Rutland hosts Vermont’s busiest car safety seat installation clinic, where new parents, grandparents, and anyone else who transports youngsters, can bring their car safety seat and have it installed by a technician who has had specialized training. The clinics are held weekly on Thursday afternoons from 3-6 at Regional Ambulance Service. The technicians come from different walks of life- police officers, EMTs, police dispatchers, and professionals from child and family centers. Students from the Stafford Technical Center SADD Chapter have recently been assisting the technicians.
The student assistants perform a variety of tasks. They act as scribes for the technicians, recording and documenting the particulars of this installation. They assist in childcare, so the technicians can do the installations without interruptions. The assistants also help the technician as required in any other part of the process. It is a win win situation for everyone. The technicians get assistance and are able to focus on getting the task done, and the students get to serve their community, learn new skills, and make professional contacts. The students who have been involved in the last two clinics are Cierra Phelps and Haley Cotrupi, juniors from Mill River Union High School, and Kayla Stewart, a junior from west Rutland High School. All three girls are students in the Stafford Technical Center SADD Chapter, and are enrolled in the Public Safety Services Program at Stafford.
Photo: l-r: Haley Cotrupi and Cierra Phelps help at car safety seat installation