Making a Difference: Students pledge to stop texting and driving

OOLOGAH, Okla. - With texting deaths consistently on the rise, many students are taking a stand with the hope of saving lives.

One Booker T. Washington High School student wrote, produced and starred in a music video and PSA to get the word out about the growing trend.

He did so as part of Generation tXt.

Click here to see more about the Booker T. Washington High School Generation tXt event.

The day the video was released, Crime Commission representatives were on hand and 22 more teens signed up, pledging to be part of the generation focused on ending texting and driving.

Half of teenage drivers admit to texting behind the wheel, but that percentage is low according to other teens.

At Oologah High School students are also signing a pledge, wearing bands and promising to put the phone away whenever they're behind the wheel.

Students are also taking a leadership roll and are talking to classmates.
    
They've also made a banner where students can sign the pledge to not text and drive. They're taking up a cause spearheaded by AT&T through an effort called the "It Can Wait" campaign .

"No text is worth dying for and it can wait, it's not that important," said Jordan, a Senior at Oolagah High School.

Consider this statistic from AT&T:  In those few, short seconds it takes you to send a quick text behind the wheel, if you're driving 55 mph it's like driving the length of a football field in traffic with your eyes closed.

Oologah High School assistant principal Lisa Rader says it is a vital effort with students taking the lead, supported by adults in agencies and big corporations.

"We need the businesses, we need the corporations to step out and be that good leadership model that AT&T is being," Rader said.
    
Since its launch the AT&T campaign has reached 15,000 students.