Patterson High School in California has implemented a new distracted/impaired driving course thanks to a generous donation from Love’s Travel Stops. The donation allowed the school to utilize a golf cart to create the course, which is designed to prevent dangerous driving behaviors.
The Patterson High School Truck Driving Program already prepares students for the Commercial Learner’s Permit and meets the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s Entry Level Driver Training theory standards. With the addition of the new course, students will have access to state-of-the-art Advanced Training Systems simulators and a pair of Fatal Vision goggles to simulate the effects of alcohol impairment.
The program’s coordinator and instructor, Dave Dein, is excited to offer students an interactive, hands-on approach to safe driving education.
“It is so important to give students an experience to emphasize the dangers of distracted/impaired driving rather than just telling them not to do it,” said Dein. To make the lesson meaningful rather than just a fun activity, at the conclusion of the driving course the students read personal stories of people who were impacted by distracted or impaired driving in order to put faces behind the staggering statistics, said Dein.
Dein is also the co-founder of Next Generation in Trucking Association, a nonprofit that aims to spread awareness about the trucking industry among young people. Their mission is to provide free education to high school students and help them replicate the successful Patterson program. With NGT’s assistance, more than 150 schools across the country have initiated CDL programs for their students.
Source: truckers news
