The Big Red Resilience and Well-being team have trained nearly 70 staff, faculty and graduate students to deliver REACH suicide prevention gatekeeper training. Now seven months since the program began, more than 1,000 members of the university community have completed the 90-minute gatekeeper training. Over half of those trained are students.
Developed by The Ohio State University, the five-step REACH program is designed to teach participants how to: Recognize warning signs; Engage with empathy; Ask directly about suicide; Communicate hope; and Help suicidal individuals to access care and treatment.
Partially funded by a three-year, $300,000 grant from the Garrett Lee Smith Suicide Prevention Foundation, Big Red Resilience and Well-being staff intend to train 3,500 gatekeepers by May 2020.
Recognized Student Organizations, faculty and staff may request the free training at https://preventsuicide.unl.edu/reach-training.