Suicide Prevention Taskforce
Ohio Revised Code 3345.37 information
In July 2015, Governor Kasich signed into law Ohio Revised Code (ORC) 3345.37 requiring state institutions of higher education to formally address suicide prevention through the development and implementation of policy to advise students and staff on suicide prevention programs available on and off-campus.
Beginning in October 2016, all public institutions of higher education (IHEs) in Ohio are required to provide accessible information about:
(1) Crisis intervention access
(2) Mental health program access
(3) Multimedia application access
(4) Student communication plans and
(5) Postvention plans
Suicide Prevention Taskforce
Since the establishment of ORC 3345.37 Columbus State, has successfully been awarded an Ohio Programs for Campus Safety and Mental Health (OPCSMH) Collaborative Program Grant to address suicide prevention policy development and implementation on our campuses. In addition to mental health/substance abuse clinical services offered by our Counseling Services department, the college has assembled a Suicide Prevention Taskforce to address suicide prevention awareness and programming at Columbus State.
Efforts of the taskforce include:
- Collaboration with local and statewide community mental health agencies and organizations to offer on-site mental health trainings to our entire campus community
- A campus-wide Suicide Prevention Awareness campaign
- Online access on the availability of local mental health agencies and organizations with both crisis and non-crisis mental health resources
- Online access to information for national, state, and local suicide prevention hotlines
- Multimedia application access, including crisis hotline contact information, suicide warning signs, resources offered, and free-of-cost applications
- Student communication plans, which consists of creating outreach plans regarding educational and outreach activities on suicide prevention
- Postvention plans, which include creating a strategic plan to communicate effectively with students, staff, and parents after a loss of a person to suicide