AAA marked 100 years of the Safety Patrol program with a ceremony today in Hazlet.

News 12 caught up with a group of patrollers at the Middle Road Elementary School as they raised the commemorative flag.

“I hope to help kids to be respectful to their teachers, to be well-behaved on the bus and not to run in the hallways,” says Sean Lasek.

The program, run by AAA in conjunction with schools across America, promotes young leadership, responsibility and community engagement.

“Safety patrollers have gone on to be law enforcement officers, congresspeople, Olympic athletes, professional athletes as well as some presidents of the United States, including Joe Biden, our current president,” says Tracy Noble, with AAA Mid-Atlantic.

More than 680,000 students this year wear the iconic Safety Patrol belts in schools coast to coast.