If you or someone you know is affected by suicide, please call for help. The Suicide and Crisis Lifeline is available 24/7 by calling 9-8-8.
Arkansas City High School and Arkansas City Middle School both have Hope Squads.
Hope Squad is a peer-to-peer suicide prevention program. Hope Squad members are nominated by their classmates as trustworthy peers and trained by advisors. The program reduces youth suicide through education, training, and peer intervention.
The Kansas Legislature has passed and the Kansas Governor has signed SB 323 which is known as the Jason Flatt Youth Suicide Awareness Act. The provisions of this bill relevant to suicide awareness and prevention are:
- The board of education of each school district shall provide suicide awareness and prevention programming to all school staff and shall notify the parents or legal guardians of students enrolled in such school district that the training materials provided under such programming are available to such parents or legal guardians.
- Such programming shall include at a minimum: At least one hour of training each calendar year based on programs approved by the State Board of Education. Such training may be satisfied through independent self-review of suicide prevention training materials, and A building crisis plan developed for each school building. Such plan shall include:
- Steps for recognizing suicide ideation; Appropriate methods of interventions; and A crisis recovery plan. On or before January 1, 2017, the State Board of Education shall adopt rules and regulations necessary to implement the provisions of this section.
Find more suicide prevention resources below:
Hope Squad
Jason Foundation
American Foundation for Suicide Prevention