January 13, 2022
Students at 38 Michigan high schools will have the opportunity to become better, safer drivers by participating in the “Strive for a Safer Drive” (S4SD) program. S4SD, a peer-led traffic safety campaign, aims to reduce the leading cause of death for teens - traffic crashes.
In 2020, there were 473,443 licensed drivers aged 15 to 20, which represented 6.7 percent of all Michigan drivers. However, they accounted for 7.3 percent of all traffic deaths in Michigan, with 51.9 percent of those deaths being the driver.
Inexperience and risk-taking behavior are the primary factors contributing to teen-driver fatalities. In its 11th year, S4SD is a public-private partnership between Ford Motor Company Fund’s Driving Skills for Life program and the Michigan Office of Highway Safety Planning (OHSP). The program encourages teens to talk with their peers and their communities about making safe-driving choices.
The participating S4SD high schools for the 2021-22 school year, by county, are:
Allegan:
Martin High School
Otsego High School
Barry:
Lakewood High School
Bay/Arenac:
Bay-Arenac Career Center
Berrien:
Brandywine High School
Branch:
Coldwater High School
Calhoun:
Athens Jr/Sr High School
Harper Creek High School
Clare:
Clare-Gladwin Regional Education Service District
Eaton:
Grand Ledge High School
Genesee:
Grand Blanc High School
Macomb:
Cousino High School
Dakota High School
Lake Shore High School
Mason:
West Shore Education Service District - Career & Technical Education
Midland:
Dow High School
Meridian Early College High School
Monroe:
Dundee High School
Oakland:
Berkley High School
Holly High School
Lake Orion High School
Ontonagon:
Ontonagon Area Schools
Presque Isle:
Posen High School
Saginaw:
Freeland High School
Swan Valley High School
Sanilac:
Croswell-Lexington High School
Peck Community Schools
St. Clair:
Anchor Bay High School
Memphis Sr. High School
Port Huron Northern High School
Yale High School
Tuscola:
Vassar High School
Washtenaw:
Dexter High School
Greenhills High School
Skyline High School
Wayne:
Fordson High School
Plymouth High School
Woodhaven High School
As part of the S4SD program, each school receives $1,000, which students use to create a teen-led campaign that will educate their classmates and community about various traffic safety topics, including speeding; seat belts; pedestrian, bicyclist and passenger safety; and impaired, distracted, nighttime and winter driving.
Schools will submit videos or PowerPoint presentations outlining their campaigns. The top-five schools judged to have winning campaigns will receive cash prizes ranging from $500 to $1,500. Since the 2011 creation of S4SD, 176 different Michigan high schools have participated in the program. The OHSP has partnered with the Transportation Improvement Association to coordinate activities of the S4SD program. For more information about S4SD, please visit Michigan.gov/S4SD.
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