SBYSP teams up with 2nd Floor to fight teen suicide

Time for action

By Juseline Daniel, MSW, LCSW

Perth Amboy, New Jersey

Adolescents are faced with a cluster of challenges such as friendship friction, relationship issues, sexuality, anxiety, puberty, and depression. This is just to mention a few of the rite of passage challenges that adolescents deal with, along with establishing their independence and figuring out their place in the world. With so many potential adversities, crisis and challenge can arise 24/7 year round, and for those adolescents with limited coping skills, life stressors can exceed their ability to face those challenges(1).

As a result, School Based Youth Services Program (SBYSP) a project of the Jewish Renaissance Foundation funded by the New Jersey Department of Children and Families, designed to help young people to navigate their adolescent years, is teaming up with 2ND Floor to step up its efforts to ensure that every student who needs help knows about their service and knows how to get in touch with them. 2^ND FLOOR is a youth helpline that is available 24/7 year round. “2^nd FLOOR is designed to provide caring and compassionate guidance that is confidential to youth’s in need of emotional support,” says Lisa Pretone, Outreach and Volunteers Coordinator for 2^nd FLOOR. Lisa, who was also on-site at Perth Amboy High School to provide training to the School Based Youth Leadership Team, not only normalized the act of seeking help for our students, but she also was able to share many of the stories to which our students could relate, from the anxiety that comes from failing a test to the sense of despair that can overwhelm a teen after a breakup.

The work that School Based and 2^ND FLOOR ,along with many other organizations, provide as a service to youth is of the essence. Research indicates that youth do better when they have a trusting adult they can talk to. Some problems are too big or serious for our youth to handle alone. In New Jersey, suicide remains the third leading cause of death for youth between the ages of 10 and 24 (1). A skilled counselor can breathe life into the sense of hopelessness coming from feelings that things will never get better.

To build on these efforts, School Based is launching “it’s ok to talk.” “It’s ok to talk” is a coalition for teen suicide prevention. We will be hosting our first ever “Zumba for Life,” on May 23, 2016 from 5:00 pm to 6:30 pm at the Perth Amboy High School, and we are also launching a 2^ND FLOOR awareness video.

School Based youth leaders, with the support of School Based leadership team and the guidance of Willy Mena, School Based College Prep Coordinator and an AmeriCorps Member, started an awareness campaign that encompassed creating, sharing, and making available resources to other teens. This project was also impactful for our student leaders themselves; Karla Almanzar, Heidi Ciprian, and Cristal Genao. When asked about their 2ND Floor experience, these student leaders shared that, they found it comforting to have a voice on the other side of the receiver, who would listen to them in a supportive and non-judgmental way. “I like that the service( 2ND floor) is supportive and they listen to you and help you to see options when a situation is perceived as the end of the world,”said Cristal Genao, a School Based Youth Leader.

In addition ,making the information available to as many students as possible was an important priority during the beginning stages of the effort, for us and for our students. As a result, the information about 2^nd FLOOR and its services was shared with school administrators, and school staff. Our next step is to launch a powerful social media campaign to reach every single corner of our high school. Finally and perhaps more importantly, the School Based vision is to instill a culture in which the message that is reinforced is “It is ok to talk, it is ok to ask for help”

For more information about our program and initiatives please contact Jusleine Daniel at (732) 376-6030 x 23510 or by email at jusleine.daniel@jrfnj.org

1. Source: American Foundation for Suicide Prevention
2. Source: Center for Disease control and Prevention

. About Us: School Based Youth Services is funded by the N.J. Department of Children and Families and is a Project of the Jewish Renaissance Foundation. The School Based Youth Services Program (SBYSP) was started in 1987 to help young people navigate their adolescent years, finish their education, obtain skills leading to employment or continuing education, and graduate healthy and drug free.

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