Brookline youth survey shows declines in self‑reported depression and suicidality; gaps persist for some groups

At the Brookline School Committee meeting on Oct. 9, 2025, Matt Dubois presented results from the district’s Brookline Youth Health Survey, saying the latest data show notable declines in student‑reported prolonged sadness and suicide consideration but also identifying persistent disparities that require targeted work.

Dubois told the committee the share of high school students reporting a two‑week period in the past year “where you stopped doing typical activities because you felt so sad or hopeless” fell from 28 percent in 2023 to 15 percent in 2025, and that the share who had “seriously considered suicide” dropped from 12 percent to 8 percent. He said the district also saw a drop in the share of students reporting they had made a suicide plan, from 7 percent in 2023 to 4 percent in 2025.

Why the numbers matter: the presentation framed these measures as early indicators of population mental health and as signals for how to target school‑based prevention and treatment. Dubois said the district uses multiple data sources — the youth health survey, universal screening instruments (PHQ‑4), attendance and referral data — to estimate how many students need intervention and to plan services.

Dubois described the PHQ‑4 screening results and caseload data as implying a continuing need for clinical support. He summarized his reading of the numbers:…