent of U.S. colleges and universities with an R1 or R2 status. For more information, visit kennesaw.edu.
