It's Not Too Late
to Update!
We ask all chapters to update their information each year so that we
have the latest contact information for advisors. The chapter
registration form has been simplified, so it will take just a minute to
fill out, which you can do on paper or on the SADD website. If
you don't have a 2009-2010 Chapter Recognition Certificate, you haven't
updated this year! Click here to update now. |
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National Insurance Partner
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Regional Vehicle
Dealer Partner
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Greetings!
Welcome to another issue of The SADDvocate! It's National Youth Traffic Safety Month, and we have lots of information about contests and program ideas for your chapter.  The application deadline for the SADD National Awards (Activity of the Year, Advisor of the Year, and Chapter of the Year) has been extended until May 17. Your chapter could win cash prizes and national recognition! Click here to download the application form. We're always trying to increase the number of subscribers for The SADDvocate, so that every SADD chapter knows the latest news. Please encourage your SADD students to sign up on sadd.org, or send a list (spreadsheets preferred, with columns for first name, last name, and e-mail address) to Chris Egan, SADD's Director of Field Services, at cegan@sadd.org. Sometimes school computer filters prevent students and advisors from seeing The SADDvocate properly, with full colors and graphics. You can view every issue in our online archive. This issue will be posted to the archive later today. We're still trying to get to 5,000 "likes" of our Facebook page. Please like our page today, and encourage your friends to do so as well! Links to all our social network pages are on the left bar. |
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National Youth Traffic Safety Month
|  It's National Youth Traffic Safety Month (NYTSM)! We're hoping that your SADD chapter will be holding some sort of traffic safety event this month - a seat belt survey, quick-click challenge, No Phone Zone pledge drive, or other activities. In addition to calling attention to this important issue, there are contests for your chapter to win cash!
NYTSM is sponsored by the National Organizations for Youth Safety (NOYS), a coalition that SADD is a proud member of. NOYS is again offering their "50 Best Awards" - 50 prizes of $1,000 each to the best traffic safety projects. The form takes just 10 minutes to fill out, and the first 200 groups to fill out an application receive automatic $200 grants to help their traffic safety efforts! What's more, SADD National has a chance to win $10,000 for our national conference if we have many chapters apply. So please take just 10 short minutes and apply today!
NOYS is also offering the "YOUTH-Turn It Around" contest. YOUTH-Turn is a NOYS program that details stories from schools and communities that suffered a tragedy and turned it into positive action, and they're looking for more stories like this! Did your chapter respond to a tragedy with an educational effort? If so, enter the contest, and you could win $2,500! Fill out the application here.
 Remember that there are eight SADD chapters who are finalists in the Act Out Loud contest. We've been featuring them on the SADD National Facebook page over the last two weeks - visit actoutloud.org to check out their Act Out Loud Facebook pages and "like" the pages to get updates on their progress in your news feed. Starting May 10, vote for your favorite team at actoutloud.org! You can vote once each day until May 21, and your votes will pick the winner. Last year SADD chapters finished first and third, and we're looking for a sweep this year - so make sure to cast your vote! Best of luck to all these SADD chapters.
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SADD Partners With Oprah! |  Friday, April 30 was No Phone Zone Day - a day to call attention to the problem of distracted driving. The day followed months of effort by Oprah Winfrey, who has used her show to push drivers to take the No Phone Zone pledge - which has three levels, from promising not to text while driving all the way up to promising not to use a cell phone at all while driving.
Both SADD and our National Insurance Partner, Liberty Mutual, have partnered with Oprah on this effort, and SADD was well-represented on Oprah's show April 30, which had audiences in Atlanta, Boston, Detroit, Los Angeles, and Washington, D.C., joining Oprah in her Chicago studio via satellite.
During the show, Erin O'Donnell, SADD President at Sacred Heart High School in Kingston, Massachusetts, was interviewed at the Boston location, and she shared her story of a distracted driving crash.
 SADD students were present - and proudly wearing SADD t-shirts - at most of the remote locations and were hard to miss. Other SADD chapters were featured on local news broadcasts of TV stations that carry the Oprah Winfrey show.
Now it's time for your chapter to get involved. Why not host a No Phone Zone pledge drive at your school as part of National Youth Traffic Safety Month? Click here to download the pledge.
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SADD National Conference - Last Chance!
|  Don't miss out - make your plans to join hundreds of fellow SADD students and advisors at the 2010 SADD National Conference: Under the Sea, Changing the Tide. Taking place June 27-30 in sunny Orlando, Florida, at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress, this unique conference promises to be full of amazing opportunities, valuable information, and time to connect with others interested in keeping youth safe across the country.
