Our Driver Education Program at Plainfield East High School provides an organized, best-practice instruction on the fundamental driving skills, techniques, and knowledge of driving.  We will do this by providing thirty hours of classroom instruction using the Drive Right textbook, six hours of in-car instruction, and six hours of in-car observation.

All persons must have an instruction permit before they can legally practice driving on our streets and highways. Students are permitted by law to practice driving only when an instructor, parent, legal guardian, or person in loco parentis, is present.  Such a person must be 21 years old, have a valid driver's license, and at least two years of driving experience.  The instruction permit will be valid for two years from the date issued.

For students to drive during the school day with our instructors, they must pay a mandatory driving fee of $300. Students with any outstanding fees will be unable to drive, but they will still be an active participant in the classroom. All fees will be directed by Renee Duff, the school Book Keeper (Extension 7239). If you have any questions/or concerns, please reach out to the main office. 

Because Driver’s Education classroom is only a 13-week course, the other five weeks will be spent covering American Red Cross CPR, AED and First Aid curriculum.  A two year American Red Cross certification will be available for a $5 fee.  All students with permits will complete roughly five to six lessons behind the wheel with an instructor during the semester. We will still drive students during the CPR portion of the class all the way until the end of the semester. After the completion of the classroom portion of Driver’s Education, each student will have the option to sign up for our after-school driving to finish the behind the wheel lessons. 

We recommend that all beginning students receive two hours of practice driving time at home for every hour of driving time at school.  Therefore, once your son or daughter has a permit, and you feel comfortable, we encourage you to start providing supplementary practice under controlled conditions with strict supervision.  

It is our strong belief that traffic safety is a shared responsibility of the home, school, and community.  By working together, we hope to reduce the incidence of auto related tragedies and make Plainfield a safer community.