SOS Program
The Marion Area Counseling Center will be at Ridgedale starting November 1 to administer the Signs of Suicide (SOS) screening to all students in grades 7 - 12. SOS is a nationally recognized program that has been used by thousands of schools over the past ten years. It has been proven successful to increase the rate students, who are concerned about themselves or a friend, get the help they need. This school-based suicide prevention program also has been shown to reduce the number of suicide attempts in a randomized, controlled study (American Journal of Public Health, March, 2004).
The screening for Freshmen and 7th Graders will consist of a short discussion / presentation by Marion Area Counseling Center professionals followed by a brief questionnaire. This will occur during a “Wacky Wednesday” meeting time with approximately half of the class at a time. These meetings will occur on November 1 (half of the Freshmen), November 8 (remaining Freshmen), November 15 (half of the 7th Grade), and November 29 (remaining 7th Grade).
The screening for Seniors, Juniors, Sophomores, and 8th Graders will take between 10 – 15 minutes (a quick refresher followed by the survey) and will be done during periods 1 – 3 on Friday, November 3 (Seniors), Friday, November 10 (Juniors), Friday, November 17 (Sophomores), and Friday, December 1 (8th Grade)
A letter with more details concerning this program was emailed to all students using the Ridgedale Student E-Mail Accounts and is also using the link below. A sample survey for your review is also using the link below.
While we encourage all students to participate, we realize this is (and should be) a parental decision. Please call the office (740-382-6560 ext. 404) or email Mr. Sparling (bsparling@ridgedaleschools.org) before October 27th if do you not want your child to participate in this screening. A sample questionnaire is available on the Ridgedale web site.
All costs related to this are being covered by a grant to MACC from the Marion Community Foundation. Please feel free to contact Mr. Sparling at the school with any concerns and/or questions.
SOS Fall 2017 Parent Letter