Quantitative data provide critical insights, but contextual information adds depth and meaning, allowing leadership teams to make decisions that are truly data informed. Assessment tools that account for both types of data can be especially helpful when districts are addressing complex and sensitive topics.

One area where this approach is urgently needed is suicide prevention in K–12 schools. Across the country, district leaders are working to strengthen student mental health supports using the MTSS framework, and the data clearly indicate a need for action. According to the National Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 20% of high school students reported seriously considering suicide in 2023. Similarly, data from the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control show that the suicide rate among youth ages 6–19 increased by 25% between 2012 and 2022.

EDC's Assessment Tool

While these statistics are deeply concerning, they also highlight an opportunity. Research shows that when communities invest in comprehensive, systemwide approaches to suicide prevention, youth suicide rates decline. To support districts in this work, EDC developed the Multi-Tiered Suicide Prevention for Schools (MTSP) framework. MTSP for Schools is designed to help districts implement suicide prevention strategies that are integrated across all tiers, sustainable over time, and grounded in evidence-based practice.

A key driver of EDC’s suicide prevention work with districts is the MTSP Environmental Assessment Tool and its accompanying companion guide and pilot cohort data. These open-source resources are freely available and are designed to help U.S. school districts assess current student well-being and suicide prevention efforts—particularly how well those efforts are embedded within an MTSS framework.

Districts have found the assessment tool valuable for:

• Better understanding their most pressing student mental health needs
• Making data-informed decisions about immediate and long-term suicide prevention investments
• Ensuring their strategies align with best practices in the field
• Investing their limited resources where there is greatest potential impact  
• The assessment includes questions that address core components of systemwide suicide prevention, such as:
• The presence of suicide prevention protocols and related professional development
• The use of evidence-based supports for students identified as at risk
• Classroom and schoolwide practices that help reduce suicide risk for all students

Currently, school districts across four states are implementing the MTSP framework using the Environmental Assessment Tool to build comprehensive and sustainable approaches to suicide prevention. One district shared the following reflection:

“[Our district] completed the assessment three times in three years to better understand sustainability, reassess priorities, and account for changes in funding and staffing. When administered repeatedly, the assessment proved to be an effective tool for navigating an ever-changing landscape of need, accessibility, and resources. The data informed revisions to our strategic plan and strengthened the sustainability of our multi-tiered suicide prevention framework.”

EDC encourages all U.S. school districts to take proactive steps to support student mental health and prevent suicide. Having access to the right data, along with the right tools to interpret it, can make a meaningful difference. The MTSP Environmental Assessment offers districts a practical starting point for strengthening suicide prevention efforts across schools and communities.