Activities Of Private Organizations

SEATCHECK Child Safety Seat Inspection Locator Service Launched
DaimlerChrysler Corporation launched the first nationwide toll-free hotline (1-866- SEAT-CHECK) dedicated exclusively to directing parents to local car seat inspection resources. The hotline is part of a new campaign to aggressively promote the need for safety seat inspections. The company also created a new Web site (www.seatcheck.org) to complement the hotline and to provide child passenger safety seat educational materials that can be downloaded easily.

Motor Carrier Support for Click It or Ticket
Landstar, a national motor carrier company, posted Click It or Ticket campaign advertisements on 2,000 newly manufactured 53-foot tractor-trailers. These tractor-trailers will carry the Click It or Ticket message throughout all 50 States, Canada, and Mexico. Landstar also conducted in-house training programs on the importance of safety belt use.

Keeping BUA on the Road
The American Trucking Association worked with NHTSA to distribute information about the BUA campaign to its State trucking associations.

Research on Safety Belt Use Behavior
State Farm Insurance Company awarded a $10 million grant to Meharry Medical College. The resources will enable Meharry to examine the factors that may contribute to low safety belt use rates among African American populations and develop ways to increase African American safety belt use.

Buckling Up in Hispanic Communities
The Nationwide Insurance Company, along with NHTSA, funded development of a Spanish-language campaign, Corazón de mi vida to make buckling up a habit for Latino parents and their children. The National Latino Children’s Institute (NLCI) developed the campaign, which means, “You are the center of my life.” During 2002, the NLCI promoted the campaign in selected cities in New York and North Carolina.

WHALE Program Expanded
The American Society for Directors of Volunteer Services (ASDVS), working with the Greater Federation of Women’s Clubs (GFWC), finalized the child safety seat identification component of its WHALE (We Have A Little Emergency) program. The program will be distributed through certified child passenger safety technicians, law enforcement agencies, emergency medical services professionals, and the members of both ASDVS and GFWC.

Youth Outreach Continues
Members of the National Organizations for Youth Safety (NOYS) and NHTSA jointly conducted a workshop at the Annual School Health Conference of the American School Health Association. Titled “Youth Saving Youth: America’s Youth Leading the Way in Preventing Teen Deaths,” the workshop focused on strategies for reducing the toll of motor-vehicle-related injuries and deaths. The NOYS youth presenters discussed the need to involve young people in problem identification and the development of solutions.

Buckle Up and Smile for Life
In 2002, the National Dental Association (NDA) launched its first community education program, titled “Buckle Up and Smile for Life.” All 20 NDA societies were encouraged to undertake community outreach activities during the months of February and April—February being Dental Health and Black History Month, and April being National Minority Health Month. As part of the campaign, NDA distributed its brochure, “Leading the Way, Lighting the Future— Buckle Up and Smile For Life,” at its 89th annual convention in Dallas, TX.