# data[].attributes.body
Topic/Professional Perspective:  In the last couple of years, teen suicide has increased 41% (United Health Foundation, 2022) and school counselors must understand their role and fulfill their legal and ethical responsibility. Teachers and school staff interact and spend many hours with students. School staff can often identify when a child is acting different because of how much time students spend at school. It is important for teachers and staff to know what to do when a student is showing warning sings.

Audience: Any school personnel that interacts with students must know what to do when a student shows signs of being suicidal.

United Health Foundation. (2022). Health of women and children. America's Health Rankings. https://www.americashealthrankings.org/explore/health-of-women-and-children/measure/teen_suicide/state/TX

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Explore Teen Suicide in Texas | 2021 Health of Women And Children Report

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Discover more about the Teen Suicide measure in Texas from the America's Health Rankings 2021 Health of Women And Children Report

# data[].attributes.body
The American School Counselor Association has provided school counselor's (sc) with guidance regarding students who are identified as at-risk for suicide. It also provides the sc with things to do before releasing the student to the parents or guardians.

American School Counselor Association. (2020) The school counselor and suicide risk assessment. https://schoolcounselor.org/Standards-Positions/Position-Statements/ASCA-Position-Statements/The-School-Counselor-and-Suicide-Risk-Assessment

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
The School Counselor and Suicide Risk Assessment

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
School counselors support best practice in suicide prevention to reduce suicide risk in children and adolescents and are part of a collaborative team who respond when students are identified as at-risk for suicide. When students are identified or are in crisis, school counselors support them by providing parents/guardians with appropriate information and referrals.

# data[].attributes.body
A student who was severely bullied in school committed suicide, however parents were not informed about how sever the bullying had been.

More and more students are reporting bullying and unfortunately, this student did not feel as though he was safe at school and committed suicide by hanging himself. The student was 8 years old.

When the mental health needs of students are not addressed or handled properly it can end tragically.

Walsh, M. (2020). Federal appeals court lets lawsuit proceed against educators in student's suicide. Education Week. https://www.edweek.org/policy-politics/federal-appeals-court-lets-lawsuit-proceed-against-educators-in-students-suicide/2020/12

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
A federal appeals court has allowed a wrongful death lawsuit brought by the parents of an 8-year-old Cincinnati boy who committed suicide after alleged severe bullying at school to proceed against two school administrators.

A unanimous three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit, in Cincinnati, rejected a request by the former principal and assistant principal to throw out state-law claims that they acted recklessly in handling persistent bullying of Carson Elementary School student Gabriel Taye and allegedly failing to inform his parents about several incidents.

Taye hung himself with a necktie in his bedroom on Jan. 26, 2017, two days after a student had knocked him unconscious in a school bathroom in the most serious of a pattern of bullying incidents.

The lawsuit by the parents, Cornelia Reynolds and Benyam Tate, alleges that then-Principal Ruthenia Jackson and then-Assistant Principal Jeffrey McKenzie did not tell Taye's mother that a student had attacked him in the school bathroom. The suit also alleges that McKenzie stood over Taye but did not aid him or call 911, as district policy required when a student was unconscious for longer than a minute.

A school nurse called Taye's mother and said he had fainted, court papers say. Taye stayed home from school the next day, then was bullied again in the school bathroom when he returned the following day, the same day he committed suicide.

The 6th Circuit court, in its Dec. 29 decision in Meyers v. Cincinnati Board of Education, said the parents have sufficiently alleged that Jackson and McKenzie "failed to call 911 when Taye was unconscious for seven minutes after being knocked to the floor in the bathroom."

"They reported false information about the number of 'bullying instances' that occurred as required by Ohio law, and ultimately, prevented Taye's parents from fully understanding Taye's horrifying experience at Carson Elementary until it was too late," the 6th Circuit panel added. "This court finds their behavior, as alleged, to be egregious and clearly reckless, thus barring them from the shield of government immunity."

Federal and State Claims

Taye's parents, as well as the boy's estate, sued the Cincinnati school system along with some other individual defendants on federal civil-rights claims as well as state torts such as wrongful death, intentional infliction of serious emotional distress, and others.

Jackson and McKenzie sought to have the suit dismissed on the basis of state governmental immunity. In court papers, the two administrators deny that there was bullying at Carson Elementary and that Taye's suicide was not forseeable.

A federal district court rejected their motion to dismiss. The Cincinnati Board of Education and other defendants have raised similar defenses to the lawsuit's federal claims, but those were not at issue in this appeal.

