Former Gov. Richard Codey unveils plan to combat teen suicide ‘epidemic’

Teen suicide is taking more children’s lives than cancer, Democratic Sen. and former Gov. Richard Codey said Wednesday as he unveiled a plan to combat the “growing epidemic” with a $1 million grant.

New Jersey must act to prevent teen suicides, which have reached crisis level, Codey said at a news conference at Liberty Middle School in West Orange on Wednesday morning.

The former governor was joined by two mothers whose children died by suicide. 

East Windsor’s Rachelle St. Phard said her son Coby had seemed fine.

“I lost my son in 2016 very unexpectedly. He was bright, outgoing and everybody’s friend,” she said.

Know what to look for: How to spot signs of depression, suicide in young adults

Watch: What to do if you or a loved one is at risk of suicide

Rockaway Township’s Dianne Grossman’s daughter Mallory, 12, died by suicide in June. Grossman said her daughter also didn’t show outward signs of trouble before she took her life. She blames bullying at school for Mallory’s death.

Codey’s plan calls for establishing a grant from the Codey Fund for Mental Health to pay for more mental health workers in schools. It would also pay for training non-licensed, auxiliary school staff. 

Codey and his wife, Mary Jo Codey, who has suffered from mental health problems, have been raising money for the fund since 2012, when it was established to help individuals with mental illnesses afford care.

Codey’s plan also calls for the creation of a statewide Teen Suicide and Depression Task Force with the money. 

Codey said the grant he wants to establish to pay for these things would be a “competitive grant” for $1 million, and with that money the New Jersey Department of Education would oversee which school districts get money toward hiring mental health counselors and which get money to pay for training. 

Early 2019 would be the earliest schools will see money, Codey said.

The plan

The plan is to “better equip all school employees to help identify at-risk students,” Codey said.

To that end, he said, he wants to enlist the help of secretaries, security guards and teachers’ aides. Codey said “potential disasters” could be prevented by giving these people training to recognize bullying and the early warning signs of mental health issues. 

The reason is that these are the people children are more likely to talk to, said Codey, who told of having opened up to the lunch lady when he was a schoolboy.

Grossman said training the school’s auxiliary staff is not only a good idea, but a crucial one.

“Most bullying doesn’t take place in class. It is in the lunchroom, library, playground,” Grossman said.

St. Phard echoed Grossman’s comments. 

“Those are the people our kids are comfortable talking to,” she said. 

ANTI-BULLYING FIGHT: Mallory Grossman’s mother finds strength in anti-bullying fight

SUPERINTENDENT RESIGNS: Rockaway Twp. schools superintendent resigns after high-profile problems

Suicide numbers

The suicide rate among 10- to 14-year-olds doubled between 2007 and 2014, for the first time surpassing the death rate in that age group from car crashes. In 2014 alone, 425 middle-schoolers nationwide took their own lives, including five in New Jersey.

Between 2013 and 2015, about 2,731 individuals ages 10 to 24 made trips to emergency rooms across the state due to suicide attempts and self-inflicted injuries, according to the New Jersey Youth Suicide Report. 

Researchers, educators and psychologists say several factors — increased pressure on students to achieve academically, more economic uncertainty, increased fear of terrorism, and social media — are behind the rise in suicides among the young. 

Nationwide, the annual rate climbed from 0.9 to 2.1 suicides per 100,000 middle-schoolers between 2007 and 2014, according to the most recent data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 

Since 2000, at least one and sometimes up to six middle-schoolers in New Jersey died by suicide each year. 

The spike mirrors an increase in suicides among all age groups. In New Jersey, there was a 64 percent increase in the suicide rate among 15- to 19-year-olds between 2006 and 2014, from 3.6 to 5.9 per 100,000 people, according to the state Department of Health. There were 34 suicides among this group in 2014, and 380 since 2000. 

The suicide rate among all New Jerseyans rose from 6.1 per 100,000 in 2005 to 8.7 in  2014 — a 43 percent increase.

Mental health and the Codeys

The Codey family, according to a letter to the editor submitted by the former governor, is devoted to raising awareness of mental health issues.

“Mental illness has been a central issue in the life of our family,” Codey wrote in December 2017.

“Mary Jo experienced postpartum depression so severe that she grappled with thoughts of killing our newborn son, Kevin,” the former governor wrote. “Now, Mary Jo spearheads a statewide campaign to raise awareness about postpartum depression, and as a couple, we helped New Jersey become the first state to require hospitals to screen new mothers for it.”

In 2012 the couple launched the Codey Fund for Mental Health to ensure that compassionate, quality mental health care is available to everyone, and to overcome the stigma of mental illness through public awareness and education.  

Suicide prevention efforts

In 2016, state Sen. Kevin O’Toole, R-Bergen, sponsored legislation to help prevent suicide on college campuses. The Madison Holleran Suicide Prevention Act (S-557) was named for the Bergen County native who died by suicide while attending the University of Pennsylvania.

Suicide is the second-most-common cause of death among college students, accounting for more fatalities than all medical illnesses combined. In New Jersey, 72 percent of youth suicides were committed by college-age young adults, according to the most recent data available.

The act calls for health care professionals, with training in mental health and reducing suicides, to be available around the clock remotely or on campus to assist students in crisis. Students must receive information about these resources via email, no later than 15 days after each semester starts.

Current pending legislation sponsored by three state Assembly members (A-3408) calls for each public school district employee who has regular and direct contact with students to be required to complete a one-time training program in suicide prevention, awareness and response developed or identified by the Department of Education.

Where to get help

• For more information about teen suicide, visit suicide.org or teensuicide.us.
• New Jersey also offers a suicide prevention hotline, N.J. Hopeline, at 855-654-6735. 
• Text a word of choice, such as ‘hello’ or ‘help,’ to 741741 to connect with a trained counselor within five minutes.  
• The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is 1-800-273-8255.

Email: myers@northjersey.com

Read or Share this story: https://njersy.co/2I4JMV4