By Quinta Goines

A dozen hearing-impaired students spent Friday morning with an Alabama State Trooper learning about the dangers of drunk driving.

The students were participating in Camp Success at Troy University. The camp is hosted by the Alabama Department of Rehabilitation Services for seniors and recent high school graduates who are deaf or had a loss of hearing.

The driving education program, called Fatal Vision, was developed by ALFA Farmer’s Federation and Alabama State Troopers to raise awareness about drunk driving.

“It is important to not only reach out to licensed drivers but to those up and coming teenage drivers, so we can educate them on the dangers so they can make that smart choice when they are driving,” said Trooper Kevin Cook.

Drunk driving is the second leading cause of car crashes in Alabama behind speeding. Forty percent of Alabama’s crashes are the result of drunk driving, higher than the 32 percent national average.

For the exercise, Cook operated the gas and brake on a John Deere Gator as students wore fatal vision goggles steered through a 50-cone course. The goggles simulate a .25 Blood Alcohol Content level and they are used to show the impact that alcohol has on the body’s ability to function.

Working with interpreters, Cook used American Sign Language hand signals to communicate with the drivers to help them stay on the course.

The students also learned to let police officers know they are deaf or hard of hearing when the police officer first approaches the car.

Jamie Glass, the Camp Success coordinator, said it is important for the students to know the correct way to inform officers that they can’t hear to avoid an altercation.

“When I put the goggles on I couldn’t see anything, so I had to guess my way around the course,” Jamarius Yeldell said. “The lesson I learned to never drink and drive.”

Troy University is the only university in the state of Alabama that offers Interpreter Training major and the department has hosted Camp Success for two years. Faculty and student interpreters volunteered with the students to serve as interpreters and resident assistants while they were on campus.

The students also spent the week gaining exposure to college life and they attended college readiness workshops to help transition from high school.