The American Heart Association will train more than 1,000 local high school students in CPR next month.
The trainees, ninth-graders from Homestead High School in Cupertino and Fremont High School in Sunnyvale, will also go home with a kit that will help them teach others how to perform CPR. The student who teaches the most people will win an iPod Nano.
"Almost 80 percent of heart attacks happen at home and are witnessed by a family member," said Lt. Steve Drewniany of the Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety.
According to the heart association, if CPR is provided effectively and immediately after sudden cardiac arrest, it could double a victim's chance of survival.
The training program was made possible by a $25,000 donation from the Severns Family Foundation.
