Students at Loveland High School signed post-it notes of hope at the official launch of Hope Squad on Monday, February 4.

Hope Squad members greeted their peers with life saver candies as they arrived at Loveland Middle School on Monday morning.

Loveland, Ohio – Monday, February 4, was a day of celebrating the official launch of Hope Squad at Loveland High School (LHS), Loveland Middle School (LMS), and Loveland Intermediate School (LIS). Over the past several months, approximately 140 students, staff members and external experts have worked to prepare for the implementation of the program, which is a model using faculty advisors and trusted peers to identify students at risk for suicidal ideation and behavior, and ultimately, to save lives.

“We are very excited that our partnership with Grant Us Hope has led to this new initiative of student CARE at Loveland,” said Eric Dool, Loveland City School District director of student services. “Our Hope Squad student representatives were all nominated by their peers. They have been training and learning about Hope Squad and how to connect fellow students at risk with the critical resources they need.”

Students at Loveland Intermediate School signed banners of hope during Hope Squad activities at lunch.

Hope Squad members greeted other students with life saver candy, wallet resource cards and words of inspiration as they arrived to school on Monday morning. At both LIS and LHS, videos made by Hope Squad members were shown during Tiger Time and news announcements. At LIS, students worked on “compliment” activity sheets, passing them out to each other. At lunch, they played their Hope Squad theme song and shared messages of hope on banners.

“It is a wonderful experience to work with these students – they are an amazing group of kids,” said LHS Counselor Jamie Gordon. “We will continue to train and work through the Hope Squad curriculum over the course of the year. This launch event was an opportunity to create awareness about the program throughout our schools and underscore that we are here to support one another.”

About Grant Us Hope

Grant Us Hope is a Cincinnati nonprofit focused on creating communities of leadership and advocacy that enhance mental wellness, safety and prevention in schools. The organization has developed a school-based, peer-to-peer suicide prevention program for students with a three-year curriculum that emphasizes suicide prevention fundamentals, self-care and anti-bullying. During the 2018-19 school year, Grant Us Hope has assisted more than 25 schools in Cincinnati and Columbus with the implementation of Hope Squad. Loveland Intermediate School is the first school in Ohio to put in place a “Jr.” Hope Squad program for fifth and sixth graders.



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