The Alabama Department of Transportation (ALDOT) and the Lutzie 43 Foundation are partnering to host a Safe Driving Summit on December 12, 2025, for Houston County Schools. The Summit aims to educate local high school students about the critical importance of making safe driving choices.
“The Safe Driving Summit – a partnership between ALDOT and the Lutzie 43 Foundation – contains critical tools to keep young drivers safe in the state of Alabama,” said Dalton Middleton, Drive Safe Alabama Coordinator. “Nearly 10 percent of crashes in the state of Alabama in 2024 involved a driver aged 15-19 years old.”
The Houston County Schools Safe Driving Summit brings together students from two schools: Ashford High School and Houston County High School and will be hosted by Ashford High School in Ashford, Alabama.
The event will feature a keynote address from Lutzie 43 Foundation Executive Director Mike Lutzenkirchen, sharing the personal story of the tragic death of his son Philip Lutzenkirchen. Philip was a former football standout at Auburn University who died due to a distracted, impaired and unsafe driving crash in 2014.
Safe Driving Summit Details
During the Safe Driving Summit, high school students will also participate in interactive breakout sessions led by first responders, law enforcement officers, healthcare professionals and representatives from the trucking industry. These breakout sessions will offer firsthand insights into the devastating consequences of unsafe driving behaviors and equip students with practical strategies to avoid such outcomes.
“Partnering with ALDOT to bring this Safe Driving Summit to Houston County students is a crucial part of our mission to inspire safer driving habits among young drivers across the country to prevent distracted, impaired and unsafe driving,” said Lutzenkirchen. “This event brings the community together to educate and empower students with the knowledge and tools they need, including the 43 Key Seconds Safe Driving Initiative, to make life-saving decisions behind the wheel.”
Since the initiative’s launch in 2022, Lutzie 43 Foundation has hosted 32 Safe Driving Summits, engaging with over 80 high schools and over 17,000 students to foster safe driving practices among young drivers. The ALDOT collaboration began in early 2025 with a Safe Driving Summit held for Winston County schools.
“Providing this Summit and the 43 Key Seconds safe driving initiative for our students gets them ready to drive safely not just now, but for the rest of their lives,” said Dr. Donnie Chambers, Principal of Ashford High School.
The Safe Driving Summit will take place from 9 a.m. to 2p.m. on Friday, December 12, 2025, at Ashford High School, 607 Church St, Ashford, AL 36312.