The 6th Circuit's opinion describes in detail the pattern of bullying faced by Taye since he was in 1st grade and the alleged failures by school administrators to respond adequately or keep his parents informed.

The administrators "could have asked teachers to supervise the student bathrooms or limited the number of students allowed to use the bathroom at one time," the court said. "Instead, Jackson and McKenzie allowed the boys' bathroom to remain unsupervised. Jackson and McKenzie's behavior shows their failure to take this situation seriously and exemplifies the very definition of recklessness: they consciously disregarded the known or obvious risk of harm that students would engage in violent behavior in the unsupervised bathroom, and that disregard was unreasonable in light of the attack that took place there."

As to the administrators' argument that Taye's suicide was not foreseeable, the 6th Circuit panel said that assertion was undercut by a 2017 decision of their court. In that decision, Tumminello v. Father Ryan High School, a different 6th Circuit panel had written that "if a school is aware of a student being bullied but does nothing to prevent the bullying, it is reasonably foreseeable that the victim of the bullying might resort to self-harm, even suicide."

In Taye's case, the 6th Circuit said Jackson and McKenzie "knew the full extent to which Taye was subjected to aggression and violence by his classmates. ... [T]hey knew Taye was harassed and bullied at school and that a risk of bullying is suicide, and yet they utterly failed to take reasonable steps to protect Taye from that risk."

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Federal Appeals Court Lets Lawsuit Proceed Against Educators in Student's Suicide

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
A federal appeals court has allowed a wrongful death lawsuit brought by the parents of an 8-year-old Cincinnati boy who committed suicide after alleged severe bullying at school to proceed against two school administrators. A unanimous three-judge panel of the U.S.

# data[].attributes.body
The parents of a 21 year old university student sued her school after she committed suicide.

Parents state that the student told staff, including a psychiatrist and counselors, that she was stressed and suicidal nine different times and nothing was done about it.

Court documents stated the student was seen by two outside medical professionals and was not considered to be a risk to herself even though she had told one that she had thoughts of running in front of a train.

Cases like this shed light on the needs that students have regarding mental health and the lack of policies in place that ensure students receive the appropriate care.

Snyder, S. (2022). Civil trial over Penn suicide could shed light on a university's responsibility for student mental health. The Philadelphia Inquirer. https://www.inquirer.com/news/university-of-pennsylvania-student-suicide-lawsuit-olivia-kong-20220208.html

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
A civil trial in the case of a former University of Pennsylvania student who died by suicide after the campus failed, her parents say, to adequately respond to her pleas for help started Tuesday in Philadelphia.

Ao "Olivia" Kong, a Central High School graduate, was a 21-year-old student at Wharton when she went to the SEPTA station at 40th and Market Streets on an early April morning in 2016 to end her life.

Her parents, Xianguo Kong and Zhao Lin, sued the university in 2018, alleging that in the days before her death, Penn officials, including a psychiatrist and counselors, were told at least nine times, including by Kong herself, that she was stressed and suicidal. But the school failed to notify her parents, get Kong hospitalized, or otherwise intervene, the suit said. .
" READ MORE: Parents of Penn suicide victim sue university
"She begged them for help," her parents' lawyer, Carol Nelson Shepherd, told the jury during opening statements. "Instead of recognizing this for the crisis that it was, they just shuffled her from person to person and place to place with no meaningful response to the seriousness and repetitiveness of her suicidal thoughts."

Kong's parents were in the courtroom as Shepherd showed the jury photos of her in happier days and finally an image of her at the train station that morning.

Penn has denied that it is culpable and said the university's professionals made multiple efforts to help Kong, giving her counseling, support, and resources, available at all times.

"How does someone get to the point where they no longer want to live? The causes are deep and unknown and they are unknown here," Penn's lawyer Joe H. Tucker Jr. said in his opening statement. "No one is to blame."

Kong, Penn said in court documents, experienced suicidal ideations before, during, and after the care the university provided, and just days before her death, was seen by two outside medical professionals who did not deem her in imminent danger, though she told one she was thinking of running in front of a train.

The civil case before Philadelphia Common Pleas Court Judge Michael E. Erdos, could pull back the curtain on inner workings at the Ivy League university's counseling center and address questions about just how much responsibility a university has for the mental health of its students - concerns that have become more prevalent in the years since the pandemic.

Kong's death was among a number of high-profile student suicides at Penn, including the death of Madison Holleran in Philadelphia in 2014. From 2013 to 2019, there were at least 13 other student deaths by suicide. And in September 2019, Gregory Eells, the executive director of counseling and psychological services at Penn, died by suicide at a Center City Philadelphia building.

