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Committee expands outreach to barbershops, seeks to train barbers as gatekeepers through academy partnership
Summary
Committee staff said outreach expanded into barbershops, tattoo partners and repair shops to reach men ages 18–35, and reported a partnership with Next Top Barbers Academy to integrate mental-health first-aid training into its curriculum; members also discussed QPR and mental-health-first-aid trainings to build local gatekeepers.
Committee staff told the Suicide Prevention Committee they intentionally expanded outreach into barbershops, tattoo partners and repair shops to reach men ages 18–35, and that a local barber academy has agreed to incorporate mental-health first-aid training into its curriculum.
"We had 26 barbershops ... we reached 19 additional businesses and that brings our total to about 45," Lucas said, summarizing recent outreach. He said the outreach includes QR-code materials that link to a live map of community engagement.
Lucas said staff secured a partnership with Next Top Barbers Academy and with Dr. Raul Garcia to integrate mental-health first-aid into the academy’s training; he said the next cohort will participate in September and will include roughly 30 students. "We're going to integrate their mental-health first aid training into the academy," he said.
Cathy described QPR training (Question, Persuade, Refer) she recently led and noted that TAMU offered it free to current students, staff and faculty; she said she has not found a local organization providing QPR free to all community members and proposed that a certified local trainer could duplicate the offer.
Laura Cortez said Border Region will offer Mental Health First Aid trainings in July and August and will host an awareness walk at the local mental-health authority center on Sept. 13. Multiple presenters encouraged committee members and partner agencies to register for available trainings and to share dates with staff so volunteers and providers from across the region can attend.
Committee members discussed gatekeeper training logistics: some trainings take about 1–2 hours for an introductory gatekeeper course, while full certification or instructor-level training requires more time and planning. No formal vote was taken; members directed staff to continue outreach and share training dates as they are confirmed.
