Millburn High School Students Present iTold4 to Fourth Graders

The iTold4 Project taught by high school seniors was recently presented to every fourth grade class in Millburn Township.

The iTold4 Project, which focuses on teaching elementary school children how to prevent hearing loss before they have permanent damage, was founded three years ago by then Millburn High School freshmen Sarah Nelson, Andrea Shepard, and Sami Vinik. 

“In an age when teens are often characterized as self-absorbed, Sarah and her team demonstrate true community spirit and caring for others. They model what each of us should strive for,” Julianna Kusz, Director of Special Services, observed the program recently at Glenwood School and said.

Since then these students have educated more than 1000 elementary school students about how to prevent hearing loss.  Now, as juniors, they are leading a team of 5 MHS student educators who go out teach younger children

One of iTold4’s co-founders, Sami Vinik, was born with a severe hearing loss.  While Sami’s hearing impairment could not be prevented, 20% of teens have hearing loss that is preventable. 

The high school team shared examples of ways that children can protect their hearing such as locking the volume on their ipods and music players to keep the music at a safe level. They encourage the youngsters to tell 4 others about the lessons they learned in order to spread the word about hearing safety.