The Johnson County Mental Health Center and the Gardner Edgerton School District have been chosen as one of only 35 entities nationwide to pilot a program called teen Mental Health First Aid, which will be offered to all 10th graders at Gardner Edgerton High School.
The training, which originated in Australia, is the first of its kind developed for U.S. high school students, officials said.
“We are thrilled to introduce teen Mental Health First Aid to our community,” Gardner Edgerton Superintendent Pam Stranathan said in a news release. “The program will teach high school students to recognize and respond when their friends are experiencing the early stages of a mental health or addiction concern.”
(Read more: Joco 913 News)