Here's My Proposal

I think that the Driver's Education Class is one that we need here are Chinquapin. Our students don't have the time to take a Driver's Education class outside of school, and if we offered one here, we could save a lot of time for the students while making them valuable assets to their families and their community. As I have stressed as part of my project platform, I firmly believe that Driver's Education and a license are necessary to be considered an adult.

The class's scheduling is the easiest part to figure out. Texas laws state that a potential driver under the age of 18 must take some 38 hours of Driver's Education. However, the same driver at or over the age of 18 only has to take 6 hours. This is a huge deterrent to students who would like to take the class. It would decrease enrollment to nearly only seniors. The small number of students means that it wouldn't be that much of an impact to place the class during P.E. Since the would only be 6 hours, the seniors would be able to finish all the the required class hours within 3 weeks, assuming that the class is taken during 2 of the 4 P.E. hours during the week. A faculty member who doesn't teach a P.E. class could teach the Driver's Education class.

To become an instructor for a Driver's Education class, one must have a relatively clean license. A prospective instructor must not have any convictions (leastways, not any recent ones) and must have no history of fraud or moral turpitude. There must not be any history of drunken driving or license suspension. Other than that, anyone with a diploma and a license qualifies to teach. To become a teacher, one must have a certificate showing that he or she has taken at least 9 semester hours of a driver and traffic safety education course at an accredited college or university.

The only insurance cost is that of the vehicles. Since the vans are registered to the school, they are insured by the school and can be used for the class. The class could be held in any number of parking lots around the area. Many of them aren't used extensively, and so can be driven around in. However, practicing driving can be done on the weekends with the students' parents. The only thing needed for the school to hand out is the permit to practice on the open road.

This class could be put into practice within the next two years, if someone picks up this packet soon. The only thing left to do is find out how to pay the costs of the classes needed for the instructor, and the cost for the class, which is required to pay the teacher for the extra time spent.

Well, that's it. What do you think of my proposal?

The Start of The Revolution

I would like to start a Driver’s Ed class here at Chinquapin. Many other high schools offer Driver’s Ed. I think that, as a high school itself, Chinquapin should offer these classes to be well rounded. Many students between the ages of fourteen and eighteen can drive already, anyway. These students don’t have licenses because it has become such a hassle to get them. A mandatory twenty hours of Driver’s Ed is necessary to get a license, no matter the age. Most students don’t have the time to devote to the classes. They have online classes, but credit cards or PayPal is needed. They could take the classes on weekends, but most students focus on homework, help around the house, or they have jobs on the weekends. They simply don’t have the time or the money to take the classes. Parents also figure why should they take the class if they already know how to drive? If Chinquapin were to offer Driver’s Ed classes, several birds would be killed with one stone. Illegal drivers would become legal, driving-age students would acquire licenses, and colleges would look favorably on Driver’s Ed.

School cars would be a necessity. I believe I can get them be asking a small dealership to donate a good, used car to the school. It would be a tax write-off for them, and we would get a car. We could also buy one for incredibly cheap and fix it up. This would be a good time to offer a Mechanical Shop class. Insurance for the cars would also be needed. I am currently learning the best way to get grants for the school, and I believe I wouldn’t be the only one interested in getting this program off of the ground. The last thing to get would be the instructor. In order to be a driving instructor, you must have a valid license, read English, and have taken a course given by the DMV.

I also would like a mentor along the way. I am leaning towards Dr. Ray Griffin. He is really good at getting grants for the school, and he started a Driver’s Ed class before, so I would have found a master. My second choice would be someone who would be on board with me the whole way. A little encouragement never hurts. Jeremy Duncan seems to be a forward-thinking, kind individual.