Frequently Asked Questions

Each school shares one username assigned by SOS Signs of Suicide. At the time of purchase, your school’s lead implementer received an email with the assigned username. The lead implementer sets a password to be shared among staff delivering SOS for Students at your school. If you do not know your school’s username and password, reach out to your school’s lead implementer. If you do not know who your school’s lead implementer is or if the person in that role has changed, email sosinfo@riversidecc.org for updated information.

The SOS for Students program is connected to one email address per school building. However, a school-based username and password is shared among implementing staff.

Please make sure that you are on the correct website: teach.sossignsofsuicide.org. Next, make sure that you are using your school’s username, which was assigned to your school’s lead implementer at the time of purchase. If you are the lead implementer and cannot remember your school password, you can set up a new password using the “Reset your school password” link at the bottom of the login page.

If you are your school’s lead implementer, you can change your school’s password at any time using the “Reset your school’s password” link at the bottom of the login page. Enter your school’s username or your email address and select “Get new school password”. You will receive a one-time password reset link in your email. Be sure to provide the new password to any additional implementers in your school. Note: the lead implementer is the only person who can complete the password reset process. If you are the lead implementer and you are unable to reset the password, please email us at sosinfo@riversidecc.org.

It is likely you’re using the link in your original setup email (sent from no-reply@sossignsofsuicide.org) each time you access the program. Instead, please go to teach.sossignsofsuicide.org and use the username provided in your email and the most recent password you set to log in.

If you are the lead implementer and unsure of your username, try your email address instead. If you are not your school’s lead implementer, you will need to use the username provided in your school’s original setup email (sent to the lead implementer from no-reply@sossignsofsuicide.org).

Check your spam/junk mail folder or filter. We recommend working with your IT department to add @riversidecc.org and @sossignsofsuicide.org to your Safe Senders list to ensure that emails from us always make it to your inbox.

Yes, you will all share the one provided username and the password you created. Make sure to set a password that you are comfortable sharing with others. Additionally, materials to help you prepare to deliver SOS to students are available here in our Client Library, which does not require a login.

You will need to contact the SOS team to make this change. Email us at sosinfo@riversidecc.org or call us at 781-239-0071.

This usually occurs because our video host, Vimeo, is blocked on some school networks. Please connect with your organization’s IT team to see if they can assist with allowing access to Vimeo. If you are unable to resolve the issue, please contact us at sosinfo@riversidecc.org to discuss further options.

SOS for Middle School Students is designed for grades 6-8 and SOS for High School Students is designed for 9-12. Schools may choose to deliver the primary middle school lesson at any grade level (6-8) and the primary high school lesson at any grade level (9-12).

The middle school program includes one primary lesson to be taught at any grade level (6-8) and two additional refresher lessons. The high school program includes one primary lesson to be taught at any grade level (9-12) and three additional refresher lessons.

SOS for Students is designed to be taught in one class period per group of students.

Depression and suicide risk screening is part of each SOS for Students lesson. After watching the videos and having a group discussion, students take part in a short self-scored depression screen. This learning activity allows students to apply their new skills by considering signs of depression and suicide risk and learning when to ask for help.

Suicide Risk Screening Questions

Sometimes schools are concerned that asking students about suicide could increase their distress or cause suicidal thoughts. SOS videos encourage students to speak openly about suicide when they are concerned about a friend. SOS screening also includes two questions directly related to suicidal thoughts and behaviors for students to self-reflect on their own risk. Extensive research confirms that asking questions about suicidal thoughts or behaviors does not increase risk. In fact, studies show that students at higher risk often feel less distressed after answering screening questions – and they’re more likely to get the help they need.

How it Works in the Classroom

Facilitators guide the class through each screening question while students answer privately at their desks. Once everyone’s done, the students score their own responses and read advice tailored to their answers. When students’ results suggest they might be struggling with depression or suicide risk, the form encourages them to seek help from a trusted adult.

