# data[].attributes.body
My professional perspective is working as a Special Education math teacher and case manager for the past five years. I received my bachelor’s degree in Human Resources with a minor in counseling, and I am currently working on my M.Ed. in Guidance and Counseling. My passion for working with students and guiding them through their life challenges began in 2013 when I became a high school youth leader at my local church. Students need guidance and support from parents, peers, educators, and counselors as they learn, grow, and navigate through each of their developmental stages into adulthood. This Legal Guide Padlet is a resource guide for counselors to help them understand the importance and current legal requirements for working with suicidal students in education. I chose this topic because the rate of suicidal attempts for school aged children has steadily increased over the years. It is imperative for educators and counselors to know how to support students, use effective intervention strategies, work with their families, and follow all legal requirements and protocols in relation to working with suicidal students in order to maintain their health and safety.

# data[].attributes.body
I interviewed Mr. Randall Ford, a secondary school counselor at Independence High School in Frisco, TX. He has worked with suicidal students as a counselor in Missouri and Texas, and he has been a school counselor at both the primary and secondary levels.

Why is Working With Suicidal Students Important for School Counselors

Mr. Ford described the increasing issue we have in education, especially at the secondary level, of students that are dealing with mental health issues and suicidal ideation. He described how student health and safety has become a central concern as counselors seek to find new strategies, intervention methods, and various ways to educate students, their families, and the community on suicidal risk factors and the proper ways to respond and report suicidal ideation issues. As student safety concerns and the suicide rate increases, it is crucial for counselors to stay informed and educated on legal issues and policies for working with suicidal students.

Best Practices for School Counselors When Working With Suicidal Students

Mr. Ford described several best practices for school counselors as they working with suicidal students including:

1. Building genuine and trusting relationships with students to show them that you care while motivating teachers and school staff to create safe places for students

2. Continuously communicate with parents by providing information and resources regarding pre- and post-intervention strategies related to their student and suicidal ideation. Parents also need to understand the importance of getting their student assessed by a professional before returning to school.

3. Follow-up, or continuous monitoring protocols after a student expresses suicidal ideation or attempts suicide is just as important as to help students save their lives. It is not enough just to inform parents and provide mental health resources, but checking in on students during class and/or lunch time and gathering information from their teachers is vital to the safety of a student. Post-intervention plans should not be done alone, but instead as a counseling team.

Emerging Issues

Suicidal ideation rates, which is when students are thinking about suicide but have not attempted, are rising just as the amount of attempted suicides by students. Due to these statistics, counselors have been encouraged to increase the amount of time spent on properly educating families about suicidal ideation and educators about the severity of suicide within the comprehensive school counseling program. Mr. Ford also discussed how more importance has been put on legislation to provide a solution for counselors to spend more time counseling students and less time doing paperwork. This includes providing proper support for the students at risk of suicidal ideation within the home, at school, and connecting with outside professionals.

(R. Ford, personal communication, June 28, 2019)

Link: http://schools.friscoisd.org/hs/independence/site/counselors/meet-your-counselors

# data[].attributes.headline
Slide #3: Professional Association Webinar Related to Suicidal Students and "13 Reasons Why"

# data[].attributes.subject
Slide #3: Professional Association Webinar Related to Suicidal Students and "13 Reasons Why"

# data[].attributes.body
The American School Counselor Association (ASCA) is an organization that provides support to school counselors and educators on how to assist students in school throughout their educational, social, and emotional development to lead successful and fulfilling lives. ASCA, in association with the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) and the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP), produced a webinar for parents, psychologists, educators, and counselors that discussed suicidal statistics, the Netflix series “13 Reasons Why” (based on a suicidal student), how to understanding youth suicide, risks and protective factors, suicide prevention, and tips for parents on how to help their children. The webinar is informative for counselors as they work with suicidal students who struggle with mental health issues and display risk factors associated with suicide and self-harm. At-risk students display various symptoms and the may often be misinterpreted and the presentation discusses these issues. The webinar also provides educational and useful information on pre- and post-intervention strategies for crisis teams on helping vulnerable youth to minimize or eliminate risk factors associated with suicidal attempts and ideation.

