A New Effort Towards Safety Begins

As the school year progresses, students at Hastings High are adjusting to a new part of their education: the Signs of Suicide (SOS) presentation, which was introduced this fall. 

After three suicides the past three years, the training aims to help students recognize warning signs and know how to respond when a classmate may be struggling with mental health.

“It was time to also teach all Hastings High Students about suicide and how to respond when someone needs help,” Principal Jeff Linden said. 

Linden explained that while suicide prevention is not a personal topic for him, the impact on the school and community called for a proactive approach. 

“I care deeply for all students, and having three students die from suicide is hard to wrap my mind around,” Linden said.

Linden said the purpose of the presentation is to give students the tools to help one another in real situations.

“Understanding how to help others when they have suicidal ideation is important because we never know what is going on with people,” Linden said. “Having this training helps students understand the warning signs so they can respond to get their classmate help before it’s too late.”

For students like junior Isleen Robinson, the lesson felt serious but necessary to raise awareness. 

“I didn’t realize how many signs there actually are,” Robinson said. “It opened my eyes so much, and it made me understand what steps I can take if my friend ever needs help.”

Some students found the training helped make difficult topics easier to comprehend. 

“The scenarios made it feel real,” Freshman Colbi Guerrero said. “It showed us what the conversations might look like, and that helped take away a lot of confusion.”

Linden said the SOS presentation has already produced results throughout the school year. 

“We have had situations where students have been more involved with helping a classmate get help, and have had students seek out help since the training as well,” said Linden. 

Linden said in the coming years, all students can anticipate an increase in SOS presentations and training. For many students at Hastings High, the new training is a new step towards awareness and supporting one another moving forward.

“I hope other students understand the importance of suicide and mental health, and will get the correct help for someone if they need it,” Robinson said.