Fall 2011 Smart, Safe & Sober Newsletter
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Forty-Eight Virginia State Troopers Certified as Child Passenger Safety Technicians
by Mary Ann Rayment, Statewide Occupant Protection Coordinator
Virginia Highway Safety Office
Virginia is happy to welcome 48 new Child Passenger Safety Technicians (CPST), courtesy of the Virginia State Police who had a goal of having at least one certified CPST Trooper in every area office. After working closely with Trooper Kecia Altizer of the Virginia State Police Academy training staff, three 32-hour Child Passenger Safety Certification courses were created and troopers were registered to attend. Commencing on August 15th and running for three consecutive weeks, John Messina, Occupant Protection for Children Training Coordinator with the Transportation Safety Training Center at Virginia Commonwealth University, conducted certification courses at the State Police academy in Richmond. These classes were also supported with a cadre of CPS Instructors that came from New Kent County, Lynchburg and Richmond.
Troopers from around the Commonwealth participated in the National Standardized Child Passenger Safety Technician Certification course for four days. It combined classroom instruction, hands-on work with car seats and vehicles, and a community safety seat checkup event. At the checkup event, Troopers demonstrated skills learned during class. They followed event procedures and instructions, proper use and installation of child restraints and safety belts and demonstrated the ability to teach parents and caregivers how to properly protect their family on the road.
Since then, several more Troopers have been identified for this training, so there will be another training class in December that will bring the total number of certified CPST’s to 55 across the Commonwealth!
“It was a great pleasure working with these Troopers and academy staff. We appreciate the professionalism, attention to detail and spirit of collegial cooperation demonstrated by this entire group, “ said John Messina. “Their interest in child passenger safety and their individual efforts made our task easier and more efficient. They will be extremely valuable to the success of our ongoing mission to improve transportation safety in the Commonwealth.”
Please seek out their services, as many of them are very motivated and are looking to get involved by partnering with current technicians in their communities.
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