Mount Vernon student's suicide is third this year

MOUNT VERNON - Parents and community members are invited to a meeting tonight on helping students cope after a ninth-grade boy became the third Mount Vernon High School student to commit suicide this academic year, district officials said.

The boy died Tuesday evening at his home. Superintendent Pam Ewell informed parents and guardians via email late that day, and middle and high school students were told during the school day Wednesday.

A crisis team from the Grant Wood Area Education Agency was at the high school Wednesday, along with additional counselors from nearby schools.

'Our thoughts and support go out to the family, friends, and the Mount Vernon Community at this difficult time,' Ewell said in a statement released by the district. She couldn't be reached for additional comment.

The district has dealt with the issue several times in recent months. A 17-year-old junior died in a hospital Nov. 18, three days after he attempted suicide in a school bathroom, and a 14-year-old freshman killed himself in his home in April.

'As a parent it concerns me because I'm thinking, 'Are these kids being bullied?' 'Is this something they decided to do together?' ' parent Bonnie Lass said.

Nancy Rappaport, an assistant professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and director of school programming at Cambridge Health Alliance, said there are usually indicators before a suicide attempt. Some of the signs include talking about feeling hopeless or having no reason to live, talking about being a burden to others, acting anxious or agitated, or withdrawing or feeling isolated.

Rappaport stressed that parents need to communicate with their children and not fear that discussing suicide will influence their behavior.

'What parents need to ask themselves now is, how do they help their children grieve and process their pain,' Rappaport said.

Ewell echoed that sentiment in her email to parents.

'As parents, your continued support and encouragement for each of our students is vital,' she wrote. 'Let them know they are loved.' In a publication intended to help school districts cope with student suicide, the American Foundation of Suicide Prevention stresses that all students react differently. Some will be openly emotional and others will refuse to communicate. There could be anger and guilt.

Some students may use humor to cope. The foundation supports districts providing opportunities for students to talk and helping them identify their emotions. It also stresses reaching out to parents and the com­munity. School officials will hold a meeting for parents and others in the community from 6 to 7 tonight in the district auditorium to provide information about common reactions to a suicide and how adults can help students cope. district's crisis team will be present to provide information about suicide and mental illness in adolescents, including risk factors and warning signs of suicide.

Lass commended the district for reaching out to students, staff and the community, but she added that parents need to be better informed about what - if any - school circumstances contributed to the suicides.

Her oldest son graduated from Mount Vernon last year, and her youngest is in seventh grade.

'I'm worried. A lot of parents are worried,' Lass added. 'The students are too young to deal with this. I know many of the teachers personally and they are asking themselves if there's something they could have done, should have done. It's just affecting everyone.'