Anonymous Screening (Standard Practice)

Screening in SOS is intentionally designed for student self-reflection, not for identifying students at risk. In most schools, SOS screening forms are not collected. Instead, students use separate exit slips to request help for themselves or to express concern for a friend. All research on SOS’s safety and effectiveness has been conducted with schools using anonymous, self-reflective screening as part of SOS lessons.

Identified Screening (Optional Modification)

Some schools choose to collect the screening forms as a way for students to alert staff of their need for support. Facilitators clearly explain to students that there will be two ways to ask for help. One way is answering yes to several questions on the screening forms. The other is by requesting support directly through the separate exit slip. The students then follow the standard procedure of answering the screening questions, self-scoring the form, and reviewing the help-seeking guidance. At the end of the lesson, each student signs and turns in a screening form and an exit slip.

Implementors receive scheduled automatic reports that allow you to track course completion. These reports include learner names, email addresses, and course progress. The reports typically include registrations during the past one year from the report date.

Reports are sent from no-reply@digitalchalkmail.com. You may want to add this email address as a safe sender in your email account so that the emails do not go to your Junk or Spam folder.

The person listed as an implementer at the time of purchase is automatically scheduled to receive weekly usage reports via email. Please email sostech@riversidecc.org to add/remove recipients or to change the frequency of reports.

Reports are emailed as attached comma-separated value (.csv) files. Many clients open the file in Microsoft Excel or an equivalent program.

There is no administrator access available. If you have additional questions about using the platform or providing course information to your community, please email sostech@riversidecc.org.

To create an account, learners need to provide their first and last name, email address, and create a password. For more information, please review our platform’s Privacy Policy.

There is likely an error with the redemption code you entered. Follow the instructions below to check that your redemption code matches the code shared with you by your school or organization.

• When logged in, click on the round icon with your photo or initials in the top-right corner of the screen.
• In the menu that appears, click ‘Account’.
• Click on ‘More Information’ from the list on the left.
• Check that what is in the ‘Redemption Code’ field matches the redemption code given to you. Be sure to remove any extra spaces before or after the redemption code if you copy-and-pasted it.
• After making any edits, click the blue ‘Save’ button at the bottom of the window.
• Log out and back in; the new course(s) should be available on your Dashboard.

If your Dashboard remains empty, contact sostech@riversidecc.org.

If you complete the training module, but believe that your progress was not recorded, do not retake the training. Contact sostech@riversidecc.org for technical support. Our team can troubleshoot the course and ensure that your progress is recorded.

Your certificate of completion will be emailed to you within a few minutes of completing the course. You can also access it on your Dashboard – scroll down to the Achievements section at the lower right of the page.

Yes, you may start and stop the training as needed; however, to ensure that your progress is saved, please always use the ‘Exit’ button in the top-right corner of the training module when stopping the training. If you leave the training module open while you work in a different window/tab or step away from your device, your progress might not be saved. Always leave the training module via the ‘Exit’ button when taking a break.

Because of the importance and sensitivity of the topic of suicide prevention, our courses are designed to limit distractions while engaged in the course. If you click away from the browser window displaying the training, playback will stop and you will have to return to the window or tab to resume.

For best performance, we recommend using the latest release of Chrome browser, although Firefox and Edge web browsers will work as well. If you experience any technical issues with the training such as video content freezing, audio and video out of sync, or images/text that do not completely load on your screen, start by refreshing your browser. If refreshing does not resolve the issue, try clearing your browser cache and/or restarting your computer. You may want to ask your network administrator if there are issues with your internet service and internet connection. If issues persist, please contact sostech@riversidecc.org.

Follow these instructions:

• When logged in, click on the round icon with your photo or initials in the top-right corner of the screen.
• In the menu that appears, click ‘Account’.
• Click ‘Password’ from the list on the left.
• Enter your new password and click the ‘Set Password’ button.