Penn also had been sued by the family of another student who died by suicide, Arya Singh, but that case was settled in 2017.

In the months following Eells' death, Penn announced changes to the structure and oversight of its services, integrating its health and wellness programs, including its counseling and psychological services, into a new "health and wellness" unit under the provost's office. The university also has hired more counselors and expanded the hours of its counseling center.
" READ MORE: Penn moves mental health and wellness programs under the direction of the provost
And in July 2018, the university appointed its first chief wellness officer, Benoit Dubé, an associate professor of clinical psychiatry, to oversee a new division of student wellness services with the goal of expanding capacity at its counseling center, including shortening the time between a consultation and the first appointment.
" READ MORE: Student suicides have shaken Rowan University
Those changes came amid scrutiny on college campuses around the country in the wake of student suicides and more demand for services. But then the pandemic hit in March 2020, forcing campuses to close, with many keeping instruction largely remote the following school year.

Kong was born in China and moved to Philadelphia with her parents when she was 9. In high school, she played on the tennis team, worked on the school newspaper, participatedin the orchestra and drama club, and graduated with honors. She was accepted early decision to Wharton and given several grants and scholarships.

Halfway through the spring semester of her junior year, she became ill, according to the lawsuit. She went to the health center with a fever twice, the second time also complaining that she was stressed. She was treated for a respiratory infection, but her concerns about stress and lack of sleep were not addressed, the suit said.

On April 7, she contacted Penn's counseling center, and over the course of the next several days would tell multiple people about the level of anxiety she felt, her fear of failing a class, and thoughts of suicide, according to the suit. She filled out a form at the counseling center saying she was having "current thoughts of suicide." She even mentioned to one Penn employee that she would use sleeping pills and told a Penn psychiatrist, John Stein, that she intended to return to campus and "kill herself," the suit said.

Shepherd, the parents' attorney, said a Penn policy allows employees to breach confidentiality and tell parents if students are at risk of harm to themselves or others.

But Tucker, Penn's lawyer, said that there is no way to reliably predict suicide and that 99.83% of young adults with suicidal ideation do not die by suicide.

Stein, the Penn psychiatrist, concluded that Kong was "sleepy and distracted" but not "psychotic," according to the suit. As a consequence, he decided "that he could not involuntarily commit her or break confidentiality and speak with her parents," the university said in court documents.

"It was his clinical judgment at that time that she would not harm herself," Tucker said.

Shortly after midnight on April 11, Kong's parents, though not aware of her pain, visited to check on her, the suit said. They had been in contact with her by phone and text messages more than 40 times that day, documents filed by Penn said.

Later that morning, just before her death, Kong could be seen on a SEPTA surveillance camera, pacing along the train platform in her pajamas.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Civil trial over Penn suicide could shed light on a university's responsibility for student mental health

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
A civil trial in the case of a former University of Pennsylvania student who died by suicide after the campus failed, her parents say, to adequately respond to her pleas for help started Tuesday in Philadelphia.

# data[].attributes.body
Standard A.9 of the American School Counselor Association (ASCA) Ethical Standards for School Counselors outlines what a school counselor should do if a student expresses that they are at risk of hurting themselves or others. School counselors have an ethical duty to intervene and breach confidentiality if they feel that a student is in danger.

American School Counselor Association. (2016). ASCA ethical standards for school counselors. Retrieved from https://www.schoolcounselor.org/getmedia/f041cbd0-7004-47a5-ba01-3a5d657c6743/Ethical-Standards.pdf

# data[].attributes.body
The San Felipe Del Rio C.I.S.D Student Handbook provides the following

Information regarding suicide prevention training that staff will recieve

How students will be assessed and referred

What will be done in the event of an in-school suicide attempt

What will be done with the event of an out-of-school suicide attempt

Parental notification and involvement

Development and implementation of an action plan for the student if they are able to return to school (in the event of an attempt).

San Felipe Del Rio CISD. (2021). San Felipe Del Rio C.I.S.D. student handbook. Retrieved February 25, 2022, from https://www.sfdr-cisd.org/media/sztluxla/2021-22-student-handbook_final-9-2-2021.pdf

# data[].attributes.body
In the event of a suicide attempt or suicidal ideation the school counselor:

should not leave the child unattended at any moment

should know the law, if they are unsure, ask

is clear and explicit to the parents about the concerns that the student is expressing

does not dismiss the risk if the student is downplaying the ideation

does not use words like “low risk” to make the delivery of the message to the parents easier

encourage parents to look for medical or mental health treatment

help the guardians locate resources (American School Counselor Association, 2020).

