A FedEx tractor trailer, news cameras and dozens of students filled in the bus lanes June 2 for a “Teens and Trucks” news conference during fifth period. Selected students and staff gathered in front of school to hear about the dangers of sharing the road with trucks and texting while driving.

Students from Thurgood Marshall, Largo and Bishop McNamara High Schools joined Whitman students in the program, presented by the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance and the National Organization for Youth Safety. The program emphasized the importance of avoiding a truck’s no-zones, or blind spots.

“We wanted to provide a tangible demonstration about what it means to get away from no-zones and encourage every student to take the no texting while driving pledge,” said Anne Ferro, a U.S. Dept. of Transportation official.

Assistant principal Brandi Heckert opened the program with a brief opening statement in front of cameras from several local news stations.

Sandy Spavone of NOYS, Steve Keppler of CVSA and Ferro spoke about the higher risk of teens on the road.  All of the speakers alluded to the fact the the months of May, June, July and August are by far the most dangerous months of the year in terms of teen motor vehicle crashes.  They urged students to make this summer the safest summer ever.

“In a split second your life could be negatively impacted forever,” Ferro said.  “Your driving decisions matter — to your family, to your friends and to other motorists who share the road with you.”

Next, an emotional Jacy Good, who herself has experienced the devastating effects of dangerous driving, spoke to students.  On the day of her high school graduation in 2008, a young driver talking on his cell phone ran a red light, causing an 18-wheel tractor trailer to hit Good’s car.  Good’s parents were pronounced dead at the scene, and Good was in critical condition with a 10 percent chance of living.

“This was 100 percent preventable and should not have happened,” Good told ABC News at the news conference. “My parents should not be dead.”

Another speaker, Laurie Kelly, then told the tragic story of her son’s death. Her son was texting when traffic suddenly stopped.  His car slammed into the back of a pick-up truck and went airborne.  He died two hours later in the hospital.

Maryland State Trooper Sgt. Rob Mondor concluded the program by leading students through a demonstration of a truck’s no-zones.  Mondor used an 18-wheel FedEx truck to show the impact a truck’s no-zones have on the driver’s sight.

Sophomore Lindsay Herschfeld and junior Ari Kapner sat in the driver’s seat of the FedEx tractor trailer.  When Mondor asked them whether they could see certain cars in the truck’s mirrors, they replied no to almost every question.

The program concluded when all of the students signed a pledge to not text while driving.

“Being overconfident is unsafe,” Kelly said.  “Don’t think texting while driving won’t kill you.”