Cooper Tire & Rubber Co.’s philanthropic arm, the Cooper Tire & Rubber Foundation, has partnered with the National Organizations for Youth Safety (NOYS) to promote teen and young adult driver and tire safety.
With the partnership, Cooper and NOYS will launch the new program “Tread Wisely,” which was announced in conjunction with May’s Global Youth Traffic Safety Month.
The program will involve young people in educating and motivating their peers about safety and will also feature a tire character that delivers important safety information with a humorous and proactive approach.
The first launch of “Tread Wisely” will focus on developing an app that delivers information and utility programs related to tire and driver safety. The app is expected to launch during the 2016-2017 school year and will be available in English and Spanish. The second launch of “Tread Wisely” will include youth activation and Cooper employee volunteer efforts at high schools and other areas to promote three tire safety basics: checking inflation pressure, assessing tread depth and checking the overall condition of tires. Creative competitions will also be held to encourage peer-to-peer education, Cooper said.
Additionally, Cooper will sponsor the Tire and Driver Safety Pavilion, a focal point of the NOYS Interactive Lab held in Washington, D.C., that will kick off National Teen Driver Safety Week on Oct. 17. The event will offer students hands-on learning on a variety of tire and driver safety.
“Insulated by tons of metal and glass, it’s easy for young drivers to feel invincible behind the wheel,” said Cooper chairman, CEO and president Roy Armes. “Motor vehicle crashes remain a leading cause of death for teens and young adults worldwide, and this must change. In a survey of Cooper employees worldwide, our people overwhelmingly said that our number one cause as a company should be addressing this problem. Cooper is committed, working with NOYS, to tackling this effort in a way that makes a real difference.”
For more information, visit treadwisely.org.
