In an effort to involve Georgia students in reducing injury and death to young drivers, the Georgia Governor's Office of Highway Safety has awarded a highway safety grant to Heritage High School, Rockdale County High School, Salem High School, and Alpha Academy to establish a new Students Against Destructive Decisions Chapter. GOHS believes that student input into the solution will help alleviate the problem of teen driver fatalities in Georgia.

The Rockdale County Public Schools' GOHS/SADD chapters will engage in activities surrounding the Red Ribbon Week drug awareness campaign, coming up the last week in October. Additionally, chapter members will pinpoint ways in which students can form support systems for one another to address hot issues in the schools. These issues may range from driving safety (including text messaging and cell phones while driving) to teen dating violence. The beauty of SADD chapters is that the students identify the salient needs at their school of origin, so each chapter may focus on different topics.

Additionally, the SADD chapters will send its president and adviser to a statewide leadership-training program this fall along with the representative from other high schools that received similar grants.

For more information on how to obtain a $2,000 SADD grant contact Barbara Jones, Governor's Office of Highway Safety, (404) 657-9246 or bjones@gohs.ga.gov.