The mission of the Highway Safety Center is to bring together university personnel from various disciplines and professional backgrounds to assist the people of Pennsylvania and national and international organizations in solving problems related to highway traffic safety, while maintaining the values of good transportation.
Applying university resources toward traffic improvement, the Highway Safety Center is a liaison between university personnel and state and local officials, business, industrial, and professional interests, and other groups and individuals. The center's program encompasses activity in five major areas:
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Research, surveys, and studies
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Education (teaching)
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Training and conferences
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Field and extension services
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Traffic safety communications and information exchange
Within these areas, the Highway Safety Center offers the following:
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Armstrong, Butler, Clearfield, Indiana, and Jefferson County Regional Highway Safety Project
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First-responder, emergency medical technician, paramedic, and CPR training
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Driver improvement programs for police officers, ambulance personnel, and the public
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Undergraduate and graduate courses in driver education
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Headquarters for the American Driver and Traffic Safety Education Association
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Industrial fire brigade and emergency response team training
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Driver improvement programs for private fleets
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Spokesperson for National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), U.S. Department of Transportation, to improve driver education nationwide
HP 251 Foundations of Safety and Emergency Health Care3 Semester Hours
This course is offered every Fall and Spring semester and in the first five-week session of summer school. It involves three lecture hours.
This course introduces the student to the foundations of safety, which involves accident prevention and injury control. It examines the four classes of accidents (motor vehicle, work, home, and public), and it allows the student to identify causes and plan countermeasures from both a preventive and mitigative standpoint. The course will also provide training in emergency health care, which will include American Red Cross certification in (1) Standard First Aid, (2) Community CPR, (3) Introduction to Health Services Education, (4) Instructor of Standard First Aid, and (5) Instructor of Community CPR.
There are no prerequisites for this course and it is recommended that it be taken early in the student's program.
**Please note that HPED 242 Emergency Health Care does not meet the requirements for the Safety/Driver Education State Certification.
HP 252 Introduction to the Driving Task3 Semester Hours
This course is offered every Fall semester and in the first five-week session of summer school. It involves two lecture hours and two laboratory hours.
This course provides an in-depth treatment of operating a motor vehicle competently in most conditions encountered within the traffic environment. A competent operator is considered to be one who performs the driving task knowledgeably, skillfully, and desirably (with respect to behavioral characteristics), demonstrating full understanding and application of all safe driving practices such as perceptual awareness, hazard recognition, and collision avoidance techniques.
The prerequisite for this class is that the student posses a valid driver's license and have a minimum of three years' driving experience.
HP 353 Driving Education Program Management3 Semester Hours
This course is offered every Spring semester and in the second five-week session of summer school. It involves three lecture hours.
This course will prepare prospective driver education teachers to plan, teach, and evaluate the driver education classroom instructional mode. Actual experience of teaching beginner drivers in supervised laboratory sessions is provided.
The prerequisite for this class is that the student has successfully completed HP251 and HP252 and possesses a valid driver's license with a minimum of three years' driving experience.
HP 354 Application of Driver Education Instructional Modes3 Semester Hours
This course is offered every Spring semester and in the second five-week session of summer school. It involves two lecture hours and two laboratory hours.
This course will prepare prospective driver education teachers to plan, teach, and evaluate the driver education instructional modes (simulation, multiple-car driving range, and on-street). Actual experience of teaching beginner drivers in supervised laboratory sessions is provided.
The prerequisite for this class is that the student has successfully completed HP251 and HP 252 and possesses a valid driver's license with a minimum of three years' driving experience.
For additional information concerning the above courses or any other related courses or activities in the field of safety, please contact:
Dr. Allen Robinson:aarobin@iup.edu
Louis J. PesciFaculty/Administration:lpesci@iup.edu
Indiana University of Pennsylvania
R&P Building
629 Fisher Ave.
Indiana, PA 15705
1-800-896-7703
Fax: 724-357-7595