American School Counselor Association. (2020) The school counselor and suicide risk assessment. https://schoolcounselor.org/Standards-Positions/Position-Statements/ASCA-Position-Statements/The-School-Counselor-and-Suicide-Risk-Assessment

# data[].attributes.body
The Texas Education Agency (TEA) requires

that all educators receive suicide prevention training at the beginning of the school year

All educators should be receiving this training every subsequent school year

Each school district to keep a record of the teachers and educator that received this training

19 TAC §153.1013

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
(a) All school districts and open-enrollment charter schools shall provide suicide prevention training as required by the Texas Education Code (TEC), §21.451(d), to all new school district and open-enrollment charter school educators as a part of new employee orientation during the 2016-2017 school year. (b) Each subsequent school year, school districts and open-enrollment charter schools shall provide suicide prevention training as required by the TEC, §21.451(d), to all new school district and open-enrollment charter school educators as a part of new employee orientation. (c) All school districts and open-enrollment charter schools shall provide suicide prevention training as required by the TEC, §21.451(d), to all currently employed school district and open-enrollment charter school educators on or by September 30, 2016. (d) Suicide prevention training that is required by the TEC, §21.451(d), and was provided to existing educators by a school district or open-enrollment charter school on or after September 1, 2013, may be used to meet the requirements of this section if the training program is on the recommended best practice-based list maintained by the Department of State Health Services (DSHS), in coordination with the Texas Education Agency (TEA), or is an online program that meets the TEA guidelines for independent review. (e) In accordance with the Health and Safety Code, §161.325, school districts shall maintain records that include the name of each educator who participated in the suicide prevention training. (f) Open-enrollment charter schools are encouraged to maintain suicide prevention training records that include the name of each educator who participated in the suicide prevention training.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
(a) All school districts and open-enrollment charter schools shall provide suicide prevention training as required by the Texas Education Code (TEC), §21.451(d), to all new school district and open-enrollment charter school educators as a part of new employee orientation during the 2016-2017 school year.

# data[].attributes.body
All Texas educators should

receive youth suicide prevention training

provide instruction regarding youth suicide to students

obtain instruction from a list of best practice based programs

19 TAC §228.30

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
(a) The educator standards adopted by the State Board for Educator Certification shall be the curricular basis for all educator preparation and, for each certificate, address the relevant Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS). (b) The curriculum for each educator preparation program shall rely on scientifically-based research to ensure educator effectiveness. (c) The following subject matter shall be included in the curriculum for candidates seeking initial certification in any certification class: (1) the code of ethics and standard practices for Texas educators, pursuant to Chapter 247 of this title (relating to Educators' Code of Ethics), which include: (A) professional ethical conduct, practices, and performance; (B) ethical conduct toward professional colleagues; and (C) ethical conduct toward students; (2) instruction in detection and education of students with dyslexia, as indicated in the Texas Education Code (TEC), §21.044(b); (3) instruction regarding mental health, substance abuse, and youth suicide, as indicated in the TEC, §21.044(c-1). Instruction acquired from the list of recommended best practice-based programs or from an accredited institution of higher education or an alternative certification program as part of a degree plan shall be implemented as required by the provider of the best practice-based program or research-based practice; (4) the skills that educators are required to possess, the responsibilities that educators are required to accept, and the high expectations for students in this state; (5) the importance of building strong classroom management skills; (6) the framework in this state for teacher and principal evaluation; (7) appropriate relationships, boundaries, and communications between educators and students; and (8) instruction in digital learning, including a digital literacy evaluation followed by a prescribed digital learning curriculum. The instruction required must: (A) be aligned with the latest version of the International Society for Technology in Education's (ISTE) standards as appears on the ISTE website; (B) provide effective, evidence-based strategies to determine a person's degree of digital literacy; and (C) include resources to address any deficiencies identified by the digital literacy evaluation. (d) The following subject matter shall be included in the curriculum for candidates seeking initial certification in the classroom teacher certification class: (1) the relevant TEKS, including the English Language Proficiency Standards; (2) reading instruction, including instruction that improves students' content-area literacy; (3) for certificates that include early childhood and prekindergarten, the Prekindergarten Guidelines; and (4) the skills and competencies as prescribed in Chapter 235 of this title (relating to Classroom Teacher Certification Standards) and captured in the Texas teacher standards in Chapter 149, Subchapter AA, of this title (relating to Teacher Standards). (e) For candidates seeking certification in the principal certification class, the curriculum shall include the skills and competencies as prescribed in Chapter 241 of this title (relating to Certification as Principal) and captured in the Texas administrator standards, as indicated in Chapter 149, Subchapter BB, of this title (relating to Administrator Standards). (f) The following educator content standards from Chapter 235 of this title shall be included in the curriculum for candidates who hold a valid standard, provisional, or one-year classroom teacher certificate specified in §230.31 of this title (relating to Types of Certificates) in a certificate category that allows the candidates who are seeking the Early Childhood: Prekindergarten-Grade 3 certificate to teach all subjects in Prekindergarten, Kindergarten, Grade 1, Grade 2, or Grade 3: (1) Child Development provisions of the Early Childhood: Prekindergarten-Grade 3 Content Standards; (2) Early Childhood-Grade 3 Pedagogy and Professional Responsibilities Standards; and (3) Science of Teaching Reading Standards.