Highlights include:
- Keynote speakers Bill Cordes and Nigel Wrangham
- "A Moment's Pause" - a powerful new play presented by a dynamic youth theater group from Pennsylvania
- Workshops focused on youth development, traffic safety, leadership, underage drinking prevention, and more
- Trips to Downtown Disney and Universal's Islands of Adventure
- Adult participants can receive Professional Development Points for attending
The registration deadline is May 14, so don't wait - register today! You can find registration details on the sadd.org homepage. |
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Liberty Mutual Partnership | Liberty Mutual has been SADD's National Insurance Partner for many years. Together, we have collaborated on research to keep families safe behind the wheel. We recently introduced a Family Driving Ground Rules agreement, which parents and teens use to agree to safe driving practices. You can find the agreement, along with numerous other valuable resources, at libertymutualteendriving.com.
SADD and Liberty Mutual conduct annual research of teen driving behavior. This year's research showed that 90 percent of teens thought there was a stronger chance of their peers drinking and driving on prom night, but only 29 percent thought that driving that night came with a high degree of danger. See more detailed information here.
We're excited to announce a new element of our partnership. This fall, the SADD Family Focus Speaker Series presented by Liberty Mutual Insurance and featuring SADD Chairman and CEO Stephen Wallace will reach thousands of teens and parents in select communities across the country. Stay tuned for more information!
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Support SADD Today!
| The economy has begun its slow recovery from the recession, but times are still tough. SADD National charges no dues or membership fees and relies on donations to keep providing free materials and resources to chapters. You can donate quickly and easily to SADD online - click here to learn more.
 There are other ways to support SADD National. We've just announced a new partnership with We-Care.com for an online shopping mall, which you can find at sadd.we-care.com. The big problem with online mall shopping sites is that you have to remember to go to that site first before beginning your shopping. We-Care.com has solved that problem!
Just download the We-Care Reminder, and when you visit a participating site such as Amazon.com, a reminder box will pop up. Just click "OK" and shop as usual, and a portion of your purchase will be donated to SADD with no added cost to you! It's simple and easy and requires just a minute of your time - and it will really help us! Please download the reminder today.
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| | Programs and Resources
|  May 5 was the National Day to Prevent Teen Pregnancy, but it's not too late - events and resources will continue all month. SADD is proud to be a national partner on this effort, and SADD student Ryan Fraase from North Dakota serves on the Youth Leadership Team of the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy, the organization that coordinates the National Day.
 The centerpiece of the month is the National Day Quiz, which offers a compelling way to test your knowledge about pregnancy and other issues around sex. More than 150,000 teens have taken the Quiz this year. Take the Quiz today, and encourage your friends to take it, too!
 There are also other resources on the stayteen.org site, like the Stay Teen Block Game. Answer questions in a puzzle-like game where you have to coax the block on to the correct answer platform. Play the Block Game now, and see how many questions you can get right!
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Chapter Spotlight - Millbury SADD
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In the Spotlight this month is Millbury High School SADD from Millbury, Massachusetts.
Millbury SADD held their "SADD Week" in April with an assortment of activities - you can see SADD students above wearing creative "seat belt" t-shirts at one of the weekly activities.
They weren't satisfied to do just traditional activities, however - they wanted to take the school by surprise. So in the middle of a school assembly, music suddenly started playing, and SADD students raced to the stage to dance in an unexpected "flash mob." The rehearsed dance to a medley of songs had students in the audience laughing and cheering, reports SADD Advisor Sylvia Stepien. It ended with students lined up along the front of the stage wearing their seat belt t-shirts and holding signs that read "It's Your Life: Buckle Up!"
This type of creativity and mixing things up can call new attention to your safety messaging. Students in the school were talking about the flash mob for days afterward. Congrats to Millbury SADD for their energy and hard work!
If you'd like to see YOUR chapter in the Spotlight, be sure to let us know what you're doing! Send news and pictures to Chris Egan, SADD's Director of Field Services, at cegan@sadd.org or the mailing address at the bottom of this newsletter.
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Remember that the SADD National Field Services department is here to provide help and support to chapters, especially those in states without SADD State Coordinators. Just call 1-877-SADD-INC or e-mail fieldservices@sadd.org for help! Thanks for reading this issue of The SADDvocate, and thanks for all the work you do in your SADD chapters!
Sincerely,
Christopher Egan, Director of Field Services
SADD National |
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