As the mental health crisis in teens continues to be a concern, Ridgewood High School will be offering depression awareness and a suicide prevention training as part of the Signs of Suicide (SOS) program to our Freshman students on February 24th, 2022. This program is funded by a nonprofit organization, Elyssa’s Mission. The program aims to increase help-seeking behaviors among students concerned about themselves or a friend. Listed on SAMHSA’s National Registry of Evidence-Based Programs and Practices, the SOS program showed a reduction in self-reported suicide attempts by 40-64% in randomized control studies (Aseltine et al., 2007 & Schilling et al., 2016).
Our goals in participating in this program are:
- To help our students understand that depression is a treatable illness
- To explain that suicide is a preventable tragedy that often occurs as a result of untreated depression
- To provide students with the training on how to identify serious depression and potential suicidality in themselves or a friend
- To impress upon youth that they can help themselves or a friend by taking the simple step of talking to a responsible adult about their concerns
- To help students know whom in the school they can turn to for help, if they need it
​Information will be sent home to all Freshman parents outside of this communication. If you have any questions please call or email Haley Morelli, School Social Worker, (708) 697-5592 or hmorelli@ridgenet.org.