Source Note: The provisions of this §228.30 adopted to be effective July 11, 1999, 24 TexReg 5011; amended to be effective October 12, 2003, 28 TexReg 8608; amended to be effective December 14, 2008, 33 TexReg 10016; amended to be effective October 27, 2014, 39 TexReg 8388; amended to be effective December 27, 2016, 41 TexReg 10280; amended to be effective December 20, 2018, 43 TexReg 8091; amended to be effective October 15, 2020, 45 TexReg 7255

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
(a) The educator standards adopted by the State Board for Educator Certification shall be the curricular basis for all educator preparation and, for each certificate, address the relevant Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS). (b) The curriculum for each educator preparation program shall rely on scientifically-based research to ensure educator effectiveness.

# data[].attributes.body
Understanding the law and how it pertains to suicide has been helpful as I step in to the role of a school counselor. Knowing what to do in a situation like this is crucial because time is often of the essence. As a school counselor I must act quickly and correctly. Understanding my legal and ethical responsibilities also helps me better equip teachers and staff who may also come into contact with students who need help. Privacy and confidentiality between a school counselor and student is extremely important and must always be cultivated. However, when it pertains to student safety, the ethical standards as a school counselor state that we should always err on the side of caution and act, even if it means breaking confidentiality or going against the will of a student (American School Counselor Association, 2016). Student safety always comes first.

American School Counselor Association. (2016). ASCA ethical standards for school counselors. Retrieved from https://www.schoolcounselor.org/getmedia/f041cbd0-7004-47a5-ba01-3a5d657c6743/Ethical-Standards.pdf

# data[].attributes.body
In interviewing Debra Escamilla, school counselor at Ruben Chavira Elementary, I learned that San Felipe Del Rio Consolidated School District has protocol for dealing with students who are suicidal. When a student is identified as potentially suicidal, the student is referred to the school counselor so that he/she can perform a risk assessment (D. Escamilla, personal communication, February 25, 2022). Depending on the risk the student is in, the school counselor would follow the protocol listed within the school district's policy. The school counselor may need to create a safety plan with the student and follow up. However, in all cases, the parent would need to be informed. They may be given local resources for them to follow up with or the school counselor may assist them in setting up an appointment if the guardians need the help.

Mental health issues in schools are quickly rising. As a result of the pandemic, students are reporting higher levels of anxiety and depression. For some students, this may mean suicidal ideation. Teachers and school staff must know how to identify warning signs in a student and what to do. If a student is expressing that they are suicidal the teacher/staff/school counselor should do the following:

Listen actively and not be judgmental.

Do not leave the child alone at any moment.

Inform parents and do not downplay the risk.

Always err on the side of caution.

Although we are hearing more and more about the importance of mental health, it is still a very taboo subject. The negative stigma that comes with mental health is still very much present and it will take some time to break down those barriers. The rise of social media is making it easier for students to bully each other and that comes with consequences. Teachers and school staff must constantly be monitoring the mental health of their students and be aware of any red flags their students may be exhibiting (D. Escamilla, personal communication, February 25, 2022).

# data[].attributes.body
The Texas Education Code requires each school district to have a district improvement plan that is evaluated and revised annually. This plan could include evidence based suicide prevention programs.

11 TEC, § 11.251

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
EDUCATION CODE CHAPTER 11. SCHOOL DISTRICTS

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Sec. 11.002. RESPONSIBILITY OF SCHOOL DISTRICTS FOR PUBLIC EDUCATION. The school districts and charter schools created in accordance with the laws of this state have the primary responsibility for implementing the state's system of public education and ensuring student performance in accordance with this code.

# data[].attributes.body
The tenth amendment of the United Stated Constitution allows each state to come up with its own requirements for education.  This amendment gives Texas the right to require its educators to receive suicide prevention training.

U.S. Const. amend X