The Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College Advancement Foundation was recently awarded an $8,595 grant for fiscal year 2023 from the Georgia Young Adult Program which is funded through the Governor's Office of Highway Safety (GOHS).

The grant helps to promote education and awareness for young, inexperienced drivers ages 16-24 about highway safety involving issues such as underage drinking and impaired driving.

“With the increase in the number of persons killed in traffic crashes in Georgia and across the nation over the last year, the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety is working with partners such as ABAC to implement programs designed to stop the risky driving behaviors that are contributing to a majority of our serious-injury and fatality crashes,” GOHS Director Allen Poole said.

This is the 20th year of the Young Adult program on the ABAC campus. Projects within the program involve collaborations with the campus Greek community, student athletes, camps, police, health and wellness departments, and counseling services.

Activities will include ThinkFast alcohol awareness training that simulates a game show where students are asked questions, and they must buzz in with the correct answer. In 2022, the program reached approximately 1,500 students. Everyone from the Tifton area between the ages of 16 and 24 is invited to participate.

Scott Pierce, ABAC's Director of Sponsored Programs, said, "We are very pleased to have this grant come to ABAC again this year. Through partnerships with the Tift County Commission on Children and Youth, the City of Tifton Police Department, and the Tift County Sheriff's Office, this grant helps us reach out through our community.

“It gives us the opportunity to help lower the number and severity of alcohol-related incidents, making a real difference in southwest Georgia."

Master Sergeant Todd Daunhauer from the ABAC Police Department will spearhead the Young Adult program. He will seek to provide the students of ABAC with a safe environment to learn and address the dangers of impaired driving.

The grant year began Oct. 1, 2022 and runs through Sept. 30, 2023. For more information, interested persons can contact GOHS at 404-657-9079. For more information on GOHS and its other highway safety programs, visit ga.highwaysafety.org.