The United Family today announced donations totaling more than $45,000 to Project Graduation celebrations at 65 high schools in West Texas (including Brownwood High School) and Dallas-Fort Worth, which will provide students with safe and substance-free graduation parties. The 2015 contribution to Project Graduation exceeds last year’s total by more than 18 percent.
Offered at high schools nationwide, Project Graduation aims to reduce the number of youth involved in alcohol- and other drug-related highway accidents through coordinating adult-supervised, alcohol-free celebrations for students. The United Family’s contribution will support programs at schools located throughout the company’s service area, including the areas of Abilene, Amarillo, Dallas-Fort Worth, Lubbock, Wichita Falls and Midland-Odessa.
“Graduation season is an important and memorable time for students, and we are proud to contribute to making those celebrations special, as well as safe for the young adults in the communities we serve,” said Shelby Crews, senior community relations manager for The United Family.
A 2013 study by Liberty Mutual Insurance and Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD) found that high school students are more likely to drink around the end of the school year and into summertime. The study also found that as many as three million under-the-influence teens get behind the wheel, and out of the 13 million driving-aged teens, 23 percent admit to driving under the influence of alcohol, marijuana or other drugs.
