Erika's Lighthouse

Dear Families,

 

Paulding County School District, in compliance with House Bill 268: School Safety, Section 2-15: Suicide Prevention and Awareness Training, will be implementing a program called Level III: Depression Education & Suicide Awareness. This program was developed by a highly respected mental health education and advocacy organization, Erika’s Lighthouse: A Beacon of Hope for Adolescent Depression. Implementation will begin with 7th and 9th grades for the 2025-2026 school year and then will be delivered to all middle and high school grades in the 2026-2027 school year.

 

The program goals include:

• Raising awareness of good mental health.

• Raising awareness of the signs of depression and risk and warning signs of suicide.

• Reducing the stigma surrounding mental health issues.

• Encouraging help-seeking skills and, if necessary, additional support services.

 

A key component of the Erika’s Lighthouse program is Family Engagement through education and awareness. They have developed two ways that may help promote conversations with your children about mental health and depression:

 

1. “We All Have Mental Health” was written by parents, for parents. It is designed to help you understand and promote good mental health at home. It is part of the Family Workbook Series on Mental Health & Depression. Access it above.

2. A short On-Demand Virtual Family Workshop is available for you to watch. This workshop will give you an opportunity to learn more about mental health and depression in adolescents and prepare you for any discussion at home.  We will also review the materials that your child will be learning about in the classroom. You can view the workshop by clicking the link below.

 

These fact-based, student-friendly and hopeful programs promote the messages we need our students to hear - Everyone deserves to have good mental health, depression is common and can be serious, but there is hope and help. You are not alone.

 

Our school wants all of our students to be healthy, both physically and mentally. We encourage students to take control of their mental health and learn how to seek help for themselves or a friend if needed.  One of the biggest challenges to mental health is teen depression, a very common, yet widely overlooked mood disorder that will impact 15–20% of young people before they reach adulthood. It is also a risk factor to suicide.

 

We look forward to working together to better inform students of important issues, like depression, and provide the tools students need to navigate challenging times.

 

All these programs are donor-funded and no-cost to schools like ours. For more information on this program, please visit erikaslighthouse.org.

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If you would like to opt your student out of this one-day program, please email your student's high school counselor.