North Central Health Services Preventing Youth Suicide Initiative Totals Over $1.9M
West Lafayette, May 2024 – North Central Health Services (NCHS) is pleased to announce a substantial investment of over $550,000 into the second cohort of the Preventing Youth Suicide Initiative. This funding will support seven school corporations in North Central Indiana as they implement evidence-based youth suicide prevention programs. NCHS is committed to fostering safe, educational environments where students can thrive, underscored by our ongoing investment in mental health resources and community support.
In 2024, the initiative will extend to the following districts, with the aim of impacting 25 schools and reaching approximately 10,350 students by the 2026 school year:
- Covington Community School Corporation
- Crawfordsville Community School Corporation
- North White School Corporation
- South Montgomery Community School Corporation
- Southeast Fountain School Corporation
- Tri-County School Corporation
- West Lafayette Community School Corporation
Previously, in 2022, the initiative provided grants to 62 schools in 12 districts, benefitting an estimated 35,000 students by the end of the 2024 school year:
- Attica Consolidated School Corporation
- Benton Community School Corporation
- Clinton Central School Corporation
- Clinton Prairie School Corporation
- Community Schools of Frankfort
- Frankfort Crossing School of Business & Entrepreneurship
- Lafayette Catholic School System
- Lafayette School Corporation
- MSD of Warren County
- Rossville Consolidated School District
- Tippecanoe School Corporation
- Twin Lakes School Corporation
Through the initiative, NCHS is partnering with the Education Development Center (EDC) to provide school and district teams an opportunity to focus on integrating mental health within the education system. This initiative will ensure that school communities are part of an effort to address and enhance suicide prevention school-wide.
The NCHS Preventing Youth Suicide Initiative was informed by community health conversations conducted throughout the NCHS service area in 2018 and 2021. During these conversations, school administrators shared their concerns about their students' mental health and well-being. The NCHS & River Bend Hospital 2018/2021 Community Health Needs Assessment, along with outcomes data gathered from the Resilient Youth Initiative, confirmed these needs.
This grant will provide K-12 schools and corporations with grant funding as well as technical assistance to provide schools with training and systems support to build robust evidence-based suicide prevention efforts. Part of those efforts may be awareness training on the specific signs of suicide, intervention, and/or programs to engage peers and build help-seeking skills.
Stephanie Long, CEO and President of NCHS stated, "Recent findings from the 2022 Indiana Youth Institute reveal a concerning rise in suicide risk among individuals aged 10-24. Notably, just under 36% of youths reported feeling so sad or hopeless for two or more consecutive weeks in the past year that they ceased their usual activities. Additionally, 17% of youths reported serious contemplation of suicide. Research demonstrates that employing a range of preventive measures can effectively lower the rates of youth suicide. We are grateful for the ongoing dedication of schools in enhancing suicide prevention initiatives within their communities."
ABOUT NCHS
NCHS has a primary responsibility to operate River Bend Hospital, which is a nonprofit inpatient psychiatric hospital, licensed and certified by the Indiana FSSA Division of Mental Health and Addiction and accredited by the Joint Commission. NCHS is committed to providing health care and promoting healthy communities for the benefit of the citizens of Benton, Carroll, Clinton, Fountain, Montgomery, Tippecanoe, Warren, and White counties. Since 1999, NCHS has awarded over $94 million in grant funding to more than 225 organizations. Beyond its Community Benefit Capital Grants program, NCHS initiates strategic partnerships like the Preventing Youth Suicide Initiative with coalitions, funders, nonprofits, and other entities to directly address the most critical community health needs identified by the NCHS and River Bend Hospital Community Health Needs Assessment. These NCHS-initiated Community Benefit Partnerships fund the launch, expansion, or strengthening of programs and services that improve health outcomes and develop healthy communities.
ABOUT EDUCATION DEVELOPMENT CENTER
EDC is a global nonprofit that advances lasting solutions to improve education, promote health, and expand economic opportunity. Since 1958, EDC has been a leader in designing, implementing, and evaluating powerful and innovative programs that advance solutions to some of the world’s most pressing challenges. EDC works in the United States and in more than 80 countries around the world.