The University of Saint Joseph in West Hartford will host the area’s first ever youth suicide prevention forum in conjunction with the Jordan Porco Foundation.

University of Saint Joseph website photo

Submitted

The University of Saint Joseph (USJ) will hold the first annual Youth Suicide Prevention Forum on Sept. 13, 2016. Presented by the Jordan Porco Foundation, in conjunction with the University, the forum will take place from 6 – 7:30 p.m. in the Hoffman Auditorium on USJ’s West Hartford campus, located at 1678 Asylum Ave.

Topics to be addressed will include:

• The severity and depth of this issue within our community
• Resources available at the local town level, schools and state-level
• How to start and continue the conversation with youth who are an integral part of your life

A key goal of the forum is to discuss the issue openly to help prevent needless tragedies.

The forum will feature esteemed panelists discussing the importance of youth suicide prevention work. Panelists include: Steven Hernandez, Director of Public Policy and Research at the Connecticut Commission on Children; Dr. Muhammad Munawar, M.D., a Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist at Saint Francis Hospital and Medical Center; Matt Riley, Chief Operating Officer at the Jordan Porco Foundation; Meredith Yuhas, Director of Counseling and Wellness at USJ; Andrea Duarte, MSW, MPH, LCSW, from the CT Suicide Advisory Board; and Tom Moore, Superintendent of West Hartford Public Schools.

The event is free of charge, but those interested in attending must RSVP at: http://bit.ly/2bMD5pz