Brighton High administrators concerned after 2 student deaths in a week

COTTONWOOD HEIGHTS — Brighton High School administrators sent a letter to parents Tuesday letting them know about a second student death in the last week.

Students who knew both students were heartbroken over the news. It was believed that the two students committed suicide.

"This week has been traumatic. It's been really hard I think for everyone that goes to Brighton High School," student Cassie Geertsen said.

"When it happened, I didn't want to believe it. I was like, both of them, I was like, 'No'," student Abbey Stowers said.

Canyons School District spokesman Jeff Haney said the school acted quickly, sending a team of licensed counselors to campus Tuesday.

"This morning we had a crisis counseling team. They're ready to go just in case anybody needed to talk to somebody trained to help students," Haney said.

He said other resources like the Safe Utah app are also available to students during this difficult time.

"Through the app students can access licensed counselors from the University of Utah 24/7 and it's anonymous," Haney said.

District officials also encouraged parents to talk to their children about what happened.

They said to contact the school principal if there are any concerns about going to class during this difficult time.

The full letter from school officials is below:

"Dear Brighton Families,
This morning I was made aware of the death of a freshman boy. As you know, this is the second student death in a week.

We are very concerned for the well being of all of our students. I wanted to share with you what we are doing as a school to offer support.

1. Last week and today, our district crisis team has offered support in small groups and individually.

1. We visited every classroom today to talk with the students, let them know counseling is available and most importantly, let them know that there are many adults who care about them. We encouraged the students to reach out to adults and other students. Our focus is to provide resources and support to our school community.

1. A few weeks ago, we introduced the Safe Utah App to our students. The majority of them downloaded it on their phones when possible.

The SafeUT Crisis Text and Tip Line app provides 24/7 access to crisis counseling or tip reporting for youth in the state of Utah. After installing the app you can connect directly to the UNI CrisisLine or report confidential tips on bullying, school threats of violence or concern about someone in crisis. Crisis Line staff can assist with a wide variety of problems, including emotional crisis, grief and loss, drug and alcohol problems, mental health issues, self-harm and suicidal behavior. Go to your app store to download this for free. It is available on both Android and iOS.

4. To speak with a crisis counselor, anyone can call 1-800-272-8255.

1. Most importantly, we want each student to know there are adults at school to support them. Please take a moment to discuss with your child the name of an adult they trust and feel they can go to for help. We also encouraged students to assist their classmates who may need help as well.

1. We are looking into other resources and presentations that may be helpful in opening up lines of communication and support for our students. Please know our staff is heartbroken. We care about your children and want to be of assistance. We will continue to work with our counseling team and the district crisis team to offer daily assistance. Do not hesitate to contact me or a member of my administrative staff if you need to report a concern.

-Charisse Hilton, Brighton High School principal"

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