University of Georgia student Hannah Pless starts her winning essay off with a startling statistic: “Every fifty-two minutes another life is lost due to drinking and driving.” Even amid the pandemic of 2019, more than 10,000 people lost their lives from this devastating and easily preventable issue.
Pless, along with many of her peers, has taken a pledge never to drive even if she has only imbibed a single alcoholic beverage. In the essay that won her the Students Against Drinking and Driving Scholarship, she tells the hometown story that led to her making such a decision.
“In 2012 in my hometown,” Pless wrote, “a young boy killed two 20 year old men. That boy lived ten minutes from my home. I had been to his house. I rode on his horse with a cowboy hat and still have the pictures.” The boy’s blood alcohol level was over three times the legal limit when he crashed into the car containing the two young men.
“The loss of two innocent young lives, so full and vibrant, is a tragedy,” wrote Pless.
Getting to Know Hannah Pless
Hannah Pless is in her third year at the University of Georgia. She is studying Psychology and aims to get a minor in Sociology. While at the school, she also serves as an undergraduate assistant in the Motivation and Behavioral Lab (MABLab). There, she has participated in two studies: the Dual Couple Smoking Study for smoking cessation, and the Psycorona study, which is the largest pandemic study in the world.
Pless told representatives of the Law Offices of Anidjar & Levine that she plans to pursue a Ph.D. in Pediatric Clinical Psychology after she graduates. Her goal is to work with children with autism spectrum disorder or oncology patients. She is also a member of the Coalition of Students Against Cancer and the Donate Life student group.
Why We Offer the Students Against Drinking and Driving Scholarship
As Hannah Pless demonstrates, there are many students who plan to make positive differences in the world. Providing a scholarship is one way that we can help them attain their goals and go on to do great things.
At the Law Offices of Anidjar & Levine, we have seen many clients injured or killed by the actions of a negligent, drunk driver. While supporting students with admirable goals, we also wanted to bring to light this important issue and do our part to help reduce the amount of drinking and driving that goes on in our society.
