New Funding, New Awareness: Suicide on Campus

When an individual feels that their life is no longer worth living, among other things, they may not realize the hole this decision leaves in the lives of the people around them. After something so tragic happens, one may spend a lifetime trying to fill the devastating void. And sometimes, such measures go beyond a single life, as one aims to help stop the silent epidemic for an entire community. For one mother, State Rep. Marlene Anielski, the devastating loss of her son made her determined to help others avoid such pain.

With suicide now the second highest cause of death on U.S. college campuses, Ohio legislators have responded with house bills that make improvement in the area of mental health.

For the first time, via House Bill 64, funds are now earmarked for the Ohio Program for Campus Safety and Mental Health in Ohio’s biennial budget for university and college campus mental health programs. Through HB 64, the state has provided Northeast Ohio Medical University an annual budget of $120,000 to distribute grants on public and private school campuses throughout Ohio. Anielski, along with State Sen. John Eklund and State Rep. Kathleen Clyde, took the lead in rallying support for the bill, which took effect July 2015.

In addition, Anielski successfully championed House Bill 28, which requires institutions of higher learning to develop policies to advise students and staff on suicide prevention programs; to provide students with mental health programs; and to offer what’s being called postvention plans– that is, plans to address the aftermath of the crisis, including how to communicate effectively with students, staff and parents after a suicide.

“Suicide is a major public health issue that is a preventable cause of premature death. We must continue to represent all of our students suffering from this silent epidemic,” said Anielski, who pushed for support of HB 64 and HB 28.

She is not finished with HB 28 yet:  Anielski has written two sub-statutes, 313 and 319, to go into effect in January 2016. Through them, the representative will work with the Bureau of Motor Vehicles (BMV) to create vanity license plates that cost $40. For public schools, $10 from each sale will go to the BMV and $30 will go to help establish programs to assist the emotional well-being of students.  For private schools, 50% will go to support the emotional well-being of students and 50% will go toward tuition assistance. Currently, seven public schools and two private schools are participating. Additional schools may petition to be included in the vanity plate program.

Help for K-12 Students

While the two house bills are geared to college students, a grieving father named Clark Flatt created The Jason Foundation and the Jason Flatt Act to help educate K-12 students about youth suicide, which claimed his son. The Jason Flatt Act requires that Ohio teacher in-service training expand to cover the topics of youth suicide awareness and prevention training. Each teacher must complete two hours of youth suicide and prevention training annually to maintain their Ohio licensure.

The Jason Foundation has a campaign called “B1” organized in partnership with the country music group Rascal Flatts. The musicians act as celebrity ambassadors to encourage student to take the “B1 pledge” to help take away the silence from this hushed epidemic of youth suicide.  The B1 pledge is “Be Aware, Be Able, and Be Prepared to React.” In other words, be there for someone who is struggling.  The foundation also has its own app, “A Friend Asks,” which provides access to assistance, facts about suicide, and advice on how to talk to a friend who may be considering suicide.

Some of you may be thinking, why is all this important? Why should I know about the different apps or legislation that has been developed to prevent suicide?  It matters because one day, someone you know might need help, but may be afraid to seek it.

“We need to remove the stigma and promote tolerance, but also be prepared to face the intolerance,” said Rep. Anielski. She is working on a statewide and world Suicide Survivors Day, and has also taken it upon herself to provide a website of resources. Beginning early in 2016, schools can visit suicideprevention.ohio.gov for resources on crisis intervention, evidence-based programs, multimedia resources, institution of higher education communication plans, postvention plans, and data and research.  This information can also be sorted and changed depending on whether the person using the webpage is a youth or an educator.

Do you know if your own high school or college has a crisis plan or if it offers guidance? Find out what mental health resources your school has to offer so that when you see someone is struggling, you can be a friend.

–Dana Goehring is a senior at the University of Mount Union and an intern in the Office of Marketing and Communications at Northeast Ohio Medical University.