After a Suicide: A Toolkit for Schools

American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, & Suicide Prevention Resource Center. (2018). After a suicide: A toolkit for schools (2nd ed.). Waltham, MA: Education Development Center.

After a Suicide: A Toolkit for Schools assists schools in implementing a coordinated response to the suicide death of a student. Originally developed in 2011, the second edition includes new information and tools that middle and high schools can use to help the school community cope and reduce suicide risk. The toolkit was developed in collaboration with the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention and in consultation with national experts, including school-based administrators and staff, clinicians, researchers, and crisis response professionals. It is designed primarily for administrators and staff but can also be useful for parents and communities. 

Highlights of the second edition include:

• Updated information on such topics as memorialization, social media, and contagion
• Updated resource lists
• A new tool to help with decision-making about memorials
• New examples of how different communities have addressed specific issues in responding to a suicide death

Populations: Youth, Adolescents, Survivors of Suicide Loss

Settings: Schools, Middle School, High School

Strategies: Postvention