Coping and Support Training

Coping and Support Training

Coping and Support Training (CAST) is an intensive small-group and individualized suicide prevention program implemented by trained school counselors in Monroe School District.

Students invited to participate in CAST small-groups or individual sessions are identified by counselors and administrators as being at risk for suicide.

The 12 session program helps teens to develop protective coping skills that buffer against suicide by focusing on problem solving, anger management, drug use, recognizing progress, and building self-efficacy and self-esteem.

CAST is demonstrated to reduce student suicide risk behaviors, anxiety, depression, hard drug use, and alcohol use. It is also demonstrated to increase problem-solving and coping behaviors, personal control and even family support. CAST is recognized for excellence (best-, model-, or promising practice) by:

  • Suicide Prevention Resource Center
  • National Dropout Prevention Center
  • National Institute of Health
  • Healthy Communities Institute
  • Child Trends
  • Student Mental Health Initiative Clearinghouse
  • Indian Health Services, Community Suicide Prevention
    The Evidence

    In NIH-funded studies, relative to controls, CAST youth evidenced significant and sustained changes:

    • 65% reduction in suicide risk behaviors
    • 34% reduction (for females) and 27% reduction (for males) in anxiety
    • 44% reduction in depression
    • 62% reduction in hard drug use
    • 16% reduction in alcohol use
    • 24% increase in problem-solving coping
    • 24% increase in personal control
    • 27% increase in family support

    See Research for more details.

    Overview provided by Dr. Kyle Barrington – 2020:
    Coping and Support Training (CAST): CAST is a school-based small group counseling program (thus a Tier 2 service) for at-risk youth that has demonstrated decreased suicide risk factors and reduced alcohol and hard drug use, among other positive outcomes, in adolescents. CAST is conducted over 12, 55-minute sessions. It can be delivered by trained teachers, counselors, social workers, or others with similar experience. The program has been selected as a model program by Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and is listed on SAMHSA’s National Registry of Evidence-based Programs and Practices. It is identified as a Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Promising Practice. CAST participants in several National Institute of Health (NIH) funded studies saw significant and sustained reduction of suicide risk behaviors, reduction of drug use, reduction in depression, increase in personal control, increase in problem-solving, and increase in family support. Researchers have shown students participating in CAST show significant improvements, including: 1) Sustained reductions in suicide-risk behavior (65.0%) and depression (44.0%); 2) Declines in anger control problems (24.0%); 3) Reduced hard drug use (62.0%); 4) Reduced alcohol use (16.0%) and drug use control problems (33.0%); and 5) Enhanced and sustained higher levels of problem-solving coping (24.0%), personal control (24.0%), and family support (27.0%) (Eggert et al., 2002; Eggert et al., 2001). Importantly, CAST has been proven to be effective for all ethnicities and genders and in urban settings like COJUSD (Eggert et al., 2001). As part of the CAST Tier 2 services, parents or guardians of students in CAST will be invited to participate in the CAST parenting program called Parents as Partners.