Hewlett Happenings

Absorbing critical life lessons before graduation

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With nearly a month left until graduation, Hewlett High School teachers and administrators are working hard to ensure the class of 2017 is prepared to face the challenges and obstacles that college and the real world may present.

On May 18 Hewlett High’s Students Against Destructive Decisions club brought the Save a Life Tour to school to stress to the senior class the dangers associated with driving.

Seniors attended an assembly in the gymnasium, where a guest speaker from the Save a Life Tour spoke about the immense peril that comes along with driving while distracted and driving while intoxicated.

Having lost his own brother due to a teenager’s reckless decision to drink and drive, he explained that drinking and driving and texting while driving is not an obsolete issue — it is very real and can affect the students of Hewlett High, especially as we embark on our post-high school journeys. The speaker then showed a 15-minute video that further showed the seriousness of our decisions behind the wheel.

Later in the day, the a seniors returned to the gym with their English classes to take part in simulations that showed the severity of drinking and driving and texting while driving. In one simulation, students were able to get behind the wheel and drive on a virtual course with varying weather that was set to imitate drunk driving: the screen was blurred and reactions were a few seconds delayed.

The second simulation was similar but instead of a blurry screen and a delayed reaction time, seniors had to pick up a phone and answer text messages while driving. Both simulations showed just how difficult it is to avoid crashing while distracted or intoxicated.

After participating in the simulations, students signed a pledge vowing to never really participate in these extremely dangerous actions.

Although we are always taught never to drink and drive or text and drive, the Save a Life Tour further ingrained this important message. Without a doubt, the assembly and simulations made seniors more conscientious about how our decisions behind the wheel are of the upmost importance.

Before the school year ends, the class of 2017 is set to also attend assemblies about rape and drugs. These important lessons will be valuable as the group sets out in different directions across the nation and world after June’s graduation. Beyond curriculum learning, it is vital that students understand real-life risks and consequences.