Ponca City Schools launch Hope Squad to give students mental health support

OKLAHOMA CITY, OK--Ponca City Schools launched the Hope Squad program to address mental health issues and prevent suicides among students.

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After losing two students to suicide in 2018 and 2019, Ponca City Schools noticed significant mental health impacts on their students.

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"That very traumatic experience for our community and our school, and our school community and family. (It) was a difficult endeavor to get through," Dalana Hawkins, director of secondary curriculum at the district, said. "Then we go into COVID, and we see a heightened social media, internet, alone at home or loneliness, or maybe on an island and not able to reach out to anyone."

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When the opportunity to apply for a grant through Integris Health arose, the district decided to implement an additional layer of support.

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"Do we have a need? Absolutely. I think young people have a lot on their plate, now more than ever," Adam Leaming, superintendent of Ponca City Schools, said.

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With the grant, the Hope Squad will be implemented in Ponca City middle schools and high school.

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"It's a suicide prevention program where students who are selected by their peers work as a trusted source, who then report to faculty," Leaming said. "This is a great opportunity for us to make sure that they're able to cope and adjust and deal with things in the healthiest ways possible."

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The grant money will be used to train the students.

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"The Hope Squad is really trained to bring people together, and I feel like the more that we’re together, the better we are," said Kaitlyn Pressnall, assistant principal of Ponca City High School. "They're trained on that process throughout the building on how to report those things. So, they really are your eyes and ears in the building."

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The mission is to prevent further tragedies and to let students know they are not alone.

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"The goal is preventive. The goal is to be ahead of it. We can do. Let's find out whatever we can do before we get to that point," Hawkins said. "Just make sure all of our kids know help is there and we care."