The SEHS Suicide Prevention Program
The SEHS Suicide Prevention Program was developed in 1987 by Jerry Ciffone, a school social worker at South Elgin High School in South Elgin, Illinois. The following components are available for review and can be downloaded with permission for use in a high school. Individuals interested in using any of this information should contact Jerry Ciffone at: jerryciffone@u-46.org
- Program description
- Freshman orientation script and transparencies
- Sophomore health class activities (first day):
- Presentation of the video Choosing Life
- Classroom discussion transcript
- Transparencies used during the discussion:
- #1 Events...
- #2 Behaviors...
- #3 Mental illness in teens who commit suicide
- #4 A description of Major Depression
- #5 Major Depression in teens
- #6 15-19 year-olds who died by suicide from 1990 to ...
- #7 "Facts about teen suicide"
- #8 Gender differences of 15-19 year-olds who died by suicide
- #9 "Common thinking errors of a suicidal person"
- #10 "Runaway's violent end stuns pals"
- #11 "Reasons students see a school social worker"
- #12 "School shootings"
- #13 Commonalities of students who killed other students
- #14 Why the threat of suicide or homicide was kept secret
- #15 "What can I do?"
- #16 "If you are worried about a friend..."
- Day two health class activities:
- Presentation and discussion of the video More Than Sad
- Handouts given to students
- Follow-up quiz (revised)
- Follow-up with students to assess for suicide risk
- Research results on program effectiveness conducted in 1993, 2003, 2005 and 2009.
"As much as we wish we could, we can't go home with them. We have to trust they will listen to us and make good choices. Unfortunately not all of them do." –Tracey Jakaitis. In the event of a student suicide Jerry Ciffone has developed crisis bereavement intervention resources for school personnel wanting to offer counseling to friends of the deceased. This information may be viewed at www.u-46.org/sehs/cbgi.
Last modified 3/18/10