Florida School Toolkit for K-12 Educators to Prevent Suicide

• The Jason Foundation (JF) is a foundation created by the Flatt family in efforts to implement suicide prevention legislation for schools through the Jason Flatt Act. Clark Flatt, Jason’s father, has dedicated his life to expanding the Jason Flatt Act across our nation. This act requires teachers and certain school personnel to complete two hours of youth suicide awareness and prevention training in order to maintain or renew their licensing credentials. The requirement for this training does not add additional hours of training, but rather falls within the number of hours already required to continue the professional teaching license. Once the act is passed in a state, the training is provided by the foundation at no cost. The training consists of online modules that cover a variety of topics related to suicide. Twenty states have acted to help prevent youth suicide by passing the Jason Flatt Act. States where the act is in place include Tennessee, Louisiana, California, Mississippi, Illinois, Arkansas, Utah, South Carolina, West Virginia, Alaska, Ohio, North Dakota, Wyoming, Georgia, Montana, Texas, South Dakota, Alabama, Idaho, and Kansas. Currently, Florida does not require mandatory suicide prevention training; however, Florida schools can become suicide-prevention certified. T he Jason Foundation has a wealth of suicide prevention information on its website at jasonfoundation.com, including five training modules created by Scott Poland and Richard Lieberman on • suicide and bullying • suicide and depression • suicide and self-injury • suicide and LGBTQ students • suicide and postvention F or more information on the Jason foundation and Jason Flatt Act, visit jasonfoundation.com . • Preventing Suicide: The Role of High School Teachers , by the Suicide Prevention Resource Center (revised 2019), is an information sheet that helps high school teachers recognize and respond to the warning signs and risk factors for suicide in their students. For more information, visit sprc.org /resources-programs/role-high-school-teachers -preventing-suicide-sprc-customized-information-page . • Society for the Prevention of Teen Suicide (SPTS) develops educational materials and training programs for teens, parents, and educators, and its website contains separate sections for each group. SPTS is the developer of the online course Making Educators Partners in Youth Suicide Prevention and the Lifelines Trilogy manuals and workshops covering suicide prevention, intervention, and postvention for educators. For more information, visit sptsusa.org . • S uicide Prevention among LGBT Youth: A Workshop for Professionals Who Serve Youth , by the Suicide Prevention Resource Center (2011), is a kit that provides all the materials for a workshop to reduce suicidal behavior among LGBTQ youth. It is designed for staff members in schools, youth-serving organizations, and suicide prevention programs. It includes a leader’s guide, sample agenda, PowerPoint, sample script, handouts, and small group exercises. For more information, visit sprc.org/training-institute /lgbt-youth-workshop . • The Trevor Project is a national organization with a focus on crisis and suicide among LGBTQ youth. It provides counseling by phone, text, and chat; an online social networking community for LGBTQ youth and their friends and allies; educational programs for schools; and advocacy initiatives. For more information, visit thetrevorproject.org . • Hope Squad is a program designed to prevent suicide by creating student hope squads in schools. It focuses on the Circle4Hope model recognizing the role of mental health partnerships, school programs and community connections working together to prevent youth suicide. For more information, visit hopesquad.com . 121