Hannibal School District offering youth suicide prevention program Monday night

HANNIBAL, Mo. — All sixth and ninth grade Hannibal School District students can receive one evidence-informed training session with grade-level-adapted content to help students enhance their awareness and understanding of different facets of mental health.

Parents are invited to an education night at the Hannibal High School auditorium from 6:30-7:30 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 6. It will be live streamed at https://www.youtube.com/@Hannibal60Video. Parents will be given the option to elect for their student(s) not to attend. Dates and times of sessions will be announced by building administrators.

Signs of Suicide is a suicide prevention program administered by Communities Healing Adolescent Depression and Suicide that educates students about the relationship between suicide and depression.

Key goals for students are:

• Acknowledge that you are seeing signs of depression or suicide in yourself or a friend and that it is serious.
• Let your friend know how much you care about them and that you are concerned that they need help.
• Tell a trusted adult that you are worried about yourself or a friend.

CHADS Coalition trains students, parents and adults how to recognize and prevent suicide. Signs of Suicide teaches participants the signs of depression, signs of suicide and the importance of telling a trusted adult when they notice those warning signs in themselves or someone they know.

SOS is used in thousands of schools around the country. It is the only youth suicide prevention program that has demonstrated an improvement in students’ knowledge and adaptive attitudes about suicide risk and depression, as well as a reduction in actual suicide attempts.