School-based approaches to preventing teen suicide

Teen Suicide and Schools

The recent spate of school shootings has focused attention on violent behavior among teenagers. However, little attention has been given to another insidious and more common form of violence among young people -- the rise in teenagers committing suicide.

This paper looks at the silent epidemic of teen suicide and the role schools could play in addressing this issue. The first part of the paper is an overview of teen suicide, looking at the scope of the problem and main causes of suicide among young people. In the second part, the paper looks at the changing role schools have played in preventing suicide and examines the current suicide prevention programs in place. Finally, the last part studies the barriers that stand in the way of such programs and suggests solutions to the problems.

Teen Suicide: An Overview

The suicide rate among teenagers has risen steadily over the last few decades. In 1997, suicide was the third leading cause of death among young people aged 15 to 24 years old, following only accidents and homicide. Suicide was also the third leading cause of death among 10 to 14-year-old children (NCIPC statistics).

Between 1998 to 1999, more than 2,700 adolescents committed suicide. Author Jessica Portner puts this figure in perspective, saying "more American youth now dies each year from suicide than from cancer, heart disease, AIDS, pneumonia, lung disease and birth defects combined. For example, in 1996, more than 3200 people under age 24 died of all those diseases, compared with more than 4600 who took their own lives" (3).

These figures do not take into account the teenagers whose suicide attempts are unsuccessful. Portner writes that for every teen who commits suicide, an estimated 100 more will try. Around 700,000 high school students in the United States try to commit suicide every year (Portner, 4).

Most adolescents who commit suicide do so by themselves. But many suicidal teenagers also turn their violence on others. In 1999, Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris tore through Columbine High School with automatic weapons and planted bombs in cafeteria before shooting themselves in the head (Brooke, A1).

There are several theories about the reasons behind the spiking suicide rate among the young. Researchers suggest that as parents are increasingly forced to work longer hours to support their families, more children are forced to navigate the murky waters of adolescence without adult of parental guidance. Others suggest that kids, driven by impulse, react to moments of crises without considering the consequences. Problems in school, in romantic relationships or with bullying, for example, appear insurmountable. The easy availability of guns increases the likelihood that adolescents will react with rashness. Finally, abuse and media violence are also factors that contribute to teen suicide (Thomerson, 30).

Despite the differences in opinion as to the cause of teen suicide, experts agree that suicide among teenagers is likely to increase. Though young Caucasian males continue to face the largest risk of suicide, the suicide rate among all age, racial and gender groups among teenagers and young adults. Homosexual youths are an especially vulnerable group, who are more than five times as likely as their heterosexual peers to attempt suicide.

Suicide Prevention Program in Schools

The advent of two-income households and single parent families has changed the role schools play in the lives of young people. After all, many adolescents spend at least one-third of the day in school, or more for those involved in extra-curricular activities (King, 132). This has led to a broader definition of the term in loco parentis, the principle of temporary parental power originally conferred by Roman citizens on their children's Greek teachers. In the United States, writes Portner, this power to discipline students also carried a corresponding responsibility to keep children from harm. (Portner, "Suicide,").

Parents now expect schools to take appropriate steps to ensure their childrens' safety. For many parents, this involves monitoring and taking steps to prevent teenagers from committing suicide. As several lawsuits indicate, the American courts seem to agree.

In the United States there have been many legal cases concerning a student's suicide that have involved educators, including school counselors, teachers, administrators, and school boards. Most of these cases stem from claims of negligence. In a 1995 case in Idaho, for example, a teacher and her school district were charged with negligence after a student committed suicide in his home. After the suicide, his English teacher discovered many entries related to death and depression in his class journal. The parents filed suit, charging that the district did not provide its teachers with adequate training. They also charged the teacher for failing to tell them of the journal's contents. In this case, the court eventually ruled in favor of the teacher, saying that due to lack of training, the teacher had no reason to be aware of the suicidal thoughts recorded in the journal (Milsom, 27).

In a 1991 case in Maryland, the board of education, superintendent, principal, and school counselor were all sued for negligence. The school counselor had earlier been informed of suicidal statements made by Nicole, a junior high student. After Nicole denied having made any suicidal threats, the school counselor did not inform Nicole's parents or the administration of the alleged statements. The student later killed herself in a murder-suicide pact with another schoolmate.

