FOWLER — Township Police Chief Michael Currington announced earlier this week that the Ohio Department of Public Safety’s (ODPS) Ohio Traffic Safety Office (OTSO) awarded $55,000 in federal traffic safety funding to the Fowler Police Department to operate the Trumbull County Safe Communities program.

“Partnerships are critical to the success of any safety effort and we are committed to working with safety partners to address traffic safety issues in Trumbull County,” Currington said.

Fowler Police have identified traffic safety education, the importance of seat belt use, distracted/impaired driving and speeding as affecting the safety and welfare of the citizens of Trumbull County. To save lives and improve the quality of life for our citizens, the Trumbull County Safe Communities Program through the Fowler Police Department will use the grant funds to host programs and participate in events and activities to reach the public in efforts to spread the road safety education message.

“Officer Kevin Kuriatnyk will be assigned as the grant coordinator and point of contact,” Currington said.

The funds are channeled through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s OTSO to support the efforts of safety partners across the country and focus on road safety priority areas such as restraint use, impaired driving, motorcycle safety and youth drivers.

Competitive grant proposals are accepted and reviewed by OTSO. The competitive grant process for fiscal year 2025 solicited grant proposals from state agencies, nonprofit organizations, colleges, universities, hospitals, political subdivisions and other interested groups within select Ohio counties and jurisdictions (based on fatality rates).