Summit Prevention Alliance works towards reducing impaired driving and underage drinking while also increasing seat belt us in Summit County.

Impaired Driving

By coordinating the Drunk Driving Prevention Committee (DDPC), Summit Prevention Alliance is able to work closely with restaurant and bar owners and staff, law enforcement, government, Summit Prevention Alliance, and other concerned citizens to implement comprehensive drunk driving prevention efforts in our community. The following are some of the efforts that Summit Prevention Alliance and the Drunk Driving Prevention Committee implement in Summit County:

• Training on responsible alcohol service for sellers and servers which includes information on how to avoid over-serving and understanding the affects of alcohol
• Information and education on liquor laws and checking ID’s through speaking engagements and material dissemination
• Training and education with local governments, businesses and liquor boards as requested
• “Almost Everyone’s Doing It” - a social norms designated driver campaign. Did you know that 4 out of 5 Summit County partiers designate a driver? Plan ahead when you plan to drink
• Designated Driver Program – a program where bars and restaurants provide incentives for designated drivers in order to reduce impaired driving
• Support of local law enforcement with alcohol compliance checks
• Quarterly Drunk Driving Prevention Committee (DDPC) meetings which also include distribution of the “DUI”

Underage Drinking

Summit Prevention Alliance works closely with the Summit County School District and communicates messages through activities and the social norms campaign (“This is US”) at the middle school and high school. Some of the activities that SPA implements to target the issue of underage drinking include the following:

• Parent education on underage drinking through activities such as Dialogue Over Dinner
• Activities at the high school approaching spring break and prom to promote making healthy choices among students
• Messages with the “This is US” campaign that involve statistics on alcohol use
• Training on responsible alcohol service to sellers and servers which includes education on properly checking ID’s in order to not sell to minors
• Information and education on liquor laws and checking ID’s through speaking engagements and material dissemination

Seat Belt Use

Seat belt use is an important message that Summit Prevention Alliance aims to communicate to our community as a whole. The following are ways that Summit Prevention Alliance communicates this message:

• Messages with the “This is US” campaign that involve statistics on seat belt use
• Teen Driver Safety Day – an activity where students are rewarded for wearing their seat belts
• Promotion of state wide campaigns including “Click It or Ticket”