UFTI’s T2 Center Hosts Child Passenger Safety Meetings in North & Central Florida

The Florida T2 Center hosted two regional Child Passenger Safety (CPS) Updates this summer. Central Florida CPS Technicians gathered in Ocala on July 21st and North Florida personnel met in Panama City on July 23rd.  Alison Tillman, a certified CPS Technician at the UFTI’s T2 Center, was on hand alongside several state technicians and instructors. State Farm provided funds for part of the Updates.

CPS Updates are 8-hour workshops for CPS Technicians who educate parents across Florida on car seat installations.  In 2013, motor vehicle traffic crashes were the leading cause of death for children age 4 in the United States, and the second leading cause of death for children age 3 and ages 5 to 14 (NHTSA Traffic Safety Facts report DOT HS 812 154). In Florida in 2013, 35% of children ages 0-5 who died were not in a child restraint (FARS data). Of the 65% who were in a child restraint, more than half of those were installed incorrectly (OPRC Misuse Rate Reports).

UFTI’s T2 is looking forward to hosting more updates in different areas of the state next year as the Center works to lower fatalities by educating Florida’s community workers. For more information on how to become a CPS Technician in your community, visit the
UFTI T2 Center’s Florida Occupant Protection Resource Center website.