Tri-County Board Secures Grant for School Staff Suicide Awareness Training

Teachers and school employees in Darke, Miami and Shelby counties will have the opportunity to win money for their schools while learning how to spot the warning signs of suicide in young people, thanks to a $1,000 grant secured by the Tri-County Board of Recovery and Mental Health Services.

The Ohio Suicide Prevention Foundation awarded the grant as part of Ohio’s Campaign for Hope – Youth Suicide Prevention Initiative. These funds are made available through a grant from the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration as part of the Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Youth Suicide Prevention and Early Intervention Program. The funding is to be used to promote the Kognito At- Risk Interactive Online Gatekeeper Training for Middle and High School Educators and Staff.

The Tri-County Board is developing a promotional program that includes incentives for schools to complete the Kognito training, which is an online, interactive scenario-based suicide awareness training program. The incentive program will be rolled out to the schools in early 2014, according to Brad Reed, Tri-County Board Director of Community Resource Development. There is no cost to the schools for accessing the Kognito training.

In December 2012 the Ohio General Assembly passed and Governor John Kasich signed into law HB 543, the “Jason Flatt Act,” which requires school teachers, administrators and certain staff to be trained in suicide awareness. According to the Jason Foundation, suicide is the second most common cause of death among middle school and high school aged youth.

For more information about suicide prevention, please contact the Tri-County Board at its offices in Troy.