Screening for Mental Health, Inc.
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Sandy Hook Promise (SHP), a national nonprofit organization founded by family members whose loved ones were killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School, and Screening for Mental Health, the nation’s leading mental health screening organization, today announced a transformative partnership to expand comprehensive suicide prevention programs in schools nationwide. This collaboration unites two evidence-based approaches to youth suicide prevention, combining Sandy Hook Promise’s Know the Signs programs with Screening for Mental Health’s proven screening and intervention strategies.
The partnership launches at a critical moment in America’s youth mental health crisis. Suicide remains the second leading cause of death for young people ages 10 to 24, with rates increasing significantly over the past decade. Nearly one in five high school students seriously considered suicide in the past year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Both organizations recognize that evidence-based prevention programs can reverse these trends and save young lives.
“This partnership represents a powerful alignment of mission and proven methodology,” said Nicole Hockley, Co-Founder and CEO of Sandy Hook Promise. “We have both dedicated ourselves to preventing tragedy through early identification and intervention. By combining our complementary programs and expertise, we can reach more students, identify more youth at risk, and ultimately save more lives. This is exactly the kind of collaborative approach needed to address the youth mental health crisis.”
Sandy Hook Promise emerged from unimaginable tragedy with a commitment to prevent gun violence and protect children through programs teaching individuals to recognize, intervene, and get help for potential violence, including self-harm and suicide. The organization’s evidence-based programs, including Start With Hello, Say Something, and Signs of Suicide, have reached more than 15 million students across all 50 states.
Screening for Mental Health pioneered large-scale mental health screening more than 30 years ago and developed the SOS Signs of Suicide program, the most widely implemented school-based suicide prevention program in the United States. Through rigorous research and continuous program refinement, Screening for Mental Health has demonstrated that comprehensive school-based approaches combining education, screening, and intervention significantly reduce suicide attempts among youth.
“Sandy Hook Promise and Screening for Mental Health share fundamental beliefs about prevention,” said Doug Katz, President of Screening for Mental Health. “We both know that warning signs exist before tragedy occurs. We both understand that young people and adults can learn to recognize these signs. We both believe in evidence-based programming that demonstrably saves lives. This partnership allows us to leverage our complementary strengths and create even greater impact.”
The collaboration builds on existing success. Sandy Hook Promise has integrated Screening for Mental Health’s SOS program into its suite of prevention programs, and both organizations have worked in overlapping communities nationwide. Formalizing this partnership creates opportunities for enhanced coordination, shared resources, joint training, and expanded reach.
Central to the partnership is the enhancement and expansion of the SOS Signs of Suicide program, which will now incorporate Sandy Hook Promise’s proven Know the Signs methodology and benefit from both organizations’ implementation support, training resources, and technical assistance.
The comprehensive enhanced program includes:
Student Education and Mental Health Literacy: Interactive curriculum teaches students about mental health, depression, and suicide. Lessons use engaging videos and facilitated discussions to help young people understand that mental health conditions are real, common, and treatable. The education component reduces stigma, normalizes help-seeking, and empowers students with knowledge to recognize warning signs in themselves and peers.
Depression and Suicide Warning Sign Recognition: Students learn specific warning signs indicating someone may be considering suicide, including changes in behavior, mood, and statements expressing hopelessness or suicidal ideation. The curriculum emphasizes that warning signs are recognizable and that intervention saves lives.
ACT Strategy Training: The program teaches students a simple three-step response when concerned about themselves or a friend: Acknowledge the signs, Care by showing support, and Tell a trusted adult. This actionable framework gives young people concrete steps to take rather than feeling helpless when they recognize someone struggling.
Universal Mental Health Screening: Following educational sessions, students complete brief, confidential mental health screenings using validated assessment tools. These screenings identify youth experiencing depression, anxiety, or suicide risk who may not have been recognized through other means.
Immediate Intervention and Support: School mental health professionals review screening results and provide immediate intervention for students identified as high risk. This includes safety assessment, crisis intervention when necessary, connection to school-based support services, and referral to community mental health providers when appropriate.
Parent and Community Engagement: The program includes parent education workshops teaching adults to recognize warning signs in young people, communicate effectively about mental health, and access resources. Community awareness campaigns extend prevention messaging beyond school walls.
Follow-Up and Ongoing Monitoring: Students identified through screening receive follow-up support and monitoring to ensure they remain connected to appropriate services and that their safety and well-being are maintained over time.
Both organizations bring strong research foundations supporting this partnership’s approach. The SOS Signs of Suicide program has been evaluated through multiple randomized controlled trials published in peer-reviewed scientific journals. Research demonstrates that schools implementing SOS experience significant positive outcomes:
A landmark study published in the Archives of Suicide Research found that students participating in SOS had 40 percent fewer suicide attempts compared to control schools. This represents one of the strongest effect sizes documented for any school-based suicide prevention program. Additional research shows that SOS increases student knowledge about depression and suicide, improves attitudes about mental health and help-seeking, and increases the likelihood that students will seek help for themselves or encourage distressed peers to access support.
