I ran a pre-conference workshop and was the keynote speaker at the 2022 Virginia School Safety Training Forum in Hampton, Virginia. Attendance includes a lot of dignitaries and political leaders as well as SROs (School Resource Officers), school counselors, teachers, principals, first responders, safety dispatch team members, political stakeholders, and more.

For the pre-conference workshop called “Student Suicide Prevention, Intervention, Postvention

This was a half-day training. It was posted in February 2022, five months prior to the conference and it sold out almost immediately. So they waitlisted attendees that didn’t get in and got a bigger room. That sold out, too until the host finally booked the grand ballroom so that everyone who wanted the training could get it. I assumed that perhaps not everyone would show up and instead of 200, 300 came. In short, people showed up, participated, asked questions, and engaged.

For the Keynote the next day to 1,000+

The host had support dogs roaming around with their handlers. And there was a man I’d meet later who had lost his son to a rare illness and said he started to get emotional, which was OK with him, but the lovely part was one of the dogs who was several tables away immediately sensed he was needed and next thing you know the dogs head was in Mike’s lap at the exact moment he needed it.

My colleagues and I are quite battle-hardened, whether military, police, security, or all three. From a public safety convention to the business world, Anne Moss Rogers will open your eyes and hearts immediately. Good luck dozing off or pseudo-listening to her, as she will grab you ‘right in the feels’ as the expression goes. Even those up all night, couldn’t avert their focus to her dynamic ability to connect. 

Yes, she got me crying, and you know what? Good. She opened my eyes to learn about suicide, mental health issues that are important to us all, and also how to better work with others. I learned from her, as did the other folks that went with me, it was a consensus that she ‘opened our thinking up.’ If you want a keynote speaker or someone to connect with you on a visceral level, Mrs. Anne Moss Rogers is who you want. In honor of her, her son Charles. I applaud her candid approach that delivers clear results.”

–Mike Ross, Patrol Officer for Fairfax County Public Schools Safety and Security.

Takeaways and Feedback

Just click on the image to scroll through the feedback and what people learned. 

feedback on suicide training for educators
ask the question, are you thinking of suicide
feedback on suicide training for educators
we all matter
what not to say to someone thinking of suicide
be accessible relatable vigilant
the importance of SEL in education
3 takeaways from suicide prevention training
suicide prevention diagram helped
suicide prevention resources for educators
the importance of sticking around
the importance of preventing cohort suicide
reinforce student relationships