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Gwinnett student's work featured in Times Square

Snellville's Bethany Wheeler, aGwinnett Technical College student, was selected as the college winner of a major national outdoor ad design contest for Project Yellow Light. Here anti-texting and driving ad recently appeared in Times Square. (Special photo)
Snellville's Bethany Wheeler, aGwinnett Technical College student, was selected as the college winner of a major national outdoor ad design contest for Project Yellow Light. Here anti-texting and driving ad recently appeared in Times Square. (Special photo)
June 9, 2016

Bethany Wheeler doesn't want you to be a "driving dunce."

And after Wednesday, the whole world knows it.

Wheeler, a Snellville resident and Gwinnett Technical College student, recently won a national contest for Project Yellow Light, an anti-texting and driving campaign. The ad she designed — which features a chalk board and the words "I will not text and drive" written several times — was unveiled Wednesday in New York City's Times Square. It will also make appearances on digital billboards across the country, including the Atlanta area, officials said.

Wheeler was also awarded a $2,000 scholarship. Other winners included a set of brothers from Nebraska and a high schooler from Anaheim, California. The competition is a joint project established five years ago by Project Yellow Light, the Ad Council and the U.S. Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

According to the NHTSA, 2014 saw 3,179 people killed and an estimated 431,000 people injured in motor vehicle crashes involving distracted drivers.

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Tyler Estep hosts the AJC Win Column, Atlanta's new weekly destination for all things sports. He also shepherds the Sports Daily and Braves Report newsletters to your inbox.

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