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UHS SAFE program gets boost from Mercy
Mercy Hospital Fort Scott offered a financial boost this week to help keep kids at Uniontown High School SAFE -- Seatbelts Are For Everyone that is.
The funds go to purchase gift cards for students who pledge to wear seatbelts while in a motor vehicle as a driver or passenger.
Started during the 2010-2011 school year, the Uniontown High School SAFE student leadership team reported a 24 percent increase in seatbelt usage among students by the end of the school year. The student leadership team takes an observed assessment and calculates the number of students wearing seatbelts as they enter or exit school property. The assessment is unannounced. The baseline report in fall 2010 reported only 62 percent of UHS students were wearing seatbelts, yet by the final survey in late spring 2011, 86 percent were using the restraints.
"We have seen positive results from last year's effort flow into this school year," UHS senior and SAFE spokeswoman Ashley Nietfeld said. "We assess seatbelt usage three times during the school year, and the first assessment of this year showed the work done last year made an impression on our student body."
"This year, we still plan host a dress-up day when students who have the most creative or original outfit to promote seatbelt usage will be rewarded with prizes," Neitfeld added.
Pledge cards with students' signatures who agree to wear seatbelts -- whether as a driver or passenger -- are placed into monthly drawings. The prize is typically a $25 gift card, but the final drawing for this school year will be an iPod touch.
Exactly 50 percent of Uniontown's 146 High School students have signed a pledge card for the 2011-2012 school year, a news release said.
"The SAFE program is an avenue to create awareness, and the result of the awareness has proven to be valuable," USD 235 Superintendent and high school Principal Randy Rockhold said. "We have amazing young adults at Uniontown High School and they are constantly striving to improve and gain knowledge. Our students are making greater efforts to be safe when they are driving.
"Our survey data proves that a greater percentage of our students are wearing seatbelts," Rockhold added. "It is exciting to see our students make healthy and safe choices that will increase their chance of making a positive difference in the world they live."
Fort Scott High School also participates in the SAFE program and has also seen an increase in seatbelt usage among the student body.
Combining both Uniontown and Fort Scott High School data, Bourbon County ranks seventh in Kansas for seatbelt usage among high school students at 86 percent. According to the 2010-2011 SAFE report, Bourbon County public high schools saw the sixth largest increase in seatbelt usage of schools participating in the program.
"What's great about the program is it's the students' program, run by the students," Kansas Highway Patrol Master Trooper Jeff Scott said. "We have a SAFE team that has two students from each grade represented. This team has set a great example and shown great leadership to their peers. These students know the importance of buckling up, not only to keep them safer if they're involved in a crash, but also by complying with the state law. They not only impact other students but also their families, friends and another people they interact with on a daily basis.
"This example helps other students, who help others and you have a domino effect. Remember, we never plan on getting in a crash and most crashes occur in a close proximity to home where we are familiar with the roads.
"The SAFE program relies entirely on donations and sponsors," added Scott. "Without them, the program could not operate. The money that the sponsors donate is all given back to the students that are successful in the monthly drawings, safety contests and a grand prize at the end of the year."
Mercy takes pride in supporting a program that encourages safe practices among teens and helps prevent injury to loved ones.
"This is the second year Mercy has supported the SAFE program at both public schools in Bourbon County. The first year's results were so impressive, it was obvious to reward the great work once again," Mercy President and CEO Reta Baker said in the release.
Rockhold commended the Kansas Highway Patrol and Mercy Hospital for supporting the program.
"Thank you for the financial resources to fund the program and taking the time to provide a great service to our students. It's nice for our students to see businesses and individuals give back to their community and take an interest in our youths' safety and well-being."