Top Ten High Schools Lead Change in Teen Driver Behavior

ST. PAUL, Minn., June 5, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Ten high schools in the United States and Canada have been chosen as leader schools in teen driver safety. These schools were selected by Project Ignition — a service-learning teen driver safety program sponsored by State Farm® and coordinated by the National Youth Leadership Council® — based on criteria including student participation, campaign results, and connection to learning objectives.

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After receiving an initial $2,000 investment from Project Ignition in January along with twenty-four other schools, each campaign sought to reduce risky driving attitudes and behaviors. For their successful efforts, these top ten schools will receive continued funding of $2,500 in the coming school year to expand upon their campaigns. In addition, each will receive $5,000 to participate in the National Service-Learning Conference®, hosted annually by the National Youth Leadership Council, in the spring of 2013 in Denver, Colo.

The 2010-2011 Project Ignition Top Ten Teen Driver Safety Campaigns:

• Blythewood High School, Blythewood, SC
• Creekview High School, Carrollton, TX
• Ecole secondaire catholique Algonquin, North Bay, Ontario
• Grambling State University Laboratory High School, Grambling, LA
• Highland High School, Highland, NY
• Hoquiam High School, Hoquiam, WA
• Mansfield High School, Mansfield, AR
• Pine Lake Preparatory, Mooresville, NC
• Ponchatoula High School, Ponchatoula, LA
• West Valley High School, Spokane, WA

"Project Ignition is a great way for teens to learn about auto safety from their peers," said Kellie Clapper, Assistant Vice President, Community Relations at State Farm. "As a leader in auto safety, State Farm is committed to reducing teen car crashes. We can learn a lot from these remarkable young people and work together to save lives."

NYLC and State Farm believe that youth leadership is a critical component to effectively changing teen driving behaviors and saving lives. "The youth engaged with Project Ignition are uniquely positioned to offer a critical voice and influence their peers' driving behaviors. The fact that youth work with adult educators to link the campaigns to their academic coursework through service-learning ensures that this program strengthens schools as it also helps to save young lives. In partnership with State Farm, we continue to look for ways to recognize the amazing accomplishments by young people through Project Ignition," said Kelita Svoboda Bak, NYLC CEO.

These campaigns serve as models for other schools looking to apply for a Project Ignition grant in the 2012-2013 school year. More details about the grant opportunity will be available in August, 2012.

For more information about NYLC, the National Service-Learning Conference, or service-learning visit www.nylc.org.

For more information about State Farm go to statefarm.com® or, in Canada, statefarm.ca®.

SOURCE National Youth Leadership Council