MOUNT VERNON — A scholarship program through Knox Public Health expands access to driver’s ed training for teenagers who cannot afford to take it.

A $15,000 grant from the Ohio Traffic Safety Office funds the Drive to Succeed scholarships. Funding is available to Knox County teens through December 2024.

Suzanne Dapprich, KPH emergency preparedness and safe communities coordinator, coordinates the program.

Dapprich said she applied for the safety funds because 22 percent of Knox County’s 62,897 people are youth 18 years old and younger.

Additionally, the overall poverty rate in the county is 12.5 percent according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

“The income per capita for Knox County is $29,383, which is lower than the United States, which is $37,638, and the average persons per household is 2.6,” she said.

“It has been statistically proven that teen drivers who have taken a driver’s education course are less likely to be involved in a crash compared to those who do not take a driver’s education course.  This will also help low-income students obtain their driver’s license so they can start working in the community.”

The program started in May. KPH has awarded 16 scholarships thus far.

“Everyone who is approved is granted full coverage of cost,” Dapprich said.

Coshocton Driver Training conducts the course. Classes are in Mount Vernon.

That is significant because a workforce assessment completed for Ohio Means Jobs last year notes that lacking a local driver’s education course is a transportation barrier for younger workers entering the workforce.

Filling a need

OMJ Workforce Administrator Brandy Booth said the free driver’s training fills a need in Knox County.

“We see it all the time. We get a lot of referrals from the schools for families that can’t afford it,” she said. “ We were all very happy when the career center started providing driver’s training, and a company in Danville, and now public health. We don’t have the resources [to provide it].

“It’s been a concern of the schools and the employers,” she added. “[Youths] don’t have a driver’s license, and they can’t drive themselves to the workplace.”

Data from the Federal Highway Administration shows that fewer teenagers are getting their licenses. Between 1983 and 2018, the number dropped by 19 percent and 21 percent for 18- and 16-year-olds respectively.

“At the start of the 2020-2021 school year, 56 of 250 KCCC high school seniors stated that they did not have a driver’s license,” Beth Marhefka, career placement and development coordinator at the Knox County Career Center, said. “The top reason stated for not having a driver’s license was cost.”

Based on data Marhefka collected from each district, 36 percent of Knox County high school students qualified for free or reduced lunch for the 2022-23 school year.

Ohio law requires minors to take safe driver training. Marhefka said KCCC survey results indicate most students who do not earn their license before age 18 are waiting until the age of 18 so they can avoid paying for the driver education course.

Coshocton Driver Training

In the summer of 2022, the career center received a $5,625 grant from the Knox County Foundation to establish a driver training grant for KCCC students. The grant covered $225 of the $325 cost to attend Coshocton Driver Training. 

Data provided by CDT and the Ohio State Highway Patrol shows a decrease in teen accidents in areas where CDT opened driver education programs. 

“The Knox County Career Center is thankful to the Knox County Foundation for its recognition and support of this need.  KCCC is thankful to the community safety initiative of Knox Public Health for wanting to sponsor the 2023 -2024 Drive to Succeed grant for the benefit of all qualified Knox County students who want driver training,” Marhefka said. “We were thrilled to hear KPH was awarded such a large amount to benefit all county students.”

Scholarship eligibility

Income-eligible youth aged 15-17 can apply for a Drive to Succeed scholarship. A youth who just turned 15 can apply, but they must be 15 years and 5 months old to start the driving class.

Youths must attend a Knox County public school or the Knox County Career Center. Eligibility is also open to home-schooled students living in Knox County.

Students who are licensed, enrolled in a driver’s education class, or have previously taken a driver’s ed class are not eligible.

Applicants must document financial eligibility through one of the following programs:

•School reduced/free lunch

•WIC/SNAP

•Medicaid Recipient

Students also must provide one letter of recommendation from a non-family member. It is recommended the letter come from a teacher, coach, or another school employee.

Only fully completed applications will be considered. Students can submit applications at any time, but the selection committee will award scholarships in November 2023 and January, March, May, July, September, and November 2024.

Applications can be emailed to Dapprich via email at [email protected] or mailed or dropped off at Knox Public Health, ATTN Suzanne Dapprich, 11660 Upper Gilchrist Rd., Mount Vernon, OH 43050.

All applications are confidential. The driving school will only receive the names of students who receive a scholarship; no other information will be shared.

Once Dapprich notifies the student of his or her award, the student or parent/guardian must schedule the course through Coshocton Driver Training.

The student must provide a $25 deposit to the school that will be used for their driving test. Students must also comply with class attendance requirements and driving instructions.

For more information, contact Dapprich at [email protected] or 740.399.2200, ext. 2225.

by Cheryl Splain October 5, 2023