SADD Saves Lives Through Education

Since 1981, everyone has become familiar with the organization known as SADD, which stands for Students Against Destructive Decisions. Founded in Wayland, Massachussetts, SADD originally stood for "Students Against Drunk Driving". In 1997, the name was changed to encompass otherissues affecting teenagers, including drugs and suicide as well as drunk driving. Over the past 25 years, SADD has become the nations leading peer-to-peer youth education and prevention organization with thousands of chapters in middle schools, high schools and colleges.

SADD's unique approach involves young people delivering education and prevention messages to their peers through school- and communitywide activities and campaigns responsive to the needs of their particular locations. Projects may include peer-led classes and theme-focused forums, teen workshops, conferences and rallies, prevention education and leadership training, awareness-raising activities and legislative work. Independent studies have shown that students in schools with a SADD chapter are more aware of and informed about the risks of underage drinking, other drug use, and impaired driving. Students in schools with a SADD chapter are also more likely to hold attitudes reflecting positive reasons not to use alcohol.

What began as a small-town, grass-roots response to the tragedy of two impaired driving crashes and the resulting deaths of two teenage students quickly grew to become a nationwide organization fueled by millions of young people across the country and around the world. Through the efforts of SADD and similar organizations and with changes in government policy and law, the number of teen alcohol-related traffic crashes has been reduced by almost 60 percent.

With thousands of chapters nationwide and a strong network of state coordinators and school-based advisors, SADD is uniquely positioned to help young people with the growing threats to their health, happiness, and safety. Through their campaigns and activities, SADD chapters influence millions of people in schools, families, local community organizations, businesses, law enforcement agencies, and the media. As an active, established youth program, SADD reaches into more schools and touches more young people for longer periods of time than does any other program.

Active and successful SADD chapters often influence the development of new SADD chapters, which helps to increase the number of youths who are exposed to SADD's youth development initiatives and positive messages. Studies have shown that schools with an active SADD chapter have better informed students who are more aware of the risks of underage drinking, drug use, and impaired driving.

SADD chapters serve as a direct link to the heart of a school system and community. Using students themselves as primary agents and meaningful contributors, SADD chapters have become an efficient and effective avenue for quality programming to be implemented in thousands of schools and communities across the country. The SADD National office supports its chapters and develops programming grounded in the most up-to-date concepts, information, and strategies from research and practice. Ultimately, SADD has the potential to lead the youth culture into a new era in which young people passionately embrace their ability and desire to nurture and protect their minds, bodies, spirits, and futures.

Organizing a SADD chapter at your school is relatively easy. The SADD website, located at www.sadd.org, gives you all of the steps that you need to follow in order to create an active SADD chapter. First, of course, you need to find a school advisor. Let your principal know that you are interested in starting this club, and you may be pointed in the right direction to find an advisor. Or, perhaps you have a teacher in mind already. Approach that teacher yourself and let him or her know that you want to start a chapter of SADD.

Next, recruit some SADD members. These people can be anyone that attends your school. Perhaps you already have some friends that want to participate. Get a commitment from them, and you will start the ball rolling. Don't forget to post flyers about your new club around school. This will get people that you don't know interested. And, perhaps you can make an announcement over the loudspeaker throughout the school in the morning during homeroom. There are plenty of ways to find people to join you on your endeavor.

The SADD website gives you a set of by-laws to implement in your club. Print them out and give everyone a copy. At your first meeting, discuss these by-laws. Also bring a copy of the SADD Officers Descriptions, so that you can fill those positions and send all of the necessary forms off to SADD National Headquarters. There are other forms that you should print off of the website, incluing the Contract For Life, SADD Constitution, Mission Statement and Registration Form. Or, if you would rather have these items sent to you as a starter kit, contact SADD by calling 1-877-SADD-INC or sending an email with your request to info@sadd.org.
As young people, teenagers have the power to change lives of the people all around them: their family, their friends, their community and the world on a whole. SADD offers teenagers the opportunity to start small in their school as a club, then get involved within the community. SADD members are also invited to attend conferences around the United States, meeting like-minded individuals such as themselves.

SADD is an excellent organization that can help teens not only change lives, but also save them. All you have to do is get involved.