Downstate High School Honored For Fight Against Texting And Driving

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (CBS) -- Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White is saluting some high school students who are getting the message out – about when not to be text messaging.

As WBBM Newsradio's Dave Dahl reports, White signed a big red wall at his tent at the Illinois State Fair, congratulating Fieldcrest High School in downstate Woodford County for its leadership in encouraging safe driving under a program called Project Ignition, sponsored by State Farm.

LISTEN: WBBM Newsradio's Dave Dahl reports

"Teens are influenced by their peers," White said Tuesday. "It is my hope that the fear of traffic conviction will influence drivers to avoid texting while driving."

The idea is to prevent future tragedy, given the dangers of texting and driving.

"We all were kids. We all made mistakes, and hopefully, this group right here is helping prevent potential tragedy. The mistakes might just be a speeding ticket or something like that – that's going to happen – but what they're really preventing is the tragedy," said Fieldcrest principal Bill Lapp.

More about the anti-texting and driving campaign at Fieldcrest, including an opportunity to sign a pledge against texting and driving, is available here.

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• Dave Dahl