American Heart Association's School Challenge Seeks Next Generation of Lifesavers

Published on Thursday, 09 February 2012 09:07 Written by TradersHuddle Staff

DALLAS, Feb. 9, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The American Heart Association is kicking off an online School Challenge to encourage teens and tweens to learn the simple steps to save lives with CPR.

From Feb. 15 through March 15, students can help their schools train the next generation of lifesavers and win prizes by visiting bethebeat.heart.org and completing these brief activities as part of the School Challenge:

• watching a 2-minute Hands-Only™ CPR video
• playing an automated external defibrillator game
• exploring the cardiac arrest section of the interactive, high-end animation in the HeartTrek
• taking a quiz

Each time students complete one of the activities, their school is awarded points. A random prize pack will be awarded to the top three schools with the highest percentage completion rate in each of five categories – Home School, Very Small (under 200 students), Small (201-499), Medium (500-999) and Large (1,000-plus).

Those top schools will have a chance to win the grand prize – a video shot and produced on campus and posted on the American Heart Association's Be the Beat website – by submitting an essay about what makes their school a "lifesaver school."

Be the Beat offers free, fun and engaging games, music, videos and giveaways to educate teens about recognizing a cardiac arrest, calling 911, performing CPR and using an AED. The program also works closely with school leadership, nursing staff and teachers to implement CPR training programs, emergency medical response plans and lesson plans to incorporate these lessons in and out of the school campus.

Be the Beat was created by the American Heart Association with primary funding from the Medtronic Foundation.

To learn more about the American Heart Association's CPR & First Aid programs, call 1-877-AHA4CPR or visit heart.org/cpr.

About the American Heart Association

The American Heart Association is devoted to saving people from heart disease and stroke – America's No. 1 and No. 4 killers. We team with millions of volunteers to fund innovative research, fight for stronger public health policies, and provide lifesaving tools and information to prevent and treat these diseases. The Dallas-based association is the nation's oldest and largest voluntary organization dedicated to fighting heart disease and stroke. To learn more or join us, call 1-800-AHA-USA1 or any of our offices around the country, or visit heart.org.

The American Heart Association logo is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=9940

Media Contact:

Kate Lino

214.706.1325

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