JACKSONVILLE, FL / ACCESS Newswire / August 4, 2026 / A new scholarship program wants students to build a better driver's ed, rather than simply critique what already exists. Backed by $10,000 in funding from Priority Tire, the program will award three prizes to the essays that best address modernizing driver training.
Driver's ed curricula, largely unchanged for decades, were built for a different era of cars and roads. The Safe Roads, Strong Futures Scholarship invites students to evaluate whether current curricula prepare teens for real-world driving conditions, proposing specific changes that could modernize how new drivers are taught.
"Most driver's ed programs haven't changed much since our parents took them, even though the roads and the cars have," said Dimitri Chernyak, President of Priority Tire. "We want essays that treat driver education as something worth rebuilding from the ground up, not just tweaking around the edges."
The competition has three prizes:
First place: $5,000
Second place: $3,000
Third place: $2,000
Essays should be 500-700 words and will be evaluated on writing quality, information, accuracy, and originality.
Applicants should evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of existing driver education curricula, identify specific gaps between what's taught and what new drivers actually encounter, and propose concrete curriculum changes that could reduce accidents among new drivers.
"We're not looking for essays that just criticize what's already out there," Chernyak added. "We want ideas that could realistically be adopted by a school district next year, not a complete overhaul that never leaves the whiteboard."
Students have until December 1, 2026, to submit their applications digitally through the Priority Tire Scholarship page. Additional topics are available to students interested in earning scholarship funding through various road safety challenges.
About Priority Tire
Priority Tire is an online tire retailer headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida. Operating for more than 20 years, the company maintains multiple warehouses across the U.S. and offers tires for passenger vehicles, SUVs, light trucks, EVs, classic cars, and specialty vehicles.
CONTACT:
Anna Fodor
610-776-9433
SOURCE: Priority Tire
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