HOW DID PROJECT GRADUATION BEGIN?
Project Graduation began in Maine 20 years ago in response to the tragic loss of 18 lives in alcohol and drug related crashes following graduation. During the 1979 commencement period (May 15-June 30) in Maine, seven of the 12 deaths among teenagers that resulted from driving under the influence of alcohol occurred in the area of Oxford Hills. In response to this loss of life, a school-community coalition from Oxford Hills developed and implemented a program called “Project Graduation,” a chemical-free graduation celebration, during the 1979-1980 school year. During Oxford Hills’ 1980 commencement period, there were no fatalities, no alcohol or drug-related injuries, and no arrests for driving under the influence of alcohol. Maine’s first Project Graduation was such a success that many other high schools adopted similar programs. By 1986, Project Graduation activities were held in fifty states. Today the term “Project Graduation” describes an illegal substance free graduation celebration sponsored by the community under the supervision of many adult volunteers.
DOES PROJECT GRADUATION WORK?
The number of fatalities occurring among 15 to 19 year old Maine residents during the graduation period that involved teenagers driving under the influence of alcohol decreased from 12 in 1979 to one in 1984, with an intermittent drop to zero in 1983. During this period, the number of high schools participating in Project Graduation increased from 1 to 129. This statewide diffusion effort, stimulated by the Maine Department of Educational and Cultural Services, Division of Alcohol and Drug Education Services, constitutes program adoption in 84.9% of Maine’s high schools. In 1984, 79.1% of graduating seniors in project sites (68.3% graduating seniors statewide) attended chemical-free commencement activities. The single fatality reported in 1984 did not occur in a Project Graduation site. Analysis of the fatalities in question for teens residing in areas where the program was in place, compared with teens who did not reside in those areas, revealed a significant difference favoring teens exposed to Project Graduation. (http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/00000533.htm)
A more recent study in Hawaii revealed similar results. In response to an increase in impaired driving crash fatalities of teenagers 15-19 years old in 1994, a program was adopted which included implementing Project Prom/Graduation at local public and private high schools. By 1996, the rate of alcohol-related fatal motor vehicle crashes involving teenage drivers was 8.9 percent, down from 11.1 percent in 1994. No traffic fatalities during the graduation weekend were experienced for several years, and local Police Departments saw a reduction in the number of community complaints during the busiest graduation weekend. (http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/people/outreach/safedige/Summer1997/n4-41.html)
Project Graduation began in Maine 20 years ago in response to the tragic loss of 18 lives in alcohol and drug related crashes following graduation. During the 1979 commencement period (May 15-June 30) in Maine, seven of the 12 deaths among teenagers that resulted from driving under the influence of alcohol occurred in the area of Oxford Hills. In response to this loss of life, a school-community coalition from Oxford Hills developed and implemented a program called “Project Graduation,” a chemical-free graduation celebration, during the 1979-1980 school year. During Oxford Hills’ 1980 commencement period, there were no fatalities, no alcohol or drug-related injuries, and no arrests for driving under the influence of alcohol. Maine’s first Project Graduation was such a success that many other high schools adopted similar programs. By 1986, Project Graduation activities were held in fifty states. Today the term “Project Graduation” describes an illegal substance free graduation celebration sponsored by the community under the supervision of many adult volunteers.
DOES PROJECT GRADUATION WORK?
The number of fatalities occurring among 15 to 19 year old Maine residents during the graduation period that involved teenagers driving under the influence of alcohol decreased from 12 in 1979 to one in 1984, with an intermittent drop to zero in 1983. During this period, the number of high schools participating in Project Graduation increased from 1 to 129. This statewide diffusion effort, stimulated by the Maine Department of Educational and Cultural Services, Division of Alcohol and Drug Education Services, constitutes program adoption in 84.9% of Maine’s high schools. In 1984, 79.1% of graduating seniors in project sites (68.3% graduating seniors statewide) attended chemical-free commencement activities. The single fatality reported in 1984 did not occur in a Project Graduation site. Analysis of the fatalities in question for teens residing in areas where the program was in place, compared with teens who did not reside in those areas, revealed a significant difference favoring teens exposed to Project Graduation. (http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/00000533.htm)
A more recent study in Hawaii revealed similar results. In response to an increase in impaired driving crash fatalities of teenagers 15-19 years old in 1994, a program was adopted which included implementing Project Prom/Graduation at local public and private high schools. By 1996, the rate of alcohol-related fatal motor vehicle crashes involving teenage drivers was 8.9 percent, down from 11.1 percent in 1994. No traffic fatalities during the graduation weekend were experienced for several years, and local Police Departments saw a reduction in the number of community complaints during the busiest graduation weekend. (http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/people/outreach/safedige/Summer1997/n4-41.html)
