Sharon High School Student Wins Traffic Safety Message Competition

From AAA:

Sharon, MA - For over 60 years, AAA’S Traffic Safety Message Competition has reached out to students to create a poster or public service announcement to educate their peers on matters regarding traffic safety. Students ranging from kindergarten through grade 12 submit their work related to: playing away from traffic, proper use of booster seats, school bus safety, pedestrian safety and night time visibility, bike safety and helmet use. High school students are asked to focus on messages pertaining to the dangers of impaired driving, safety belt use, speed and aggressive and distracted driving.

Over one thousand submissions from K-12 students throughout Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island were received in the 2016 contest. Under the direction of Sharon High School teacher David Antonell, sophomore Ben Reingold was able to produce the Grand Prize Winning Public Service announcement entitled “It’s Your Life.”

Sophomore Ben Reingold won for his poignant PSA depicting the dangers and consequences of distracted driving, specifically texting and driving. The video examines milestones that could be missed over the course of a lifetime, should a teenager make the decision to text while behind the wheel. This message is pertinent for high school aged students: “In the 100 days following Memorial Day, crash rates for teen drivers increase by 16%, averaging 10 fatal crashes per day. These are timely and important messages we hope will be shared via social media to impact young drivers,” said Diana Imondi Dias, AAA’s Traffic Safety Programs Manager.

Reingold won $1,000 from AAA Northeast which he plans on using toward new equipment to continue to improve his craft and pursue his interest in creating documentaries.

The winning messages were judged based on originality, technique, visual impact and relationship of messaging to traffic safety by a panel at AAA Northeast. The finalists were posted to the AAA website and the public could vote during a seven-day period to choose the winners.

Motor vehicle crashes continue to be the number one cause of death for young adults and children over age two, and AAA’s goal is to share the importance of developing safe practices from a young age. These messages are targeted to young people, created by young people. The winning artwork can be viewed here.

Photo from left to right: Zachary Reingold, Mr. & Mrs. Matthew Reingold, Ben Reingold, Lloyd Albert, AAA’s Senior Vice President of Public & Government Affairs, and David Antonell, teacher.