Protecting students requires more than locked doors, cameras, and emergency response plans. It also requires recognizing when someone is struggling, intervening before a crisis develops, and helping students, employees, and families recover when tragedy strikes.
That message was at the center of Friday’s “Recognize, Respond, Recover: Mental Health and School Safety Summit,” organized by Dr. Jim Hanna, Rossville Consolidated School District Superintendent and Chairperson of the Clinton County School Safety Commission.
The daylong professional development event brought together educators, school safety personnel and community partners for training focused on mental health, suicide prevention, critical incident response and recovery.
Hanna welcomed participants and outlined the day’s professional development activities, emphasizing a comprehensive approach to school safety that recognizes the importance of prevention, response and recovery.
The summit began with Julie Q. Smith, Director of the Indiana Department of Homeland Security Office of School Safety, who presented “Mental Health as a Core Component of School Safety Systems.”
Smith stressed that relationships with students remain among the most important tools schools have for identifying concerns before they escalate. Teachers, administrators, school resource officers, and other employees who know students are often best positioned to recognize behavioral changes and create an environment where students feel comfortable reporting concerns.
Her presentation also focused on responding appropriately to concerning behavior without automatically assuming a struggling student poses a danger. Early conversations and connections to appropriate resources can provide opportunities to intervene before a situation becomes a crisis.
“We must stabilize emotionally if we ever hope to recover operationally,” Smith told participants while discussing the lasting effects threats, violence, suicide, and other traumatic incidents can have on a school community.
The focus then shifted specifically to suicide prevention.
Brandon Puszkiewicz, programs manager for the Indiana Chapter of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, presented “Talk Saves Lives.” He discussed warning signs that may show up as changes in a person’s words, behavior, or mood and encouraged participants to trust their instincts when something does not seem right.
Puszkiewicz emphasized the importance of beginning direct, nonjudgmental conversations with someone who may be struggling. Participants were reminded that asking a person directly whether they are thinking about suicide does not plant the idea but instead can open a critical conversation and provide an opportunity to connect that individual with help.
A morning panel brought the impact of suicide closer to home.
Parent Gretchen Ford, Rossville teacher Royce Huffer, and Student Support Specialist Erin Dillingham discussed the ripple effect following the death by suicide of Rossville senior Colin Ford. The panel described how the loss affected family members, classmates, teachers, staff members, younger students, and the broader community.
Their experiences demonstrated that grief and recovery do not follow a single path. Some students needed counseling or time with family and friends, while others found comfort in returning to the familiar classroom routine. Staff members also faced the challenge of processing their own grief while supporting students.
The panel also highlighted the importance of establishing relationships among schools, mental health providers, clergy, law enforcement, and community organizations before a critical incident occurs.
Following lunch, the summit examined another resource that can support emotional recovery after a crisis.
Erica Whetstone of Whetstone Canines LLC discussed the appropriate use of trained therapy dogs following traumatic events. Accompanied by Boone, a trained canine from the Boone County Sheriff’s Department, Whetstone explained how properly trained dogs can reduce stress, break down emotional barriers, and help professionals connect with students and staff.
Whetstone stressed that therapy dogs are not first responders. They should be used only after a scene has been secured and in coordination with school leadership, emergency management, and incident command.
The summit concluded with a two-hour Question, Persuade, Refer, or QPR, Suicide Prevention Certification Session led by Kathy Martin of Healthy Communities of Clinton County.
Martin trained participants to recognize suicide warning signs, ask someone directly about suicide, persuade a person in crisis to accept assistance, and connect that individual with appropriate professional resources.
QPR does not require participants to become counselors or mental health professionals. Instead, it equips ordinary people to recognize when someone may be in crisis and take potentially lifesaving action.
Martin encouraged participants to “seize the awkward” and ask difficult questions rather than remain silent when they are concerned about someone.
“Rather ask the question and be weird and awkward than to have waited a day and now it’s too late,” Martin said.
Participants were also instructed that when someone indicates they may be considering suicide, the person should not be left alone until an appropriate referral or “warm handoff” to additional assistance can occur.
Throughout the summit, the individual presentations reinforced a common theme behind the event Hanna organized: effective school safety depends on relationships, awareness, preparation, and human connection as well as physical security and emergency procedures.
The objective is not simply to respond effectively when a crisis occurs. It is to recognize warning signs earlier, provide opportunities for intervention, and ensure that students, employees, families, and communities have the support necessary to recover when tragedy cannot be prevented.