Orcutt Academy High School (OAHS) this year will be hosting the Every15 Minutes program, which was developed to prevent teens from driving while impaired.

Every 15 Minutes is one of several teen driving programs the California Highway Patrol (CHP) is involved in with the goal of reducing crashes and fatalities among teenagers.

“We are helping students see the impact tragedy can bring from a different perspective, through the eyes of their family and friends,” program organizers said. “We are proud to be partnering with Fighting Back Santa Maria Valley (FBSMV) again this year.

“FBSMV has been spearheading this program for almost two decades in the Santa Maria Valley.”

The two-day program challenges students to think about impaired driving, personal safety, and the responsibility of making mature decisions which could impact family, friends, and community members.

Every 15 Minutes dramatically presents, through realistic demonstrations, the effect that an impaired driver fatal crash has on a school, family and friends.

Students witness wrecked vehicles in a mock crash scene; watch as emergency crews extricate victims; and view a mock arrest of the impaired driver.

The crash scene will be held at 10 a.m. April 16.

At the end of the first day, the students who played a role in the event, are taken to an overnight retreat where they hear first-hand from community members who have been involved in or have been affected by an incident involving an impaired driver.

On day two, April 17, there will be a student assembly at 10 a.m. at the OAHS gymnasium.

Funding for the program was provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety, through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.