Sandy Hook Promise programs have similarly demonstrated effectiveness through independent evaluation. Research on the Say Something program shows that students increase their knowledge of warning signs and threats, improve their willingness to report concerns to trusted adults, and develop greater confidence in their ability to help peers in distress. Schools implementing Sandy Hook Promise programs report increased reporting of concerns to school officials, enabling early intervention before situations escalate.
“The evidence is clear and compelling,” emphasized Hockley. “These programs work. When students receive education about mental health, when they learn to recognize warning signs, when they know how to get help, and when schools have systems to respond effectively, suicide attempts decrease. This is not theoretical. This is proven. This partnership allows us to deliver these life-saving programs to even more schools and communities.”
The partnership responds to alarming trends in youth mental health that have intensified over the past decade and were exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. According to recent data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Institute of Mental Health, youth mental health has reached crisis levels across multiple indicators.
Approximately 20 percent of high school students seriously considered suicide in the past year, with rates significantly higher among certain populations including LGBTQ+ youth, Native American youth, and youth of color. Emergency department visits for suicide attempts among adolescents increased 31 percent during the pandemic. Meanwhile, rates of depression, anxiety, and other mental health conditions among young people have risen dramatically.
Yet despite this crisis, significant barriers prevent youth from accessing mental health support. Stigma remains powerful, with many young people fearing judgment from peers or adults if they admit struggling. Many adolescents lack mental health literacy and cannot identify when they or their friends are experiencing concerning symptoms. Access to mental health services is limited in many communities, particularly rural areas. School counselor-to-student ratios often far exceed recommended levels. Insurance coverage gaps and financial barriers prevent many families from accessing private mental health care.
Comprehensive school-based prevention programs like the enhanced SOS address these barriers by reaching all students regardless of socioeconomic status, providing education that reduces stigma and increases mental health literacy, identifying at-risk youth who might not seek help independently, and creating direct pathways to support within school settings that are already familiar and accessible to young people.
Recognizing that effective program implementation requires comprehensive support, the partnership provides schools with extensive resources, training, and technical assistance. Schools interested in implementing the enhanced SOS program receive coordinated support from both organizations throughout the implementation process.
Initial planning and assessment: Consultation helps schools assess current suicide prevention efforts, identify gaps, and develop implementation plans tailored to their specific contexts, populations, and resources.
Staff training: Comprehensive professional development prepares administrators, counselors, teachers, and other school staff to deliver curriculum, facilitate screening, respond to students in crisis, and create supportive school climates promoting mental health.
Curriculum and materials: Schools receive all necessary educational materials, screening tools, parent communication templates, and implementation guides. Materials are evidence-based, developmentally appropriate, and designed for diverse student populations.
Implementation consultation: Ongoing technical assistance supports schools throughout program implementation, addressing challenges, answering questions, and ensuring fidelity to evidence-based practices.
Evaluation and continuous improvement: Schools receive support measuring program outcomes, analyzing data, and using findings to continuously improve implementation and effectiveness.
Community resource development: Assistance identifying and building relationships with community mental health providers ensures robust referral pathways for students needing services beyond school-based support.
The partnership prioritizes expanding access to evidence-based suicide prevention programs in underserved communities that face the greatest barriers to mental health resources. This includes rural schools lacking adequate mental health infrastructure, schools serving predominantly low-income students and families, communities with limited access to mental health providers, and schools serving populations experiencing significant mental health disparities.
Both organizations commit to ensuring that cost never prevents schools from implementing life-saving prevention programs. The partnership will work with philanthropic supporters, government agencies, and other funders to provide implementation support, subsidize program costs, and remove financial barriers for schools serving high-need populations.
“Every young person deserves access to evidence-based suicide prevention programs regardless of their zip code or their family’s income,” stated Katz. “This partnership commits us to reaching schools and communities that have been historically underserved. We will work tirelessly to ensure that these programs reach every student who needs them.”
This partnership represents a broader model for how organizations can collaborate to address complex public health challenges. Rather than competing for funding, recognition, or territory, Sandy Hook Promise and Screening for Mental Health demonstrate that organizations with complementary expertise and aligned missions can achieve greater collective impact through strategic collaboration.
“No single organization can solve the youth mental health crisis alone,” Hockley emphasized. “This partnership shows what becomes possible when we set aside organizational interests and focus entirely on mission and impact. We are creating something greater than either organization could achieve independently. This is the model for how the prevention field must operate going forward.”
The collaboration extends beyond program implementation to include joint advocacy for policies supporting youth mental health, shared research and evaluation efforts, coordinated training and capacity building for school professionals, and collective fundraising to expand program reach.
Sandy Hook Promise and Screening for Mental Health call on schools nationwide to implement comprehensive suicide prevention programs. The evidence is clear, the programs are proven, and support is available. Schools interested in bringing the enhanced SOS Signs of Suicide program to their students can access information and begin the implementation process through either organization’s website.
Every school has students struggling with mental health challenges. Every school has young people who have thought about suicide. Comprehensive prevention programs identify these students, connect them with support, and save lives. The question is not whether schools need these programs but rather how quickly we can expand implementation to reach every student who needs these life-saving interventions.