Deadlines, projects and papers, they all seem to get in the way of what is really important while moving toward a degree. However, five Sacramento State students are not getting tangled in the hustle and bustle, they are taking a progressive step forward and participating in a national competition to help promote seatbelt safety while driving.

The 2008 Bateman Case Study Competition was created by the Public Relation Society of America to allow its members to garner and nourish analytical skills and proper critical thinking to help propel them along their career path.

According to PRSSA.org, the case studies have dealt with nuclear energy, heart health, international relations, family counseling services, financial responsibility, smoking abstinence and ethics.

The Bateman Case Study gives public relations students the freedom to choose which route to take to help develop the public relations skills needed to succeed. This is the first year that Sac State students have participated and Chris Boyle, public relations major, attributes the communications department to helping them reach their goals.

“For us, it’s awesome. We’re able to apply what we’ve learned to real-life situations,” Boyle said.

Being the newest edition to Sac State’s Public Relations Student Society of America, the group is excited to take what they’ve learned and put it to good use.

The group is competing nationally for a first prize of $2,500 and a trophy. Boyle, along with Sac State public relations students Nick Nelson, Rose Jones, Melissa Langeland and Brandon Fleshman, are taking what they’ve learned in their communications classes showing middle school students, age 11 to 14, the significance of wearing a seatbelt while driving.

While recognizing that up and coming youth are much more technologically savvy than younger generations, they have created an interactive blog to help get the message out.

Boyle credits Fleshman, the blog creator, as being an excellent writer.

“(It’s) much easier for students to access the blog. It’s important to reach kids around that age,” Boyle said.

Being involved with this year’s case study is not to be taken lightly. It requires a lot of hard work, commitment and not to mention enthusiasm. “We all take on different roles,” Langeland said.

And while many Sac State students literally cringe at the thought of a group project, these five students are taking advantage of it. Participating in a project of this caliber demands a lot of dedication.

“We all rely on each other,” Fleshman said.

Throughout the semester, public relations professors allow their students to get involved with other opportunities to flex their learned skills.

“These are real-life scenarios and they’re good résumé builders,” Nelson said.

The group also attributes assistant Public Relations professor Timothy Howard to helping them get involved with this case study and applying the university’s teachings to real-life situations.

These résumé builders include formulating a campaign to encourage seatbelt safety among children. According to the group’s blog, seatbeltsafety08.blogspot.com, car accidents are the leading cause of death for children ages 14 and under. Of these accidents, 50 percent of these kids were not wearing seatbelts.

While working on the campaign, the group spoke to three classes at Will Rogers Middle School in Fair Oaks. The group pointed out that the students understood the importance of seatbelt safety.

“The kids seemed very responsive,” Boyle said.

So responsive that the group was even able to incorporate today’s pop culture. Popular among children is Disney channel superstar Hannah Montana aka Miley Cyrus. In her recent 3-D blockbuster movie, Cyrus and her father Billy Ray Cyrus are riding in the back of an SUV and neither of them were wearing a seatbelt.

“It was prevalent and it was perfect timing,” Boyle said.

Perfect timing also played a hand in the group’s involvement in the case study.

By participating in the case study, not only are they bringing attention to the Bateman Case Study and promoting seatbelt safety but they are also promoting the campus and shedding light on the public relations division of the communication studies department.

“We really want to run a great campaign,” Boyle said.

Oneika Richardson can be reached at [email protected]