MSU Extension receives funding from Office of Highway Safety Planning for 4-H youth seat belt education in Wayne County
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EmailA one-year $120,000 grant from the Office of Highway Safety Planning (OHSP) will provide 800 youth in Wayne County, Michigan with seat belt education.
The Michigan State University Extension 4-H program has been awarded a one-year $120,000 grant from the Office of Highway Safety Planning (OHSP) to provide seat belt education in Wayne County, Michigan. The program aims to improve seat belt utilization rates in Wayne County by educating 800 middle and high school students on the importance of wearing seat belts while driving or riding in a vehicle.
Michigan 4-H has a history of successful collaboration with OHSP. From 2006-2009, the 'Take a Second: Save a Lifetime' Michigan 4-H Seat Belt Program Toolkit was developed and implemented. This toolkit provided a comprehensive resource for educating and engaging communities on the importance of wearing seat belts. The initiative demonstrated significant success, highlighting the effectiveness of the partnership. The collaborative effort showcased a commitment to promoting safety awareness, particularly focusing on the crucial aspect of using seat belts.
According to the 2023 Statewide Seat Belt and Mobile Device Use Survey, Wayne County ranks among the 10 counties with the lowest seat belt utilization rates in Michigan, with an average rate of 84.2 percent across all ages. The country also had one of the highest rates of mobile phone use among drivers, at 11 percent, contributing to distracted driving concerns. The issue is particularly concerning for youth. In 2022, Michigan State Police District 2 reported that 18.5 percent of children and youth aged 0-15 who were involved in crashes did not wear seat belts.
The Michigan 4-H Youth Development program engages over 100,000 youth annually in programs that serve every county in Michigan. In Wayne County specifically, 8,472 youth participate in ongoing 4-H programs through MSU Extension. The new seat belt education program will provide hands-on, interactive activities and discussion around decision-making, critical thinking, problem-solving, managing stress of peer pressure, and how to influence their peers to make safe decisions. Ultimately, the goal of the program is to establish a culture of responsible and consistent seat belt use by providing in-depth knowledge about the potential risks and consequences related to not using seat belts and engaging in distracted driving. MSU Extension hopes to empower youth to make informed and responsible decisions about road safety and encourage them to be role models for their communities.
The program will serve as a pilot initiative, with the potential to expand programing to other Michigan counties with low seat belt use rates. MSU Extension hopes to expand this effort in 2026 to encourage road safety and decrease preventable injuries and fatalities across the state.
To learn more about the Wayne County 4-H Seat Belt program, contact piconeal@msu.edu. Connect with MSU Extension in your community by contacting your county MSU Extension office. Visit the 4-H Healthy Youth website to learn more about 4-H healthy living programs for youth.
