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Jay Foundation presenters ask Albany County School trustees to help expand 'J Boots' suicide‑prevention program
Summary
Presenters from the Jay Foundation and local partners described a program that gives high‑school seniors 'J Boots' as a prompt for peer check‑ins, told trustees the effort reached 129 Laramie High students this spring, and asked the board to support an opt‑out enrollment process and local fundraising to scale the program.
At the April Albany County School District #1 board meeting, presenters from the Jay Foundation and community partners described a suicide‑prevention initiative that gives high‑school seniors a pair of “J Boots” and asked the board to help expand the program through fundraising and an opt‑out enrollment model.
The Jay Foundation presenters said the program pairs a physical symbol (the boots) with two simple commitments for students: to perform a “boot check” (a brief check‑in with someone) and to seek help if they are not doing well. Julie Mackie, the Jay Foundation’s Wyoming outreach coordinator, told trustees the boots are intended as “a reminder of how much you’re loved. You’re valued, you’re meant to be here, and you have purpose here.”
Why it matters: program organizers say the initiative is a targeted, peer‑centered way to create more check‑in moments among students and to connect them with on‑site counselors and social workers.
Terry Moss, who introduced the presenters and identified several community funders, described the local fundraising effort. Moss said community donors provided about $60,000 to supply boots for seniors from Rock River, Whiting and Laramie High School this year. Julie Mackie said the program held “boot checks” with 129 students at Laramie High School last month and that the goal is to reach every senior in the fall.
Board discussion focused on two operational requests from the presenters. Trustee Seaton asked how trustees could help; Moss and Mackie urged district support for shifting next year’s participation to an opt‑out model (the district used opt‑in this year), and they asked for help amplifying the fundraising message so the program can fit more students and staff with boots. Moss said district staff communication could help capture more students early in the year: “We really need to figure out how to do this. Once we started to do that, these amazing people came through,” he said.
Trustees and the superintendent expressed support. One trustee said she and her son had participated in program sessions and called the effort “necessary” and statewide momentum for the program “important.” The board did not take a formal action or vote on the request at the meeting.
The presenters said they plan to run the program again this fall and encouraged district staff to plan an opt‑out enrollment cycle earlier in the term. Julie Mackie left contact information for schools at julie@jfoundation.com and said the foundation is scheduling fall visits now.
