C.R.A.S.H. course
in car safety

By Lauren Fritsky
Times Staff Writer

Ariel Ianovale doesn’t drive yet, but she cares about her peers who do.
"A lot of my friends drive," said the 17-year-old senior who attends the Philadelphia High School for Girls. "As I’m in the passenger seat, I see them doing things they probably shouldn’t be doing."
Fortunately, Ianovale and other active alumni of New Foundations Charter School plan to educate teenagers through a public awareness campaign called C.R.A.S.H., which is short for Car Rules and Safety Habits.
The program is being guided by Project Ignition, a service-learning program coordinated by the National Youth Leadership Council and sponsored by State Farm Insurance, which presented a $2,000 grant to the school on Oct. 10.
NFCS is the first Philadelphia school to be chosen as one of the participating institutions nationwide since the program started in 2004. About a dozen alumni who still participate in the school’s Community C.A.R.E.S. Learning Center drafted the proposal for the project.
"These grants are given to high schools," said NFCS principal Paul Stadelberger. "This is an elementary school. It’s a reflection really on these students and the commitment to their school."
Project Ignition fosters teen-to-teen discussions on safe driving to address the high rate of motor vehicle fatalities among American teenagers. In 2005, more than 5,600 young people ages 16 to 20 died in motor vehicle accidents, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The number of teen deaths spawned Congress this year to establish National Teen Driver Safety Week, which takes place this week.
"One of the best ways to get young drivers to pay attention is to have their peers involved," said State Farm spokesman Dave Phillips.
State Farm is the same insurance agency that in 2001 designated the intersections of Roosevelt Boulevard and Red Lion Road and the Boulevard and Grant Avenue as two of the most dangerous in the country. C.R.A.S.H. students plan to address the topic when they do their talks at area high schools and participate in community events.
"We’re trying to get statistics from the last couple of years to include in our project," said Tara Bowman, 16, a Central High School junior who graduated from NFCS in 2005.
Ten of the Project Ignition schools will be chosen as finalists to present their campaigns at the 19th annual National Service-Learning Conference in Minneapolis in April, which NFCS participates in each year.
One school will then receive $10,000 to use toward enhancing its safe-driving program. ••
For more information on Project Ignition, visit www.sfprojectignition.com
Reporter Lauren Fritsky can be reached at 215-354-3038 or lfritsky@phillynews.com