For more information, contact: Jessica Erickson, AT&T Wisconsin 608-282-7870 (work) 608-692-5340 (cell) jessica.erickson@att.

com

Event Educates Green Bay Students on Dangers of Texting & Driving

Football Star Josh Sitton Teams Up with AT&T, AAA and Wisconsin State Patrol to Keep Teen Drivers Safe
GREEN BAY, WI, Thursday, May 24, 2012 Green Bay football star Josh Sitton teamed up with AT&T, AAA, the Wisconsin State Patrol, the Green Bay Area Public School District, and State Rep. John Klenke today to educate East High School students about the dangers of texting while driving and Wisconsins law banning the deadly practice.

Nearly 1,500 East students had the chance to hear from Sitton and safety leaders about the dangers and demonstrate AAAs distracted driving simulator thanks to fellow student Lorissa VandenHoogen. An East senior, VandenHoogens name was drawn in the AT&T-sponsored Take Sitton to School contest. Not only did she win the all-school assembly for her classmates, but she was also treated to a VIP lunch with Sitton, a backup autographed Super Bowl jersey, and a limo ride to and from lunch with the star football player courtesy of Escort Limousine Services. In this age of instant communication, we all know how tempting it is to respond to that text message right away, even while driving especially for our teens, Sitton said. Not only is it against the law to text and drive in Wisconsin, but the dangers are very real. I hope all Green Bay high school students will join me in taking the pledge to not text behind the wheel. Todays assembly reinforced the simple message that text messages can, and should, wait until after driving a message particularly important as summer vacation and the graduation season quickly approaches. While these special times are meant to be memorable for teens, the days between Memorial Day and Labor Day have been dubbed the 100 deadliest days for teen drivers on the road.
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Texting while driving is one of the most dangerous activities you can do behind the wheel, said East Principal Edward Dorff. There is no text message that is worth risking your life over. We hope this assembly will really drive home that message for our students and change the behavior of those who do text while driving, especially as these memorable months approach. The assembly featured a showing of an AT&T documentary called The Last Text that shares real stories of lives altered or ended because of texting and driving. Students also had the opportunity to demonstrate AAAs distracted driving simulator to experience firsthand how impossible it is to text and drive safely.

Studies show that teen drivers are particularly at risk for both texting while driving and car crashes. Not only do teens text five times more a day than adults on average, but those who send text messages while driving are 23 times more likely to be in a crash. In addition, traffic crashes are the leading cause of death for teens. Texting is so dangerous because it takes a drivers eyes off the road for an average of 5 seconds. At 55 mph, thats like driving the length of a football field completely blind.
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Thats why AT&Ts Texting & Driving It Can Wait public awareness campaign is especially focused on educating teens about the risks. As part of its campaign, AT&T developed The Last Text documentary to examine the real world consequences of texting and driving. Each of the individuals in the video volunteered their stories to help educate Americans, particularly youth, about the risks of texting behind the wheel. The documentary can be viewed on the AT&T It Can Wait website and on the AT&T YouTube page.

Students were also challenged to sign a teen pledge to not text and drive and encourage their friends and families to do the same. Others can sign the pledge not to text and drive on AT&Ts Facebook page. Todays event also highlighted AT&Ts DriveMode* a free mobile app for Android
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smartphone users that, when enabled, sends a customizable auto-reply message to incoming texts and emails, notifying the sender that the user is driving and will respond when it is safe. The app also provides an option to send calls directly to voicemail. Texting while driving is a dangerous and deadly epidemic on Americas roadways, said State Rep. John Klenke (R-Green Bay). Im pleased to see East High School students coming together to learn about the dangers and I hope they all take the pledge to not text and drive. Events like todays assembly are an important way to educate our youth about the dangers and help keep our roads safe for all drivers.

Wisconsins law, effective as of December 1, 2010, prohibits sending an e-mail or text message while driving and imposes a fine of up to $400. As a primary enforcement law, officers may stop and ticket drivers solely for texting and driving. Wisconsin is among 37 states and the District of Columbia that ban text messaging by all drivers.

If you text while driving, your hands are not on the steering wheel, your eyes are not on the road, and your mental focus is not on the traffic and road conditions around you, said Major Sandra Huxtable, Director of the Wisconsin State Patrols Bureau of Transportation Safety. Without a doubt, texting while driving will increase your risk of causing a crash or failing to avoid one.

AAA has also launched a national initiative to ban texting while driving in every state by the year 2013 and has partnered with AT&T and the State Patrol to host events at high schools around Wisconsin to warn teen drivers of the deadly consequences of texting while driving. Through its driving simulator, AAA is teaching teens the devastating effects of texting while driving. AAA has long been warning the public of the dangers of distracted driving, said AAA Wisconsin Regional President Tom Frymark. By partnering with educators, the State Patrol and AT&T, we hope to get the message across to even more Wisconsin drivers that texting and driving is a dangerous mix. For more information on AT&Ts It Can Wait campaign, please visit: www.att.com/textingcanwait.

*AT&T products and services are provided or offered by subsidiaries and affiliates of AT&T Inc. under the AT&T brand and not by AT&T Inc *Standard messaging rates apply to auto-reply messages. AT&T DriveMode is free to AT&T customers only. Compatible device required. 1 AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety 2 Virginia Tech Transportation Institute Research: www.vtti.vt.edu

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