This time, the Court ruled that that the counselor did owe Nicole a duty and breached that duty by not warning the parents. Also, the court believed that the parents could have intervened if they had been aware of the suicide threats. The court argued that a reasonable person should have realized that Nicole's denial did not mean she no longer had suicidal thoughts. The counselor had a duty to call the parents (Milsom, 28).

In a watershed case in 1995, a federal district court in Tampa, Fla., found the Polk County school board guilty of negligence in 13-year-old Shawn Wyke's death. The Court also awarded his mother $167,000. The day before Shawn's suicide in 1989, another student discovered Shawn trying to hang himself in the school restroom and told the principal.

The principal, however, failed to notify the boy's mother about the incident. The next day, the 5th grader hanged himself from an oak tree in his back yard. (Milsom, 30).

The Maryland and Polk County decisions were landmark rulings that further broadened the scope of in loco parentis. It established the duty of educators and school personnel to keep parents informed about academic and personal concerns regarding their students. It also provided an impetus for many school districts to seriously consider developing suicide prevention programs.

Barriers to Suicide Prevention Programs

Even with the alarming increases in teen suicide and the threat of potential litigation, suicide prevention programs in schools remain inadequate. Currently, only one in ten schools have suicide prevention programs (Portner, "Many schools fall short on prevention).

One reason for the lack of programs is a reluctance on the part of the school boards and parents to recognize the problem. Many still feel that teen suicide is a family issue that should be dealt with at home. For example, the Eagle Forum, a conservative family-advocacy group, protests suicide education programs as "death education" (Portner, "Prevention"). The view expresses the stigma that remains attached to suicide and illustrates the difficulty of discussing, much less instituting, suicide prevention in many school districts.

But the main barrier towards establishing suicide prevention programs in school is the lack of money. Most states have limited budgets that barely cover basic education needs.

Most states do not allot money for mental health programs for students, despite studies showing that most students who visit health school clinics do so for mental and substance abuse problems, not stomach aches (Portner, "Budget Battles").

California's suicide prevention programs should serve as models for other states, but many legislatures are not willing to shell out the seed money. Such an unwillingness is myopic, however, since prevention can be seen ass a long-term investment due to the emotional and economic toll that suicide takes on the population. Aside from the loss of lifetime contributions when a citizen dies prematurely, emergency room use for suicide attempts costs states an average of $33,000 per visit. With approximately 730,000 attempted suicides per year nationwide, that can be a pretty hefty price tag (source).

Some school districts, however, have paved the way for creative solutions to the lack of finances. The Memphis School District, for example, is generally poor and located in an area rife with gang activity. Not surprisingly, the suicide rate in Memphis is much higher than the national average.

Despite the lack of resources, the school district has adopted an experimental program that addresses problems of health, conflict resolution among peers and suicide. Though they hired additional behavior specialists, the bulk of the Memphis program rested on the creation of team who, through the exchange of information, could keep track of children with problems. The team members included all personnel who could have contact with children - from principals to counselors to custodians. The district also recruited psychology graduate students to work as unpaid interns for college credit (Portner, "Memphis"). Though it is too early to assess their success, the Memphis program shows how school districts can respond to their students' mental health needs when funding is not available.

Conclusion

In conclusion, teen suicide needs to be recognized as a major problem affecting the country's youth. Though there are differing opinions as to the problem's cause, the only thing that experts agree upon is that teen suicide rates have steadily risen over the past decades and will continue to spike while the problem is ignored.

The changing nature of family in the United States and the greater role of schools have already been demonstrated through negative means - lawsuits against schools for negligence.

Schools, where adolescents typically spend most of their time, are in a unique position to address the problem of teen suicide, through comprehensive programs that deal with suicide education and intervention. However, to be effective, schools must receive the necessary community and financial support.

The success of such programs in California and Boston underscore the need for similar programs all over the country, particularly in areas where the youth are at high risk. After all, suicide prevention programs are an important means of safeguarding and nurturing the country's youth.