Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey introduced a violence prevention program in North Adams on Monday, part of a partnership between her office and Sandy Hook Promise.
The program at Drury High School aims to prevent school violence by focusing on student mental health and identifying signs that a student needs support.
Sandy Hook Promise was founded by the parent of a child killed in the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting.
At Drury High, students and staff will receive training to reduce social isolation, know the "warning signs" of violence and recognize symptoms of mental health disorders.
The program has already been implemented in Dracut, and officials from that district told lawmakers earlier this year that expanding the training is a good idea.
"Our students are our first line of defense," Dracut School Committee Chair Allison Volpe said in June. "The threats are coming from within, and our students need to be empowered to know how to deal with these types of issues and how to communicate these issues out."
The partnership between Healey and Sandy Hook Promise won a $1 million federal grant last year to pilot its programming in about 50 districts, affecting about 140,000 students.
High school students, Sandy Hook Promise co-founder Mark Barden, North Adams Mayor Thomas Bernard and North Adams Superintendent Barbara Malkas were slated to join Healey to launch the program.
This report was originally published by State House News Service.
