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Jess Senger on Helmet Safety

Jess Senger, a rising senior at Oak Park River Forest High School, is working toward the Girl Scout Gold Award, the highest award given to scouts who work to make a positive difference in their communities. The issue Jess chose to tackle? Bike safety!

Why did you choose helmet safety as a topic?

I’ve noticed that while there are a lot of little kids in Oak Park that wear helmets, a lot of times once they get into their teens, they stop. There are so many people who bike to the high school every day, they keep having to add new bike racks, so I think bike safety is something that needs to be addressed. I understand there are multiple ways we can make biking safer, like having bike lanes and more education for drivers, but this is one short-term thing that we can do now and hopefully continue. I want to see how we can get kids--and also parents, because parents have a big influence on their kids--to know that there is an ordinance in Oak Park that anyone under the age of 17 has to wear a bike helmet, and hopefully they’ll make the right decision.

What all does the project consist of?

The first part of the project was two helmet safety surveys: one for adults and one for kids, and I got over 160 responses, so I have a lot of data from that now. The next part of the project is partnering with Wheel & Sprocket at Downtown Oak Park’s Thursday Night Out on July 18th and 25th. And then another thing I want to do is create a video with the survey data I’ve gathered and interviews with some of the people who were surveyed. 

What do you think is the biggest reason that people decide not to wear a helmet?

According to my survey, the biggest reason that kids don’t wear helmets is because they think that no one else wears them. 

What do you think is about the age where people stop wearing them?

Maybe about middle school, or for some people going into high school, because it’s a big transition, and you don’t wanna stand out or make yourself different from everyone else.

What can folks expect if they join you at Thursday Night Out?

I will be there, there will be a raffle for a WaveCel helmet, and I designed a pledge that people can sign: anybody, regardless of age or area where they live, just to set a good example for everyone else. I’ve also been working with Officer Love of the Oak Park Police Department, I have some of her flyers that have information about the helmet ordinance, and she’ll be there to help answer questions related to bikes, bike registration, the ordinance, anything like that.