Three Tabb High School students have won a $7,000 prize for producing a video on the dangers of distracted driving.
Malia Rosburg, Hope Matthews and Alisabeth Rodriguez produced the video, “What If?” Their effort came as part of the fifth annual No 2 Distracted Driving campaign, according to a release from Cox Communications.
“We couldn’t be prouder of the response to our call for entries,” Jean Mahon, marketing director for contest sponsor Hall I MileOne Autogroup, said in the release. “These students have demonstrated the reasons that distracted driving is so dangerous for teens and for us all.”
For the contest, 27 students from high schools throughout Hampton Roads created videos up to two minutes in length. Participants, who were students aged 14 to 19, had to show the hazards of driving while distracted.
In the winning film, a student falls asleep in school and dreams of driving while texting — with disastrous consequences.
According to the release, 10 percent of all drivers under the age of 20 who have been in car crashes were distracted at the time of the incident.
After a panel of judges narrowed the field to four finalists, the public voted to determine the winner. More than 76,000 votes were cast.
Rosburg, Matthews and Rodriguez will split $3,500 and Tabb High School will take the remaining $3,500, according to the release.
A spokesperson for York County School Division did not respond to a request for comment before publication.
