Students enrolled in health classes at Mepham High School learned firsthand about the dangers of distracted and impaired driving as they attempted to perform a series of tasks via simulators and vision impairment goggles.

More than 350 students fumbled and stumbled as they wore vision impairment goggles to navigate walking a straight line,stacking cups and matching puzzle pieces to driving in a car using a simulated course via the Arrive Alive Tour.

Through a partnership with the New York State Police, officers were on hand operating a machine that allowed students to feel the impact of a car crash at 4-6mph.

“The driving simulator allows participants to experience the potential consequences of impaired driving in a controlled environment,” explained Wendy Tepfer, director of the Community Parent Center, who organized the day’s events.

Focusing on health and safety issues, the Community Parent Center provides a full complement of school assembly programs, parent/community workshops and school administrator/staff development seminars addressing a wide range of topics: pre-prom and graduation safety, teen driver safety, mental health and youth depression, bullying, cybersafety and more.

“The entire day offers experiential learning opportunities to help students make good decisions and see firsthand how dangerous distracted and impaired driving can be,” Tepfer added. “If there is anything we can give them that might make it click in their brain and make them think before doing something impulsive, then we have been successful.”

Site visits are also planned at Kennedy and Calhoun high schools in the spring when the Michigan-based company is back in town.

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Date Added: 9/29/2023