Fourteen teens and young adults from across the country have been chosen to serve as ambassadors for Cooper Tire & Rubber Company’s Tread Wisely™ program, the company’s signature philanthropy cause focused on tire and vehicle safety for teens and young adults. For the effort, Cooper has teamed with the National Organizations for Youth Safety (NOYS) to appoint the student ambassadors who will spread tire safety knowledge among their peers through grassroots efforts.

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Tread Wisely ambassadors pictured left to right in the first row include Tamia Catoe, Izabella Lilea ...

Tread Wisely ambassadors pictured left to right in the first row include Tamia Catoe, Izabella Lileas, Shelby Griffith, Chantalle Lopez, and Julia Schemmer. Ambassadors in the back row pictured left to right are Andre Ragel, Spencer Mercado, Craig Collins, Christian Davell, Bryan Delaney, Thomas Brennan, and Juan Salazar. Ambassadors not pictured include Crystal Battaille and Annika Sidhu. (Photo: Business Wire)

Students chosen as ambassadors for the 2017-2018 term include:

  • Crystal Battaille – Crystal is a native of Miami and a student at South Broward High School. She participates in the Human Relations and Technology Club, Community Emergency Response Team and serves as a teachers’ aide.
  • Thomas (Tommy) Brennan – Tommy is a resident of Howell, New Jersey. Currently a student at Colts Neck High School, he is active as a member of Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD), the Police Athletic League and Junior State of America.
  • Tamia Catoe – Tamia is a native of Laurel, Maryland, and a student at Howard Community College in Columbia, Maryland. She takes an active role in church, enjoys spending time at Star Studio dance facility in Laurel and has served as a volunteer for the NOYS Youth Interactive Traffic Safety Lab.
  • Craig Collins – Craig is a native of Cookeville, Tennessee, and a student at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. He is active in student government and as an executive member of Sexual Empowerment and Awareness at Tennessee (SEAT).
  • Christian Davell – Christian is a Kettering, Ohio, native and graduate of Kettering Fairmont High School. He is an active member of the Kettering Arts Council and the Driving School Association of the Americas.
  • Bryan Delaney – Bryan is a native of Easthampton, Massachusetts, and currently studies at Ithaca College in Ithaca, New York. Bryan is an active member of NOYS, where he has served as an intern supporting Tread Wisely, as well as SADD. He has also served as an intern for the In One Instant Teen Safe Driving Program.
  • Shelby Griffith – Shelby is a native of Maysville, Kentucky, and is currently enrolled at Wilmington College in Wilmington, Ohio. She has been actively involved in the Georgetown High School FFA chapter as well as the Brown County 4-H CARTEENS vehicular safety program.
  • Izabella (Izzy) Lileas - Izzy is a resident of Lordstown, Ohio, where she is a senior at Lordstown High School/Trumbull Career and Technical Center. She is a member of the Lordstown High School basketball team and the Business Professionals of America (BPA).
  • Chantalle Lopez – Chantalle is a native of Phoenix and is currently a senior at University High School – Tolleson. She is an active member of Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA), dance team and Model United Nations.
  • Spencer Mercado – Spencer is a resident of Mayaguez, Puerto Rico, and a student at Interamerican University of Puerto Rico. He is a past member of BPA and has interests in social media and photography.
  • Andre Ragel – Andre is a resident of Lowell, Massachusetts, and attends Lowell High School. He is a member of student council, BPA and has served as a NOYS youth correspondent.
  • Juan (JJ) Salazar – JJ is a native of Mission, Texas, and student at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. He is a member of Family, Career and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA), BPA and SADD.
  • Julia Schemmer – Julia is a Norco, California, resident and student at the University of California, Riverside. She is active in student government, serves as a contributing writer to the school newspaper and is a member of Hillel International.
  • Annika Sidhu – Annika is a native of Prior Lake, Minnesota. She currently studies at North Dakota State University in Fargo where she takes part in University Chamber Singers, Phi Eta Sigma honor society and serves as a resident assistant.

As part of their role, ambassadors will encourage young drivers to activate their clubs, schools and organizations to take part in the Tread Wisely Challenge. The challenge is a national, youth-led effort to educate teens and young adults about tire safety and three simple monthly tire checks – inflation pressure, tread depth and overall tire condition. Participants can earn up to $500 in cash or prizes for their school, club or organization by hosting an approved Tread Wisely Challenge event and reporting the results.

To share the Tread Wisely Challenge and tire safety knowledge with their peers, ambassadors will travel to youth conferences across the country, including:

  • DECA National Conference, April 26-29 in Anaheim, California
  • Boys and Girls Club of America, May 10-12 in Dallas
  • BPA National Leadership Conference, May 10-14 in Orlando
  • SADD national Conference, June 25-28 in Tampa
  • FBLA National Conference, June 29-July 2 in Anaheim, California
  • NOYS Youth Interactive Traffic Safety Lab, October 16 in Washington, DC
  • National FFA Convention & Expo, October 25-28 in Indianapolis

“Cooper is excited to have these outstanding young people representing Tread Wisely and sharing the three important monthly tire checks – inflation pressure, tread depth and overall tire condition – with their peers,” said Anne Roman, Cooper’s Vice President, Communications & Public Affairs. “Tread Wisely was developed to speak to young drivers through channels they use, and this peer-to-peer interaction will enhance this effort. We are excited to see the impact this group will make in spreading Tread Wisely from coast to coast across the country.”

Anita Boles, Chief Executive Officer of NOYS, added, “NOYS has seen great success in the past with youth-led efforts like the Tread Wisely ambassadors. This is a group of some of the most motivated and accomplished youth leaders across the country, and they have a passion for sharing tire safety knowledge. The impact they can make in educating young drivers is limitless.”

To learn more about Tread Wisely, visit www.treadwisely.org.

About Cooper Tire & Rubber Company

Cooper Tire & Rubber Company (NYSE: CTB) is the parent company of a global family of companies that specializes in the design, manufacture, marketing and sale of passenger car, light truck, medium truck, motorcycle and racing tires. Cooper's headquarters is in Findlay, Ohio, with manufacturing, sales, distribution, technical and design operations within its family of companies located in more than one dozen countries around the world. For more information on Cooper, visit www.coopertire.com, www.facebook.com/coopertire or www.twitter.com/coopertire.

About NOYS

NOYS was originally founded as the Traffic Safety Collaboration, and for its first 10 years was supported by funding from government agencies, including the Department of Transportation. In 2005, NOYS became a 501(c)(3) organization and incorporated as the National Organizations for Youth Safety, and has since grown to include over 80 national member organizations. NOYS continues to maintain a strong focus in traffic safety with support from government and business and industry, and has expanded to include other safety areas such as injury prevention, substance abuse prevention, and violence prevention.

About Tread Wisely

Formed in 2016, Tread Wisely was developed to support Cooper Tire & Rubber Company’s signature cause of driver and tire safety among teens and young adults. Cooper selected the National Organizations for Youth Safety (NOYS) as a partner in this effort to educate and motivate young people to take necessary precautions and important safety measures when it comes to their tires and driving. Tread Wisely shares driver and tire safety messages through social media channels such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, www.treadwisely.org, special youth-directed safety events, and on the ground in communities across the United States.