American School Counselor Association. (2017, May 2). Teachable moment using “13 Reasons Why” to initiate a helpful conversation about. [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4CC-j73_LnE&feature=youtu.be

# data[].attributes.body
Link to Article: https://chalkbeat.org/posts/co/2019/04/19/student-and-parent-groups-pushing-denver-to-hire-counselors-not-cops/

This article discusses student a parent concerns about the rise of youth suicide rates and the need for more counselors and mental health professionals in the education setting. The request came from both students and parents as they saw the need for more trained specialists to support students with mental health issues, challenges at home, and suicidal ideation. Two teens also gave their testimonies about how a more trained professional, such as a counselor, could have helped them with their emotional issues in their time of need. Overall, the article expressed the lack “of mental health professionals in schools is a national issue that’s fast gaining attention” (Asmar, 2019, para. 6).

Asmar, M. (2019). Student and parent groups pushing Denver schools to hire ‘counselors, not cops’. Chalkbeat. Retrieved from https://chalkbeat.org/posts/co/2019/04/19/student-and-parent-groups-pushing-denver-to-hire-counselors-not-cops/

# data[].attributes.body
Link to Article: https://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/rulesforengagement/2018/12/suicides_continue_to_increase_how_schools_can_help.html

For students aged 10 through 19, suicide has become the second leading cause of death  according to the Center for Disease Control (CDC) (Stark, 2018). The article describes the key position that high schools have to support struggling teens and prevent suicide by establishing a sincere and welcoming atmosphere for students, tackling bullying and peer mistreatment issues, and educating school staff and students about depression and suicide (Stark, 2018). The article also includes video testimonials from students as well as different strategies and steps schools can take to help prevent suicide as well as what to do after a suicidal tragedy has occurred.

Stark, L. (2018). Suicides are on the rise. Here’s how schools can help. Education Week. Retrieved from https://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/rulesforengagement/2018/12/suicides_continue_to_increase_how_schools_can_help.html

# data[].attributes.body
State Administrative Law

School District Personnel, Tex. Admin. Code §153.101

Summary of law: This law contains the requirements, guidelines, and regulations, for school districts and open-enrollment charter schools regarding suicide prevention training for new and current educators. The law specifically states that the trainings must meet a certain criteria and school districts should keep a record of all participants who attended the training.

Link to full text of law: http://ritter.tea.state.tx.us/rules/tac/chapter153/ch153bb.html

# data[].attributes.body
State Statutory Law

Service Programs and Extracurricular Activities. Tex. Edu. Code §33.006

Summary of law: This law specifically outlines the primary duty of a school counselor which is to provide counsel and the necessary resources for all students to develop emotionally, socially, academically, personally, and progress towards a future career. The statute also describes the special population of students that counselors should address through their comprehensive counseling program. Included in the list of critical needs that counselors must address was individuals who are at risk of committing suicide.

Link to full text of law: https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/ED/htm/ED.33.htm#33.006

# data[].attributes.body
Federal Statutory Law

Public Health Service, 42 USC § 290bb-36

Summary of law: This statute discusses the topic of early intervention and prevention strategies for youth regarding suicide. The statute outlines the requirements for organizations to provide appropriate assessments, treatments, and timely referrals for psychological and mental health or substance abuse services for youth with suicidal ideation or symptoms. The statute also describes how suicide prevention strategies should be tailored in relation to the community, who should receive services, and training procedures.

Link to full text of law: http://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?path=/prelim@title42/chapter6A/A&edition=prelim

# data[].attributes.body
State Statutory Law

Consent to Treatment of Child by Non-Parent or Child, Tex. Family Code §32.004

Summary of law: This statute describes all situations in which a student can consent to counseling and what professionals can counsel a student without parental consent. These situations include suicide prevention, substance abuse, sexual or physical mistreatment, or if the professional has reason to believe that the student is thinking about suicide (suicidal ideation) or suffering from abuse.

