Appalachian secures funding for community-wide suicide prevention training

View larger image — Presenting a check to Appalachian State University from the North Carolina Chapter of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) is Betsy Rhodes, second from left. With her are, from left, Appalachian’s Dr. Chris Hogan, director of Counseling and Psychological Services, psychologist Dr. Denise Lovin and psychology professor Dr. Kurt Michael. Since the check presentation Dec. 6, the organization has provided an additional gift bringing its support for suicide prevention training at Appalachian to $19,150. Photo by Marie Freeman

By University Communications

Posted Jan. 23, 2017 at 5:06 p.m.

BOONE, N.C.—The North Carolina Chapter of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) has awarded $19,150 for training in an innovative suicide prevention program to the Counseling and Psychological Services Center and the Assessment, Support, and Counseling (ASC) Center at Appalachian State University. The program is called the Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality Model (CAMS) and is an evidence-based suicide prevention program.

This award will provide training to clinicians at Appalachian and in the surrounding community. Dr. Denise Lovin of Appalachian’s Counseling and Psychological Center and Dr. Kurt Michael of the ASC and Department of Psychology have taken the lead in securing this new training for High Country suicide prevention professionals.

Such training is clearly needed in rural areas of western North Carolina. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, suicide rates in rural, western North Carolina are well above the state and national averages (CDC, 2013).

“CAMS will better equip our clinicians to promote the safety of our college students at Appalachian and the adolescents and families who are part of three different K-12 university-school partnerships in Western North Carolina: Alleghany, Ashe, and Watauga,” said Michael. “The generous award will cover the costs of bringing CAMS founder, Dr. David Jobes, to campus for in-person training along with online pre-training and support materials costs.”

Betsy Rhodes, the North Carolina Area Director for ASFP presented the award to the recipients on Dec. 6, 2016. For more information on the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, visit https://afsp.org.

About Appalachian State University

As the premier public undergraduate institution in the state of North Carolina, Appalachian State University prepares students to lead purposeful lives as global citizens who understand and engage their responsibilities in creating a sustainable future for all. The Appalachian Experience promotes a spirit of inclusion that brings people together in inspiring ways to acquire and create knowledge, to grow holistically, to act with passion and determination, and to embrace diversity and difference. Located in the Blue Ridge Mountains, Appalachian is one of 17 campuses in the University of North Carolina System. Appalachian enrolls more than 19,000 students, has a low student-to-faculty ratio and offers more than 150 undergraduate and graduate majors.