Oak Forest, Tinley Park High Schools Win Top Honors Safe Driving Programs

Oak Forest and Tinley Park high schools earned first and second place, respectively, in their region for their 2012-13 Operation Teen Safe Driving programs, according to an Illinois Department of Transportation press release.

This is the fifth consecutive year Oak Forest has won first-place honors in the program, which is in its sixth year, according to a release from Bremen School District 228.

READ: OFHS Repeats as Safe Driving Campaign Champs

As one of the top five winners in their region, the high schools will receive $500 to $2,500 to host a post-prom event. The schools also will be invited to attend the Ford Motor Company Fund’s Driving Skills for Life, Ride and Drive events April 15-16 in Chicago. These events feature give students lessons from professional drivers on how to avoid accidents, vehicle control and speed and space management.

The Operation Teen Safe Driving program, which began in 2007, is a statewide initiative aimed at reducing fatal teen traffic accidents and making teens better drivers. Along with IDOT and the Ford Motor Company Fund, the effort is sponsored by the Allstate Foundation, Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White and the Illinois State Police. The program also is supported by Gov. Pat Quinn, the Illinois State Board of Education and the national Governor’s Highway Safety Association.

READ: OFHS Urges Students to 'Drive Wise Bengals'

“In 2007, the first year of OTSD, a total of 155 teens died in automobile crashes on Illinois roadways,” Illinois Transportation Secretary Ann L. Schneider stated in the IDOT release. “In 2012, the provisional count shows that 71 teens died in Illinois crashes. We want to see that number at zero, but the 2012 experience is less than half the number we saw in 2007, and we think that is a huge step in the right direction. We will not be satisfied until we reach zero fatalities. …"

“It is important to note that teen safe driving is a partnership effort, and no single program is the sole reason for improved numbers,” Schneider added in the release.

READ: Oak Forest HS's Teen Safe Driving Program Honored

This year, the program encouraged students to creatively find ways to teach classmates about the dangers of unsafe driving practices, the release stated. Oak Forest's winning program was called "Drive Wise Bengals"; Tinley Park students set up a Facebook page with video driving tips.

The following list includes the high schools honored in Region One:

• First place: Oak Forest
• Second place: Tinley Park
• Third place: Hillcrest
• Fourth place: Wells Academy
• Fifth place: Eisenhower

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