Link to full text of law: https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/FA/htm/FA.32.htm#32.004

# data[].attributes.headline
Slide #10: Local Administrative Law/Policy/Rule

# data[].attributes.subject
Slide #10: Local Administrative Law/Policy/Rule

# data[].attributes.body
The following Local Administrative Policy derives from the Frisco Independent School District (FISD) High School Counselor Handbook. The policy describes the protocol counselors must take to identify if there is a suicidal concern with a student.

The counselor will determine whether a suicidal concern exists by following district protocol:

1. Conduct an interview with the student

2. Observation

3. Collect student/teacher reports

4. Confer with other mental health professionals if necessary

5. Contact parents about your concern for the student

6. Fill out the FISD Self-Harm Referral Link

7. If suicidal ideation exists, follow district protocol for safety of the student until parents arrive and adhere to the detailed protocol for student's return to school

Frisco ISD. (2019). Frisco ISD High School Counselor Handbook: Suicide and self-harm prevention counselor protocol. Retrieved from http://www.livebinders.com/b/2099024?backurl=%2Fshelf%2Ffeatured&play_view=play&utf8=%E2%9C%93#anchor

# data[].attributes.body
The ASCA Ethical Standards for School Counselors (2016) was adopted in 1984 and most recently revised in 2016. Standard A.9.a discusses a counselor’s role when a student poses a serious and foreseeable harm to themselves or others including suicidal ideation. School counselors have the responsibility to notify a student’s parents of harmful incidents and give them the opportunity to intervene on behalf of their student. Counselors must also advise students of their legal and ethical obligations to report student information for their overall health and safety.

Standard A.9.a – Serious and Foreseeable Harm to Self and Others: “Inform parents/guardians and/or appropriate authorities when a student poses a serious and foreseeable risk of harm to self or others. When feasible, this is to be done after careful deliberation and consultation with other appropriate professionals. School counselors inform students of the school counselor’s legal and ethical obligations to report the concern to the appropriate authorities unless it is appropriate to withhold this information to protect the student (e.g. student might run away if he/she knows parents are being called). The consequence of the risk of not giving parents/guardians a chance to intervene on behalf of their child is too great. Even if the danger appears relatively remote, parents should be notified” (ASCA Ethical Standards for School Counselors, 2016, p. 4).

ASCA Ethical Standards for School Counselors. (2016). American School Counselor Association. Retrieved from     https://www.schoolcounselor.org/asca/media/asca/Ethics/EthicalStandards2016.pdf

# data[].attributes.body
Texas Suicide Prevention Website: https://texassuicideprevention.org/

The Texas Suicide Prevention website is a valuable resource for school counselors in the state of Texas. The website provides training, programs, workshop opportunities, and programs provided across the state for adults and students who struggle with suicide and suicidal ideation. The website is also provides public policy information regarding suicide as well as opportunities to volunteer and help those with mental illnesses.

Texas Suicide Prevention (2019). Get help, give help. Retrieved from https://texassuicideprevention.org/

# data[].attributes.headline
Slide #13: Recommendations/Best Practices for Compliance

# data[].attributes.subject
Slide #13: Recommendations/Best Practices for Compliance

# data[].attributes.body
The following list provides counselors with recommendations and best practices for compliance when working with suicidal students:

1. Every outcry for help from a student should be taken seriously because the risk of not taking action may be too great.

2. As a counselor, if you receive a concern about a student regarding suicidal ideation, parental consent is not needed to talk with the student.

3. Never leave a student alone who has expressed a desire to harm themselves.

4. Counselors have legal and ethical liability to report concerns of foreseeable harm by a student to their parent/legal guardians.

5. Counselors should build genuine and trusting relationships with students while allowing them a safe place to discuss the issues they are experiencing.

6. Educate students, their families, and school staff about the severity of teen suicide and provide steps they can take to help support those that express suicidal ideation.

7. Counselors should seek guidance from their team as well as outside professionals for how to best support their students for each situation.

8. Counselors must stay up-to-date on current legislation and policies related to helping students stay healthy and safe in the school environment including protecting students at risk of suicide.