Team led by Anna Mueller receives $300,000 grant from the Humana Foundation for study on suicide prevention in schools

A team of researchers in the College of Arts and Sciences at Indiana University Bloomington (IUB) have received a $300,000 grant from the Humana Foundation to advance a groundbreaking study on youth suicide prevention in schools.

Luther Dana Waterman Associate Professor of Sociology Anna Mueller

The study will be led by Anna Mueller, the Luther Dana Waterman Associate Professor of Sociology within the College at IUB, with collaborators Natasha Chaku, Assistant Professor of Psychological and Brain Sciences within the College, Hank Green, Associate Professor of Applied Health Science in IUB’s School of Public Health, and Professor Jonathan Singer of Loyola University Chicago.

Their research aims to improve emotional connectedness between school staff and students as a core strategy for reducing youth suicide.

Addressing Barriers to Emotional Connectedness for Suicide Prevention

Research has shown that emotional connectedness to trusted adults in schools is vital in helping students seek life-saving support. However, many students—particularly those from marginalized and underrepresented groups—struggle to form these connections due to implicit or explicit biases, language barriers, and other systemic inequities. The newly funded project seeks to address these challenges by identifying factors that can strengthen bonds between school staff and all students, with a particular focus on the needs of LGBTQ+ students, culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) students, and students in rural schools.

“I am grateful to the Humana Foundation for supporting this vision to improve suicide prevention in schools,” said Professor Mueller. “This funding is allowing me to launch my next major research study–the Connect 2 Care Schools Study–which will assess the policies, practices, and norms that facilitate school staff effectively engaging with students—everyday work that is crucial to turning the tide on rising rate of youth suicide.”

Using data from a community-engaged research model, the study will also investigate how factors like community attitudes and available resources influence school staff’s ability to connect emotionally with their students.

The project will take a comprehensive “systems” approach, which is important because it complements the prevailing approach to equity in suicide prevention that focuses on culturally-responsive assessment and treatment. While vital, equitable assessment and treatment can only occur after youth are identified as being in need of support, identification that often happens through their schools. Thus, focusing on building systems in schools that help eliminate unnecessary and unjust barriers to accessing mental healthcare for all youth is essential to building a world worth living in for U.S. youth.

The project involves adapting and distributing a mental health survey to school staff in a representative random sample of public high schools across Colorado. In addition, the study will develop and pilot novel, longitudinal daily assessments designed to capture students’ help-seeking behaviors, emotional connectedness, and overall well-being.

“These assessments of students’ everyday experiences in their schools will fill critical gaps in our understanding of what prevents schools from engaging in sustainable, equitable, and effective suicide prevention strategies,” said Professor Chaku. “Taking a student perspective on ‘what works when and for whom’ is the next step towards creating a future intervention that will enhance school staff’s capacity for emotional connectedness, which is key to preventing youth suicide.”

The $300,000 grant is part of a larger initiative by the Humana Foundation to invest in programs that promote emotional health and well-being. In 2024 the Foundation has committed $15.2 million to support projects that address mental health and nutrition programming across the country.

“The Humana Foundation is committed to collaborating with partners that make positive impacts toward helping school-aged children reach their full health potential,” said Tiffany Benjamin, CEO of the Humana Foundation.

As the research progresses, the findings will be shared with educational leaders and policymakers to help inform broader strategies for enhancing emotional connectedness and improving suicide prevention efforts in schools nationwide. Professor Mueller and the research team hope that their work will ultimately lead to the development of scalable, effective interventions that can be implemented in diverse school settings to support student well-being and reduce the risk of suicide.

If you or someone you know is experiencing thoughts of suicide or a mental health or substance use crisis, please call or text 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline and speak with a trained crisis specialist 24/7.

The IU Bloomington crisis line is available to students 24/7 by calling 812-855-5711, and choosing option 1 after-hours.